I have a really hard time flushing the toilet with drinking water. It feels very wrong to me and I avoid it when ever possible (even though I have a toilet with a half flush option). When I wash dishes, I rinse them over a pot which I empty into a bucket. This provides at least 2 flushes for every load of dishes. If we bathe we use the bath water for a few flushes.
We collect rain water off the roof and use it for flushing and sometimes for the laundry. But, we often get enough water just from warming up the shower to cover the laundry.
I have a well in an area with a groundwater shortage, so I am having an immediate effect. Most people don’t think about how their usage sends freshwater into the ocean. There are high-tech ways to deal with this, beyond pots and buckets. New houses should have gray water systems. Household gray water or recycled waste water is appropriate for toilets. I’m afraid that if we don’t change our ways, we will all eventually end up drinking recycled waste water .
Why have commodities such as water (and gas) stayed so cheap in the US for so long? These commodities have a limited supply. Why haven’t prices risen very much with increased demand?
If the government wants to change behaviour, they should tax gas and water. Or how about rewarding conservation. If you lower your water and gas use, you get a rebate. Doing both would be best, the carrot and the stick combined. Higher prices are the best way to encourage innovation and conservation.
One Comment
And so I do the same, think the same and promote it