Water Conservation is the issue that dwarfs most others. Most people don't give a shit but they will

[zonkers]

when it is too late. Here is California, we are in the middle of a drought yet I see water wasted daily both in the public and private sector.

While our statewide water restrictions are a step in the right direction -- it's basically bullshit. No one's really getting fined. We don't have the manpower to issue the fines.
Bottom line: Behavior has not been significantly modified.

If people are this indifferent in California, I can only imagine how much water is wasted in other states. Frankly, I think we are doomed unless an aggressive federal strategy is implemented, something I don't see happening quick enough.

[FrenchieCat]

1. I agree......

But don't get why this is being posted at General Discussion: Presidential. :shrug:

[scheming daemons]

4. Obviously... because it is Obama's fault

[zonkers]

13. 'cause I am a dummy.

[Occam Bandage]

2. In the long term, and geopolitically, I think you're right.

Energy's important, but water is the global resource for which consumption is closest to maximum production.

[scheming daemons]

3. The amount of water on the planet is a static resource....

"wasting" it doesn't get rid of it.... it goes back into the ecosystem.


Sure... it will need to be purified again, but it isn't lost forever.

[Occam Bandage]

6. It doesn't get rid of it, but it's still problematic.

If it goes from an slowly-replenishing underground aquifer to the ocean, it's become much harder to access. Plus, any freshwater source is going to be limited in the amount of water that can be extracted per day/week/month. As populations grow, wasted water is going to represent a very real pressure on water availability.

[patrice]

5. I frackin' HATE droughts; they freak me out! There needs to be tax credits for conservation

things like grey-water systems and sub-soil drip-irrigation.

[zonkers]

8. Many people exist on 3 gal./water per day or less. We use that amount to flush one toilet.... more..

this fact is from a list entitled 10 FACTS ABOUT WATER:

Here is the whole list....


1. Americans now use 127 percent more water than we did in 1950.

2. About 95 percent of the water entering our homes goes down the drain.

3. Running the tap while brushing your teeth can waste 4 gallons of water.

4. Older toilets can use 3 gallons of clean water with every flush, while new toilets use as little as 1 gallon.

5. Leaky faucets that drip at the rate of one drop per second can waste up to 2,700 gallons of water each year.

6. A garden hose or sprinkler can use almost as much water in an hour as an average family of four uses in one day.

7. A water-efficient dishwasher will use as little a 4 gallons per wash cycle, whereas some older models use up to 13 gallons per cycle.

8. Some experts estimate that more than 50 percent of landscape water use goes to waste due to evaporation or runoff caused by over-watering.

9. Many people in the world exist on 3 gallons of water per day or less. We can use that amount in one flush of the toilet.

10. Over a quarter of all the clean, drinkable water you use in your home is used to flush the toilets.

[sui generis]

12. and most of the world lives is abject dismal poverty.

that's not an argument.

Most of the world is horrifically overpopulated, so you're dividing available water by the number of people. Bad math.

[patrice]

15. I'm pretty good on 5 of those points. I can add the one about brushing my teeth.

I don't plan to buy a dishwasher soon, but I hope I remember to look for a water conserving one when I do.

Does it take less water to wash dishes by hand? Probably it does if you do so as they get dirty, but if you get a couple of three meals worth of dishes to do by hand, maybe not?

[sui generis]

7. So, what about Las Vegas?

Open swimming pools, lavish fountains, but that's okay because they PAY for it?

So what about people who already conserve and act conscientiously getting fined exorbitant amounts for hand watering during ration periods, while people with sprinkler systems can water to their hearts delight during non ration periods?

Why are we concerned with fining rather than charging?

[Retrograde]

11. and the other desert cities

People in the Phoenix area like to have misters in outdoor areas, essentially air-conditioning the outside. I would think all that use of water - plus evaporation from the lush, green lawns - would ultimately increase the humidity, making the place unlivable.

Most municipalities, when they do try to encourage people to conserve, go about it backwards: they'll tell homeowners they can use X% of what they used previously and fine them if they go over. However, this penalized people who had the foresight to conserve in the first place.

I have no problems with a few green areas, maybe walkable neighborhood parks for the kids to play in, or a courtyard a la Mediterranean areas. But every building does not need its own expanse of water-sucking lawn. (No, I don't have one)

[MADem]

9. New England is under water!!!!!!!!!

Pity some genius couldn't invent an effective, affordable desalinization process that really works and doesn't leave water brackish....

[zonkers]

10. Sorry I posted this in GD Pres. Too late now. Will repost in GD later. Love to all water conservers

and i encourage everyone to keep water conservation consciousness alive on these boards.

[InvisibleTouch]

14. Agree. n/t