Call it water

Call it water!

When I was writing about air last week the other thing which came immediately to mind was water. Thinking about water was always my thing because I think one day clean drinking water will be sparse on this planet. We need to save water but it is actually difficult to realise that when it is raining AGAIN! We had flash floods already and several homes have been flooded in the area. Clean drinking water is still an important issue. Sometimes I find it strange that we have to pay for water. It is almost feels like paying for air because water is another essential thing you need to be able to live. The human body is 75% water so water plays an important role. You can survive 40 or more days without food but 3 days without water or any fluid intake will kill you and it is not a peaceful death.

So think about water the next time your tap is dripping and have that tap fixed as soon as possible. Do you really need a baths every day or will a shower do? Running a baths will use a lot more water than having a shower. When you have a shower, don't indulge under the running hot water but make it as brief as possible. 4 minutes will do. Do you really need to wash your hair every day? Unless you are working on a building site, in a mill or other dusty environment it can be bad for your hair to wash it every day. There are other possibilities to save water like using a washing up bowl to do the dishes and turning the tap off when you clean your teeth. Wash your fruit and vegetable into a bowl or bucket and use the water for watering the garden. In the garden some water barrels to collect rain water for watering can make a huge difference to the water you use.

One thing which is important as well is that we keep the water we use as clean as possible. So don't pour any old cooking oil down the sink. There is a collection tank up at Hopton Indultrial Estate at the dump where you can put it and I don't want to mention the wet wipes. Do you really need them? What about using a wet flanel? If you do need wet wipes then put them in the bin and don't flush them down the toilet. The Wessex Water Magazine mentioned this week that you just should flush the 3 P's ( that is poo, pee and paper).

I hope I told you something new and you will think about it, if not, there might be water saving ideas you want to share with me but do remember: One day there will be wars over the access to clean drinking water.

Photograph by Roger Giraud-Saunders