Blog Action Day: Water

Hi dudes and dudettes (channeling my inner Happy Days persona)

{Image source: hypergurl, flickr}

I know I said I wasn't going to post this week, and to be honest I still have nothing much to say, but I remembered that today is Blog Action Day, and the theme is water. Not having enough water, the lack of fresh water, people's access to water, what the planet needs with its water. So I'm going to write a quick post about how water affects us, and how our needs and uses affect others.

I'm willing to bet that when you were at school, you did that test, where brushing your teeth with the tap on and off was compared, and you were all told not to waste water by brushing them with the tap on. Yes? Me too. But we weren't told about when to water our gardens, to prevent burning the grass (yes, it happens, that's why people get brown lawns), or how often to water plants to avoid drowning them (yes, I've drowned a plant, you mean you haven't?) Quite frankly, I don't think I learnt enough at school about how to look after the planet and how to manage my water needs, and I wish I knew more.

Anyway, think about it. We cook, and I can bet that the most used item in your kitchen isn't your fancy chefs knife, or your chopping board, it's the water you use for steaming, boiling, washing, adding to stocks and so on. Water is the central element in our lives, and if we are stupid enough to waste that resource? Then we are destined for failure.

Here are some little facts about water:
Did you know? It takes 24l of water to produce one hamburger. That's over 19.9 billion liters of water to make just one hamburger for every person in Europe.
Don't eat fast food, people. Make your own, it's easy, healthier and better for the environment.
Did you know? Over 17 million barrels of oil are needed to manufacture the plastic bottles used for water bottles, 86 percent of which will never be recycled.
South Africans? DRINK TAP WATER. We have the 3rd cleanest water on the planet, and it tastes great! Fill glass or thicker plastic bottles, and refrigerate it for cool water. You don't need to drink bottled water!

OK. I use 1259 cubic meters of water per year. That's quite a lot, and I aim to bring that down in the next year. Find out how much you use, here, and aim to use less water in the coming year. Wash your car less often, turn off the tap when you brush your teeth, install a low flow shower head, or a multi-flush toilet flusher. Not only will you save money, you'll be helping the environment.

So here's to Blog Action Day, and saving the environment!