Every Drop Counts!

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Make the most of the water you use in your home. Consider taking shorter showers. Invest in a low–flow toilet or put a plastic bottle filled with water in your toilet tank to reduce the amount of water used per flush. Turn off the tap while brushing teeth or shaving. Run dishwashers or laundry machines only when full. Use water left over from cooking for houseplants.

Choose landscaping plants with low water requirements. A typical lawn requires regular watering to maintain its “greenness.” Consider reducing your lawn size and replacing turf grass with native plants, shrubs, and trees that generally grow well without a lot of excess watering.

Eat foods that require less water to produce. The amount of water used to produce animal products and processed foods like soda and chips far exceeds the amount used for growing vegetables and grains. When grocery shopping, try to buy more whole foods like vegetables that are in season, and a variety of grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds.

Patronize businesses with sound water conservation practices. Many services you enjoy consume water unnecessarily. For instance, find out if any of your local car wash establishments recycle their wash water, and give your business to the one with the best water conservation practices.

Carry a refillable water container rather than buying bottled water. Production, transportation, and disposal of bottled water consume large quantities of water (and energy). You can actually conserve water by switching from the bottle to the tap.

Calculate your Water Footprint

• 1 lb plastic = 24 gallons of water
• 1 lb cotton > 100 gallons of water
• Average American = 1,189.3 gallons of water per day.

Do you know how much water you really use? Calculate your water footprint using our new online water calculator.

Resources

• Take action on water issues here.
  
• Learn about sustainable living at Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future.
  
• Center for Biodiversity and Conservation