During my stay in California over the holiday weekend, I saw plenty of drought warning signs. My hippie parents raised me conserve resources, recycle, reuse, and just be mindful. Since I've moved to Washington, I've been slacking! I make sure not to run the water when washing dishes by hand, try to run the dishwasher only when it is as full as possible, and "let it mellow" when it is convenient (and I remember). I also try to shut the lights off when we're not using them, and I hang dry most of my clothes so I can spare the Earth some dryer power.
But I know I can be doing more. On cold days, it's especially hard to turn the shower off and not let the hot water run. The steaming water feels so good! And sometimes, when I brush my teeth, I must admit that I do leave the water running longer than I need to. Same with washing hands. The drought warnings in California reminded me that the problem is real, and it's just the motivation I needed to get back on track. I'm going to stop running water while I fiddle with getting shampoo/dish soap/toothpaste, and I'm going to let my yellow mellow more often.
So here's the plan, and I guess it’s kind of like a late resolution for the new year. Assuming that Matt wastes water at a consistent rate, I can track my progress by comparing this billing cycle (it just started, conveniently) with the last one and the one before. As a baseline, our first bill was for 2,680 gallons. If I could cut down our usage by 1/4 and save 670 gallons, that would be a fantastic start. Hopefully I can make a huge difference and it will motivate Matt to conserve water too! He's already stopped running the water while hand washing dishes, and it only took a little bit of nagging. =)
No comments:
Post a Comment