Water Conservation - How Cute! Part I

Have you heard that Jennifer Aniston takes 3-minute showers? Yeah. She even brushes her teeth in the shower. The Queen of Ageless is also the Queen of Resource Conservation. Get his woman a crown!

According to The Green Book, if everyone in the U.S. cut their shower short by a gallon, we could save enough water to replenish the water drawn from the Great Lakes in just one year. Imagine that impact!

If you don't know about the world water crisis, stop reading this right now and go watch the 18-minute "The World's Water Crisis" episode of Explained on Netflix (but leave this tab open, you'll want to come back).

Crazy, right? Are you stressed? Inspired? We all know that clean water is a problem in third world countries and that water is scarce in the desert - this isn't news - but, what we fail to realize is where our water is coming from and where it is going.

In Arizona, our public water comes from the Central Arizona Project, a 336-mile canal that diverts water from the Colorado River and serves as the water source for 80% of the population. This system was necessary because earlier generations of Americans found tapping groundwater to be a miraculous and convenient discovery - it allowed for civilizations to move inland and away from rivers. Unfortunately, depleting groundwater led to the subsidence of land as the water table shrinks.

This water that comes from the ground and the CAP is considered "hard" water. It has high levels of calcium carbonate, which can be hard on pipes, tiles, hair, and skin. Use of this water also adds the extra cost of treatment systems and softeners.

Rainwater, on the other hand, is free and high quality. It is distilled, free of salts, and high in minerals, sulfur, and nitrogen, which makes it a houseplant's dream! It is also said to be a natural hair conditioner - we love free beauty products!

Let's start small:

- Turn off the facet when brushing your teeth (or be like Jen and brush in the shower!).

- Fill your entire dishwasher before running it.

- If you flush your toilet one less time per day, you could save about 4.5 gallons of water, which is the daily average water use of people in Africa.*

- Minimize the number of times you do your laundry. I started waiting until my loads were much bigger, and now I do 2-3 loads per month.

- *Reader Suggestion: Ellen* When you're at a restaurant, don't ask for more water than you'll drink. Servers make a point to keep your glass full, but if you're not going to drink it, that water is just going to end up in the grey water system.

Bigger steps:

- If you're interested in water harvesting, consider placing containers outside during rainy seasons. You can use this water for watering indoor plants, washing dishes, or you can give it to your pets! It's salt-free and is as pure as possible.

- If you live in a house with outdoor plants, consider carving a small basin around the roots of your plants. This will allow for water to gather and infiltrate the soil near the plants.

Next time, I'll get into grey water uses, how to assess your rainwater harvesting capabilities, and smart business practices that can save you $$$.

Comment below if you have any questions or suggestions!