Six Ways to Love Our Water
It makes up 50% of trees, 70% of planet Earth, 73% of our brains and 83% of our lungs. Even our bones boast 31% of the liquid sustenance. Yes, water truly is life. The transparent fluid fills our spirits as we paddle across a river at sunset, influences all our body functions, and supports every living being in our world. Yet this precious natural treasure is under threat.
In our country alone, nearly half the fresh waters are contaminated with bacteria, chemical run-offs, and garbage. We automatically turn on our faucets with confidence that our water companies or wells protect us from dangerous H2O. But the web of water-dependent life is far more complex, and it becomes harder and harder to safeguard supplies when everything in our world is so intimately connected.
It’s not as if we can just get more water to replace the bad stuff. The amount of dihydrogen monoxide (water’s scientific name) has been the same since earth formed two billion years ago, constantly recirculated through a cycle of evaporation and precipitation. It’s kind of cool to think that we’re drinking the same water as the dinosaurs did, but it doesn’t help our current problems.
What will? Love!
As the famous ocean explorer Jacques Cousteau said, “People protect what they love.” So, in honor of today’s World Water Day I’m asking: How will you love our water?
Here are six ways that won’t cost you anything but your attention:
1. Know where the flow goes. Everything in the storm drain by my house winds up in a beautiful local lake, where people swim, kayak, fish and more. Find maps online, in your library or at town hall that show where water flows from your yard and street either through storm drains or underground aquifers. Then whenever you’re tempted to pitch any liquid outdoors, imagine it floating in the recipient waterway.
2. Be aware of lawn care. Nitrogen and phosphorus are leading causes of water pollution. If extra fertilizer, grass clippings and dirt land on your sidewalk, driveway or street, sweep them back onto the lawn. Don’t blow loose clippings to the curb and especially not down storm drains. Choose least toxic pesticides and lawn care plans.
3. Don’t leave your pet poop. Almost a third of the parasites, E. coli and other bacteria contaminating our waterways come from dog poop. Also, it’s gross to step in someone else’s mess. So pick up after your pet.
4. Ditch household chems properly. Our homes are filled with aerosols, solvents, paints and pest control products. But let’s call them what they really are: household hazardous waste (HHZ). They might make life easier, but they wreak havoc on our water supply. So if you use them, never pour any down your drains. Instead, find a hazardous waste center near you and drop them off. How do you know if something is HHZ? The label usually contains the words flammable, toxic, corrosive or reactive.
5. Turn that faucet off. Although water covers 70% of the planet, less than 1% is drinkable. With population growing, the amount of available water is spread even thinner. That’s why conservation is so important. One easy tip? Turn off your faucet while you scrub pots or brush your teeth. Just think, every time you brush your teeth, about four gallons goes down the drain. A family of four could save over 2,400 gallons of water a year (and its cost) just by shutting the tap until they rinse.
6. Drink, drink, drink some good H2O. You hear it all the time, but it’s true. To be healthy, every cell in our body needs water. It regulates our temperatures, lubricates our spinal cord and joints, acts as a shock absorber for our brains, forms our saliva, aids in digestion, flushes our waste, maximizes physical performance, and so much more. Although impacted by food intake, physique, activity and how hot your climate is, a daily recommended average is 8 cups of water for men and 6 cups for women.
Of course there are many more actions you can take to reduce plastics, household leaks and other water threats. Learn more from the US Geological Survey and US Environmental Protection Agency.