Water conservation

[TexasHusker]

So when is the earth projected to run out of water at this pace? I mean we are starting to see shortages of dirt too. Lowe’s has been out for weeks.

[kork13]

The little town we live in is very concerned about water, because the sinking water table can't support the level of population growth they're seeing.

Wasted water is everywhere, and it's particularly bad in agricultural settings.

Simple opportunities to save water abound.
- Watering at night vs. heat of the day...or just not watering... There's always xeriscaping.
- Don't needlessly leave a faucet running. Washing hands, showering, washing cars, playing with the hose, whatever.
- Collect & seal water vs. letting it evaporate.
I have a different perspective than most, because growing up on Guam, we didn't always have reliably available & safe water due to the frequency of the typhoons that would roll through. Power goes out, water plants go quiet, and we have no water. So we always had a couple barrels filled with rainwater, plus smaller containers to store water inside as well.

On the larger scale, I've never understood why municipalities store huge amounts of water (ex: post-treatment) in lakes & man-made reservoirs. Pump it back down into the aquifers, or store it somewhere that it won't simply evaporate.

Eventually this country will realize what other regions have known forever -- Water is life. Forget oil pipelines...we need water pipelines. The water's not going anywhere, it's all still right here on earth... It just getting concentrated in different places (mostly the atmosphere & ocean). I saw an article at some point recently that California was looking to reopen its desalination plants. It's expensive, but that's realistically going to be the best solution available. The trick will be unlocking a more energy & materially efficient way to perform desalination in large quantities.

[TexasHusker]

Some people are just full of **** and need bigger toilets.

Golf balls are *really* bad for septic systems.

Yes correct and they aren’t cheap either. A box of pro v1s is 50 bucks these days unless you have some sort of odd coupon.

[ua_guy]

When we replaced our toilets, we went with the high capacity ones where you can literally flush a bucket of golf balls. I'm not advocating flushing golf balls as I think it could be hurtful to the environment, but just a thought.

Some people are just full of **** and need bigger toilets.

Golf balls are *really* bad for septic systems.

[ua_guy]

Drought in the west isn't anything new, but it has gotten worse. Water availability can affect food prices substantially. Big and small AG's ability to get water for irrigation is huge out here. Conserving water at home for personal use, just for the sake of conservation, seems like a higher purpose than lingering in the shower or using excessive amounts of water to flush, or water lawns....

I am not a fan of lawns. There are so many natural ways to have a beautifully landscaped yard which doesn't involve lawn or excessive watering routines.

[TexasHusker]

Yes and you're probably paying a higher water bill now, correct?

Could be, but I don't seem to be spending any more on golf balls currently.

[james.hendrickson]

When we replaced our toilets, we went with the high capacity ones where you can literally flush a bucket of golf balls. I'm not advocating flushing golf balls as I think it could be hurtful to the environment, but just a thought.

Yes and you're probably paying a higher water bill now, correct?

[TexasHusker]

When we replaced our toilets, we went with the high capacity ones where you can literally flush a bucket of golf balls. I'm not advocating flushing golf balls as I think it could be hurtful to the environment, but just a thought.

[james.hendrickson]

Oh and for some snark...don't have 50 kids to contribute to population problems.

[james.hendrickson]

Um, actually, this matters if you're paying for water. There are some things you can do to save water.

1. Install a water efficient showerhead.
2. Put a plastic bottle with some rocks or whatnot inside it in the back of your toilet tank. Fill it with water to be sure its weighed down. This should take up some of the volume of water in the back of the tank without harming the efficiency of the toilets ability to flush. On average you'll save a few gallons a week, which should reduce your water bill proportionally.
3. Fix all leaks right away.
4. Turn off the water when you're saving, brushing teeth, rinsing dishes.

This is all basic stuff, but it works.

[TexasHusker]

Much has been written lately about the mega drought in the West. A lot of this comes down to simply wasting water. Taking half-hour showers, putting way too much water in the pot to boil spaghetti. It all adds up and it's ridiculous really. Even drinking too much water is wasteful. Here we are losing this precious resource and we are drinking the stuff away. Instead of reaching for yet another bottle of water, why not alternate with maybe a Coke Zero? They are delicious and help preserve the water.

What are some other ideas out there to save water?