Saving Water is a Family Effort!

10/12/20

Water is California’s most valuable resource. Did you know in 2019 each Californian used 86 gallons of water per day? That’s three baths worth of water every day, just being used around the house!

Saving water is important even when we are not in a drought, and it is an environmentally friendly practice that can result in fewer greenhouse gas emissions from the extraction, processing, and transportation of treated water.

We hope you will find this list of tips helpful for all family members, including kids, to save water around the house.

Tips for kids

  • Take showers more often than baths.
  • When you take showers, set a timer for 5 minutes.
  • Wash pets on areas of lawn that need watering.
  • If you drop ice cubes, don’t throw them in the sink, drop in houseplant pots instead.
  • Use one glass of water per day to reduce the number of dishes that need to be done.

Tips for everyone

  • Fix leaky plumbing fixtures
  • Recycle indoor water to use on plants
  • Plant drought-tolerant or native plants and trees
  • Compost food scraps instead of using the garbage disposal (Find out how you can compost through the County's website)
  • Use wash basins and soak pots when washing dishes instead of letting water run

More information on these tips can be found here and here.

Some of these tips, like shortening showers to 5 minutes, can save up to 1000 gallons a month. Others, like fixing leaky plumbing fixtures, can save 5 gallons a day if they leak a drop a second. The rest, like tossing ice cubes into houseplants or washing your pets on areas that need watering, are creative ways to use every drop of water we’re given.

Kitchen Sink
Turn off the sink faucet when not in use.
Arid Landscape
Arid desert species can create beautiful front gardens and use a fraction of the water that grass does.