Infrastructure Leakage Index (ILI) as Water Losses Indicator

The key in developing a strategy for management of non-revenue water (NRW) is to gain a better understanding of the reasons for NRW and the factors which influence its components. The components of NRW can be determined by conducting a water balance analysis. The International Water Association (IWA) provides a water balance calculation that gives guidance to estimate how much is lost as leakage from the network (physical losses), and how much is due to non physical losses. Further, IWA has established the Infrastructure Leakage Index (ILI), a performance indicator for comparisons of leakage management in water supply systems. This paper introduces ILI and reasons why it is a more appropriate approach to use than the percentage of system input volume.