8 Ways To Promote Water Conservation Around Your Neighborhood
How many times do you leave the faucet running longer than you should? If you’re like millions of Americans, you may be wasting water. Not only is water conservation essential for the planet, but it can cut your utility bills as well. Learn how to promote water conservation in your neighborhood.
Many of us may not think about conserving water unless we are facing a water shortage. Water conservation is essential for all living things, and it helps to keep electricity running in our homes and daily life, as we know it, continuing to run as normal.
Even though it may seem that we have a seemingly endless supply of water, only a small percentage of it is suitable for drinking. While people who live in parts of the countries were water conservation is mandatory due to drought conditions, many of us have no rules regulating how much water we use every day.
Conserving water is important wherever you live, and you can begin to make small changes by promoting conservation throughout your neighborhood and community. We will discuss some ways to help you encourage others to conserve water.
Start Making Changes At Home
If you genuinely want to be a steward of the environment and promote conserving water, you need to be committed to making the changes in your home first. As someone who conserves water, you are setting a positive example for others to follow. Here are some tips to get you started.
In Your Kitchen
If your kitchen is like most, it may easily be one of the busiest areas of your home and requires using water frequently.
One of the biggest ways to waste water is to leave the tap running and letting water go down the drain. This is common when getting a drink of water, washing hands, cleaning fruits and vegetable, and washing dishes. Being more mindful of turning off the faucet in between certain tasks can cut down on your water waste considerably.
Some other ideas include keeping a pitcher of water in the fridge rather than running the faucet each time to get a glass of cold water, only run your dishwasher when it’s full, and use your garbage disposal sparingly. You can also encourage household members to use one cup for the day to cut down on daily dishes.
In The Bathroom
?The bathroom is another common place for water wasting to occur. Avoid overusing water by shortening your shower; there are timers designed to help you get used to a shorter shower. You can also replace your shower head with a water-conserving model.
Leaking toilets and sinks can be a significant factor in wasting water. The average family can waste up to 9,400 gallons of water each year from household leaks alone. Need to be put that into perspective? That’s enough water to wash more than 300 loads of laundry.
Other Areas of the Home
If you do laundry at home, try to wash your clothes on a cold cycle whenever possible and always run a full load.
Consider getting a rain barrel to collect rainwater for watering outdoor plants rather than relying on the use of a garden hose. You can also reposition your gutter downspouts so that the rainwater will water a flower bed, garden or lawn. Avoid washing your car unless necessary and always encourage only running the hose or faucet if needed.
Get Engaged With Your Neighborhood
Once you begin to practice water conservation, you may be eager to get out and urge others to do the same. While conserving water is important, you need to approach the subject carefully and openly; many people aren’t receptive to someone telling that they “need” to make lifestyle changes.
Whether you’re a part of a homeowners association or live in a larger neighborhood, it’s important to start making connections and getting involved. If you don’t know many of your neighbors, it’s time to introduce yourself. Having a good rapport with your neighbors can be beneficial in many ways, not just for the sake of conserving water.
Give Your Neighborhood A Reason To Care About Water Conservation
Even though conserving water is important to you, you can’t assume that your neighbors will feel the same way. When you start to talk to people about water conservation, it’s a good idea to tell them why and how they benefit from saving water.
Many people have a hard time looking at the big picture, and as long as water continues to flow from their faucets (and there are no restrictions on water usage), they may be less concerned about the future of the country’s water supply.
Share resources and facts, maybe even discuss how much money you’ve saved annually by reducing your water usage. If you have changed out faucets and shower heads with water saving devices, share how well they’ve worked and even offer to help them install one in their own home.
Since conserving water can (and should) start at an early age, share some of your kid-friendly conservation tips that you use with your own family (if you have children) with other families in your neighborhood.
Visit Schools
If you’re part of a conservation group, check with schools in your neighborhood to see if you can visit the school and talk to students about ways to conserve water. More often than not, children are excited about learning how to be more eco-friendly, and if you share some “fun facts” and easy water saving tips, they are more likely to continue these practices at home.
Host An Event
Whether you’re hosting an educational or informational meeting about conserving water or a dinner party, it’s an excellent opportunity to share your own experiences and give your neighbors an inside look at how easy it can be to conserve water.
If you know of someone, who works in water conservation or is a “water activist” invite them to speak at an informal event where your friends and neighbors are attending.
Have you minimized the water use in your lawn by xeriscaping? Invite your neighbors to see your new landscaping project and offer to help them create a water-conserving landscape.
Friendly Competition or A Neighborhood Challenge
If you have a smaller neighborhood where many of the neighbors know each other, you might be able to promote saving water by creating a friendly competition involving which household can save the most water during a month.
Get creative, have fun, and reward the neighbor who has made the biggest strides in saving water.
Share What You Have
Have a rain barrel in your yard? Encourage your neighbors to use some of the water for their own gardens rather than turning on the hose.
Do you have an extra water saving shower head? Consider lending it out to a neighbor to see how well they like it as they decide whether or not they want one for their own home.
Get Involved In Your Community
Trying to encourage your neighbors to conserve water might be a little intimidating, but if you get involved in your community and at a larger level, you may have more success being part of the change in your community.
Whether you join a conservation group or start your own, you can be a part of planning events and meeting with officials in your city. As a group, you may be able to promote conserving water easily and more effectively by applying for grants or encourage water-saving ordinances.
Find a way to promote conservation that makes you feel comfortable, motivated, and like you are making a change. Some people prefer to go out on their own while others are motivated by being part of a larger group.
Addition Tips For Water Conservation
Conserving water is easy, but it takes practice, patience, and a little sacrifice. Some people are easier to get on board with reducing their water usage while others have a more difficult time of breaking water-wasting habits like long showers and washing the car on Sunday afternoons.
As someone who already conserves water, it can be frustrating to watch your neighbors and community members waste water. As you promote reducing water usage, it’s important to be positive, friendly, and encouraging. People don’t want to feel “attacked” or even guilty for choosing to use a garden hose.
The best thing you can do is continue to reach out to people in your neighborhood and inspire them to make positive changes. While everyone may not feel the same passion as you do about conserving water, you can supply them with the information they need to make the first steps to reducing water waste.