Every Drop Counts

In Sussex County, we live in a relatively water-rich region, receiving between 40 and 45 inches of precipitation each year.  With so much water—and many clean natural water sources, including the artesian wells that pump water from beneath the ground in Stokes State Forest—we sometimes don’t realize how much we take water for granted.  Water is the source of all life on earth, but our freshwater resources are depleting due to overuse and pollution.  In New Jersey, populations are increasing while water resources remain constant, creating a more stressful demand on our water supplies.

The average American uses approximately 100 gallons of water each day.  The average New Jersey resident uses approximately 70 gallons of water each day, but during the summer, this number jumps to 155 gallons of water each day.  However, these numbers only include water used in the home, for things like bathing, cooking, doing laundry, and flushing toilets.  These numbers don’t include the water used to produce the food that we eat or the energy that we use.  And less than 1% of Earth’s water is available for human use!  The rest is salt water in the oceans, frozen water locked up in icebergs and polar ice caps, or simply inaccessible or polluted water.

Many people in the world don’t have access to nearly the same amount of water as we do in the United States.  The average global citizen only uses approximately 2.5 gallons of water each day.  In many developing countries, this water is often unsafe to drink and too polluted for good hygiene.  Additionally, humans aren’t the only ones who depend on clean, safe water.  The plants and animals in our surrounding environment need this water as well. 

In school, we learn about the water cycle: evaporation and transpiration, condensation, precipitation, and collection or storage.  We know from the water cycle that water is recycled, that we can keep using it again and again.  However, the water cycle is not completely reliable.  Water doesn’t always return to the same places or in the same quantities.  Some of the water that returns to the earth through precipitation may be inaccessible for human use, or it may become polluted, depending on where it travels.  For all of these reasons, it is important to treat the water that is accessible to us—and other organisms—very carefully.  

You’d be surprised to learn just how much water we use to produce our foods and other materials.  About 70% of water worldwide is used for agriculture.  In the United States, the great Ogallala Aquifer, an underground freshwater source, is used to irrigate farms across the Great Plains.  However, the water supply in this aquifer is shrinking rapidly, and some people believe that the water will only last a mere 25 more years.  This isn’t very long at all, considering it takes approximately 40 gallons of water to produce an egg, 80 gallons of water to produce an ear of corn, 150 gallons of water to produce a loaf of bread, and 2,500 gallons of water to produce one pound of beef!  Additionally, it takes up to 25 gallons of water to produce one gallon of gasoline, 280 gallons of water to produce a Sunday newspaper, and 100,000 gallons of water to produce a new car!

There’s no way around it: as a society, we Americans use a lot of water.  Luckily, there are many simple things you can do to conserve water.  For starters, make sure you don’t leave the faucet dripping.  A dripping faucet can waste 20 gallons of water a day!  If you see a faucet dripping, try to turn it off, or ask somebody to fix it.  You can also turn off the water while you are brushing your teeth or soaping up your hands, and only use the water to rinse.  Similarly, if you are washing dishes by hand, don’t leave the water running while you do so; soap up first, then rinse them all at once.  If you are going to run the dishwasher or the washing machine, make sure you have a full load of dishes or laundry to make sure you are using the water as efficiently as possible.  Time yourself: take shorter showers.  And you don’t need to flush the toilet every time you use it.  If it’s yellow, let it mellow!  Keeping the lid of the toilet shut will help prevent the spread of bacteria or odors.

If you have pet fish, and you change the water in their tank, instead of dumping the water down the drain, use it to water your plants.  In the summer, the water collected from your dehumidifier can also be used to water the plants.  It’s more efficient to go to the car wash than to wash your car by hand.  If you want to wash your car at home, do it on the lawn, so the grass will benefit from the water as well!  Water your garden or lawn early in the morning or late in the evening, when the sun is not strong and will not evaporate too much water, and the plants will be able to use more of the water.

Finally, don’t use plastic water bottles.  Each year, 1.5 million barrels of crude oil are used for making plastic bottles.  That’s enough oil to power 100,000 American cars for a whole year!  And often, the water from a plastic bottle isn’t even as good as the water that comes out of your faucet.  For example, a four-year study by the National Resources Defense Council found that one-fifth of the 103 water products they tested contained synthetic organic chemicals.  Many bottled water companies just get the water straight from the tap, anyway!  Find a reusable water bottle and use it—again and again.  You’ll limit your waste and you’ll save water.  Remember that it takes 25 gallons of water to produce one gallon of gasoline.  Just imagine how much water is used to produce the 1.5 million barrels of crude oil used for making plastic bottles!  You’ll also be cutting your carbon footprint by eliminating the transportation associated with delivering bottled water to stores.

With a simple Google search online, you’ll be able to find hundreds and hundreds of tips about how to save water.  To start, try going to 100 Ways to Conserve or Water Conservation Tips.  Happy conserving!

References:

"100 Ways To Conserve." Water Conservation Tips, Facts and Resources. Water Use It Wisely. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. http://www.wateruseitwisely.com/100-ways-to-conserve/index.php.

"How to Go Green: Water." TreeHugger. 3 Dec. 2006. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. http://www.treehugger.com/htgg/how-to-go-green-water.html.

"New Jersey Water Fact Sheet." WaterSense. EPA, July 2010. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. http://www.epa.gov/watersense/docs/new_jersey_state_fact_sheet.pdf.

NJSOC Water Ecology Fact Sheet.

"Our Water." WaterSense. EPA. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. http://www.epa.gov/watersense/our_water/index.html.

"Water Conservation Tips." National Geographic. Web. 12 Apr. 2012. http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/freshwater/water-conservation-tips/.