Happy World Water Day!
Protect communities and our planet by reducing the amount of water you use. To help you get started, we’ve compiled a list of 14 things to do in your life to reduce water waste.
1. Thrift and mend your clothes
Did you know that it takes 2700 litres of water to make the average t-shirt? Jeans are even worse. One pair takes 7600 litres. That means an average outfit uses 10,300 litres of water to make. Think about it…10,300 Nalgene water bottles full of water. Avoid purchasing new clothes whenever possible to help save water.
2. Install low-flow fixtures
Save water and money by installing low-flow toilets, shower heads and faucets. For a household of four people, this means over 100,000 litres of water saved per year.
3. Turn off the tap while washing your face, brushing your teeth and shaving
Don’t think that keeping the tap on while doing these things takes up that much water? Plug the drain sometime and see just how much is collected in the sink. Multiply that over 365 days, likely a few times a day. That’s a lot of water.
4. Aerate your lawn
Ensure as much rain water as possible soaks into your lawn by periodically aerating it. Not only will you save water, you will also put less effort into watering your lawn.
5. If it’s yellow, let it mellow
Depending on your toilet, each flush uses 6-26 litres of water. Resist flushing your toilet whenever possible.
6. Save leftover ice
Have leftover ice in a bowl or cup? Instead of dumping it in the sink, let it melt and use the water to hydrate your plants (or drink it yourself).
7. Get a rain barrel
Save rain water and use it to water your garden, indoor plants and lawn.
8. Fix leaks
One drip per second equates to 19 litres of water per day. Check inside and outside your home to ensure no water is leaking.
9. Don’t use more dishes than you need
More dishes means more washing. Not only does that mean extra time and effort, it also means extra wasted water. Your dinner tastes just as good served in the pot it was made in as it does in your fancy serving bowl.
10. Reuse your pasta boiling water
Cooking pasta (or vegetables)? Let the water cool and use it to water your plants.
11. Avoid mid-day plant and lawn watering
Extra water is evaporated when you water your plants and yard in high-heat. The most efficient time to do outdoor watering is during low-heat.
12. Shorten your showers
Already taking short showers? Maybe it’s time to cut back on the number of times you shower per week. A quick wipe with a soapy washcloth goes a long way in preventing smells.
13. Only run your washing machine and dishwasher when full
Don’t waste water by running loads that aren’t full. This will save water and time by cutting down on the number of loads you do.
14. Put a weighted bottle in your toilet tank
Ultimately, a newer more efficient toilet is best. But that’s not a realistic option for everyone. If your toilet is an old, water-sucking one (from around 1990 or earlier), place a weighted bottle in the tank to decrease the amount of water used with each flush. More here.
When I run the hot tap for dishes or shower etc I save the water in a bucket (the water heater is a longway from the kitchen) and use that to flush the toilet.
it’s is very helpful to me to my science subjects thank you so much
Nice aha
Nice information
Leaky water faucets is amongst the leading cause of water wastage in kitchen, unimaginable amount of water is wastage in case of a faucet leak. Therefore, it is essential to regularly check your faucets for repair and in case of leak get them repaired through a professional plumber.
That was helpful doing my science project and thanks for your help <3
agree
same here
this was helpfull
I will take actions.
This was very informative. Just to know the little thing we can do to help our bill is great. Some of the comments were also great.
I had not thought of reusing water in which you boiled pasta or vegetables for watering plants! That’s a great idea.
That is a correct point. i don’t think it will be healthy for the plant
Water from cooking food has extra nutrients in it, and helps to support the plant’s growth! It’s actually very healthy for plants to be watered like that.
actually when you cook your pasta you should put salt, and this is not healthy at all for the plants. Instead, if you are just boiling vegetables such as potatoes and others whitout adding salt the water can be reused.
I pY for my water on a meter and we live in a very wet country.
I’ll use as much water as I want.
If the water company rewarded me for lower consumption then I’d try to reduce it. They don’t.
If the millennials in the household stopped leaving taps on and showering every few hours or taking baths to languish in or running the water until it is cold or hot enough for them, we’d save a lot more. Looks like they are costing their own futures – how dare they! ?
It would be great for water companies to incentivize water use reduction! We wish they would do that too.
We also agree that people of all ages have a responsibility to help reduce water usage – whether they are 8 or 80!
Unfortunately, simply living in a water-rich country doesn’t mean that it’s ecologically sound to use as much water as we want. Treating that water and transporting it to the tap takes chemicals and energy; treating the wastewater uses further resources. Depending on where you are, drawing water from a river or lake, even if it’s put back in after sewage/wastewater treatment, can reduce flow and water levels to a point that is detrimental to aquatic life. Lastly, wastewater, even after it’s been treated (to varying levels of effectiveness), often contributes to algal blooms and other aquatic life problems, due to the various substances it carries (often related to nitrogen loads). So even in a water-rich country, conservation still makes sense!
Yes, you are correct !
what a nice idea does the writer have.
my doubt is weather the writer follow these things.
does he save water really or pretending like he save water for future.
We do our best to “walk the talk” at Green Action Centre! As staff, we all have a long way to go, but we strive to improve where we can. What is your favourite environmental action or way to conserve water? I love my low-flow showerhead and am excited to get a rainbarrel set up next spring to save water usage for my garden!
can you please put some quotes on this page
Drinking tap water, instead of bottled water, saves 3L for every 1L you drink! Bottles of water take 3 litres to make just one 1 litre bottle – plus buy purchasing it, you contribute to the commodification of a human right. (Of course, if the place where you live does not have safe-to-drink tap water, bottled may be your only option! But basically everywhere in Southern Manitoba has high-quality tap water available on demand for nearly free).