Contaminated or dirty water claims more lives than guns. One in eight people in the world do not have access to potable water. At the moment 66% of all water consumption is taken up with irrigation often for crops such as coffee and cotton that does not add to human nourishment. Many parts of the world are suffering from severe drought and are classified as ‘water stressed’. India with the world’s second biggest population is rapidly running out of fossil water supplies.
In short the water situation of the world is far bleaker than the oil situation. If oil ran out tomorrow humanity would survive. The same cannot be said if water ran out. It is therefore imperative that people in developed countries do more to conserve water supplies. Having running fresh water appears to be an invitation to waste water in the subconscious of many people. This mind set needs to be changed.
Along with a change in attitudes, needs to come a change in home water equipment. The average shower uses 5 gallons of water every 60 seconds. An 8-minute shower uses as much water as a bath does. For a small investment you can install a low flow showerhead in the bathroom that reduces the gallon flow per minute rate to just 2.5 gallons. This is achieved by mixing air with the water. There is no loss in water strength or any reduction in cleaning power. Many people actually prefer showering with a low flow shower as the aerated water has a spa like quality.
Another simple way to reduce water use in the home is to fix faucet aerators around the house. These cost just a few dollars each and again halve water flow rates without sacrificing the effectiveness of the faucet spray to clean.
Finally, it is a good idea to wrap lagging around hot water pipes so the water heats up quicker and thus you waste less water waiting for the warm water to start flowing.
These are just some of the ways you can not only reduce your water utility bills but also salve your conscience regarding the near criminal waste of water that occurs in many homes in developed countries.
