California needs to conserve water and here is how to do it.
Due to Blistering heat waves, worsening drought and destructive wildfires, California is facing a water crisis. Its reservoirs are already at critically low levels due to drought and on top of that residents and businesses across the state are using more water than they have in seven years. Gov. Gavin Newsom is trying to encourage businesses and residents to reduce their water consumption by at least 15% but it seems to have the opposite effect because water use is up by 19% compared to the same time last year.
Part of the problem is that the message is that of how urgent this crisis is and who the water conservation applies to and how much 15% really is. Another problem is that there are no mandates on restrictions for businesses and industries that use the vast majority of the state’s water. The fact is that there is too little urgency in the message and very little information regarding water conservation. Considering that California always seems to be dealing with low water levels and severe droughts, water conservation should be part of all residents, businesses and governments.
However, California residents should expect more water restrictions coming soon including outdoor watering restrictions.
t’s time for us all to engage more in how we view water use and how we manage it. We cannot continue the path we’re on because projections suggest that the world may face a 40% shortfall in water availability by 2030, affecting at least 1.8 billion people.
So, what can we as individuals do? The good news is that there are many things, small and large, we all can do to lessen our water usage. Here are some examples of what my family and I do:
1. Let your lawn turn brown—Nothing is more sad than a brown, dead, dry garden…except, well, no water at all. So, as hard as it is to stop watering your lawn, it’s a must. Maybe this is a great time to replace your lawn with something that requires less water. As a matter of fact, you can save as much as 70 gallons of water per week by replacing grass with artificial turf or heat-tolerant landscaping such as rocks and cacti.
2. Harvest rainwater—I know that if it does not rain often, to suggest harvesting rainwater sounds strange, but believe me those few times it rains really can fill up a rain barrel. And that water can be used for so much.
3. Install a grey water system—Grey water systems save water by collecting water from showers, sinks and washing machines; then cleaning it up and pumping it back into the toilet, washing machine, and to an outside tap so it can be used for watering a garden, too. Use of grey water can actually reduce water usage by 50% or so.
4. Skip baths and take shorter showers—I, for sure, enjoy relaxing in a hot bath or, at the very least, taking a nice long shower. But no more! Shorter showers are the right way to go when saving water because for each minute in the shower there are another five gallons of water down the drain. One good way to conserve is to install a low-flow shower head: it costs only about $5 but can save about 2 gallons of water per minute. Compared to a standard shower head, a family of four can save approximately 20,000 gallons of water per year.
5. Turn off water while washing hands and brushing teeth—According to the EPA, you can save up to 8 gallons of water every day if you just turn off water while brushing your teeth. That adds up to at least 200 gallons a month.
6. Skip soda and beer—I know I’m talking about reducing our water usage, but drinking only water is still a better option compared to drinking beer and soda: 20 gallons of water go into making one pint of beer, and roughly two glasses of water go into that glass of soda.
7. Say “no” to water in restaurants unless you plan to drink it all.
8. Use a dishwashing machine instead of hand washing dishes—One thing that I learned — which surprised me — is that you save more water by using a dishwasher instead of washing dishes by hand. If you don’t have a dishwasher, your best way to conserve water is by soaking and washing dishes in a basin filled with water. You might be tempted to use disposable plates to save water, but it’s a sad fact that it takes loads of water to produce disposable plates, cups and cutlery.
9. Use a broom to Clean Outdoor Areas-
Using a broom to clean outdoor areas instead of water can save 6 gallons every minute.
For more ideas on how to help save water go here:
https://zerowastefamily.com/tapping-towards-solutions-water-preservation/#.WNbS3LGZOCQ
https://zerowastefamily.com/saving-water-garden/#.WNbTMbGZOCQ
https://zerowastefamily.com/recycling-grey-water/#.WNbTSbGZOCQ
