By Kreg Weiss, B HKin • April 7th, 2008

When temperatures get warmer, people have a tendency to increase their water consumption for activities such as watering lawns and gardens and washing the car. Making an effort to break any water-wasting habits now will pay off in the summer. And it's easier to reduce your water consumption than you may think.

There is reason for people to reduce the amount of water we use. According to environmentalindicators.com, overall water use in North America has increased by more than 25% since 1980. In fact, daily average for water use is 335L, which could be hugely reduced.

The good news is that there are loads of ways to save water.   Here are a few ideas to get you started:

Run water only when necessary
• Do not run water while shaving, brushing teeth, or scrubbing your hands or dishes
• Lower the temperature of drinking water by keeping it in the refrigerator rather than running the tap
• Thaw frozen foods in the refrigerator overnight rather than using water

Short showers use less water than baths
• The key word here is short, as long showers use a lot of water too
• If you do take baths, close the drain first and then turn the water on
• Try not to fill the tub more than halfway

Use your machines efficiently
• Wash the dishes or the laundry only when there is a full load
• Select the appropriate load size or water level on your washer
• Try to use the shortest wash cycle your dish washer allows

Take a minute to calculate your water use. Thinking about all of your water consumption in the time it takes to complete the survey makes you realize just how much water you use. And the questions in the survey alone can give you some good ideas for saving water. Next week's Green Tip will focus on more ways to save water.

Kreg Weiss is a co-founder of My Yoga Online and certified Hatha Yoga Teacher....

• <<
• <
• 1
• 2
• >
• >>

Location:  Montreal, CA

Kreg is a co-founder of My Yoga Online and certified Hatha Yoga Teacher. Several years ago, Kreg discovered yoga while teaching health and fitness. Yoga dramatically transformed Kreg's approach to teaching health and...