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It doesn't take a porta-potty!
Nancy Marshall-Genzer photo
My ears perked up when the Marketplace Morning Report ran a story this morning about the tri-state water wars and what people were doing to reduce their water use. I'm a bit of a water efficiency nut, and I feel like the issue is generally under-reported in the mass media. And unlike energy efficiency, which can be pretty complicated, water efficiency is easy.
So I was excited by the possibility that the story would identify some of the many state-of-the-shelf water efficiency measures that are available. Instead, they talked about a dental clinic in Athens that was using port-a-potties to reduce water use! While I can appreciate the intent, and the clinic is to be commended for trying to be more responsible, come on! Why not run a story with examples of all the new efficient and ultra-efficient plumbing fixtures that can yield significant water savings without the ick factor?
Waterless urinals use no water, utilize conventional plumbing waste lines, and have become 'standard' on many campuses, such as Arizona State University and Harvard. Dual-flush toilets allow you to select a 'half-flush' option for liquid waste. Sloan even makes an automatic dual-flush flush valve that decides how much water to use based upon the duration of your 'visit'. Simple low-flow aerators on faucets can significantly reduce water use. And all can be incorporated in a retrofit, as they utilize conventional plumbing.
In my experience, these three simple strategies in combination can cut restroom water use in half, without resorting to sticking port-a-potties outside your office. That's just gross.
Jim's right - water efficiency is EASY. But, there's another half to the story - the outdoors. According to the EPA, Americans use more than <a href="http://www.epa.gov/watersense/pubs/outdoor.htm">7 billion gallons of water per day</a> on landscape irrigation. About half of this is <strong>wasted</strong>.
Here, too, there are some very easy solutions.
1) water properly - not too often, and deep enough but not too long,
2) water early morning - when the water won't just evaporate,
3) tune the irrigation system to water the landscaping, not the driveway,
4) soil-moisture sensors and weather-based controllers avoid irrigating when it's raining or the soil doesn't need it.
Of course, I can't think about just water when it comes to landscaping. A lot more than water is wasted. The time (and money) maintaining it, gas mowing/blowing and trimmings, fertilizers.
For the people like me, there are other solutions. I've chosen to plant native plants that don't require water (or weeding, mowing or fertilizers) after they're established. There are some grass-like plants in this category. Between my native flower garden and hardy shrubs I use little water, no fertilizer, and my reel mower does the trick in 15 minutes.
