While the ultimate purpose of beings is to survive well, how to stop wastage of water and ensure the sustainability of this finite natural resource becomes a crucial concern. And why not?
After air, water is the most salient element in our life. Without it,
- Our body cells, tissues, and organs cannot function,
- Growth and management of crops and livestock gets impossible,
- We cannot build houses, roads, or public areas,
- We can’t cook, bathe, or ensure sanitation,
- We cannot complete religious rituals,
- Industries can’t streamline production, and the list goes on!
In short, life cannot exist on earth without water! And that is why in modern times, we seek a balance between science, social impact, and economic value to curb water wastage and preserve it for our future.
How to Stop Wastage of Water: 10 Ways!
When it comes to this question, our remedies need to be revised, especially amidst extensive water pollution these days.
We miss turning off the tap. We use low-discharge toilets, leaking pipes and wash plates with running water. We keep taps open while brushing our teeth. But we say we lack ways to stop water wastage!
How about we own our responsibilities as the human community to this world and adopt significant ways to stop water wastage this time?
1) Use Low-Water-Flush Commode in Your Loo
Most of us waste water when using inefficient commode systems in our homes!
Then, we take flushing for granted, pulling the tiny lever hard for all waste in the pan to vanish in a matter of seconds, and not even looking back. In fact, we cannot even count how many times we do this every day!
Meanwhile, water continues dripping from the tank into the pan, wasting nearly 7 gallons per flush.
So, if we are really concerned about how to stop wastage of water, we need to start making a change right here! Yes. We need to replace the traditional flush systems in our toilets, and use a low-water-flush commode that can reduce the 7 gallons count to around 1.6 gallons.
The low-water-flush FootLoo comes with leakage-free design and foot-operated flush, quickly and efficiently cleaning waste in the commode pan, and simultaneously saving water!
2) Install Sewage Treatment Plants in Factories and Residential Societies
Do you know, only 3% of freshwater is left on earth today, while about 2.5% is unavailable to us? This is locked up in the ice caps, glaciers, atmosphere, and soil!
Do you know, we are responsible for producing 200 liters of sewage (wastewater) per day per individual at our residences, commercial workplaces, and factories? That’s right!
And with such a scenario, if we sit idle, taking no measure to treat the enormous amount of wastewater into a reusable one, the usable amount shall soon run out. It means we need to install sewage treatment plant (STP) in our residential areas, hotels, office buildings, schools and institutions, factories, and everywhere, it stands possible!
That shall be a great way to stop water wastage. We can, then, reuse this treated water for construction and irrigation purposes, or for washing our cars, at the very least.
3) Grow More Drought-Resistant Plants and Trees
Many a time, we take pride in gardening and watering our baby plants. But we forget that we, excessively, waste water all this while. We get lost in the beauty of nature, or at least on the face of it. And we don’t realize, that to preserve one of nature’s gifts, we misuse another!
That means we need to stop the wastage of water, and yet grow plants and maintain a green landscape.
How? Well, that’s easy.
All we have to do is grow more drought-resistant or drought-tolerant plants, having large leaves and heavy wax accumulation on them! It can be a white fir, bur oak, bearberry, moss rose, sunflower, strawflower, or blue false indigo.
There are myriads of such plants that hold the quality minimum water loss and thereby need less water to sustain. In addition to that, they can combat and survive an unpredictable drought advent.
4) Transform Human Waste into Gas and Water
If we can use modern technologies to create solar panels and save energy, why not use another technology to decompose human waste and generate biogas and reusable water?
True it is, if we at all seek to stop the wastage of water and create an environment-friendly society!
The technology to transform fecal waste into eco-friendly gas and water is called bio digestion. It is where a composite bacterial “inoculum”, working at a – 6 degree Celsius, converts organic waste into methane, carbon dioxide, and water.
This water, in turn, can be repurposed for gardening and irrigation. Likewise, the biogas we get from this process can be beneficial for cooking and heating purposes!
Isn’t that something we must encourage our residential and commercial neighborhoods to up-take? Isn’t a bio-digester tank one of the must-have global technologies of 2023?
5) Avail Leakage-Free Faucets and Pipes at Home
Whenever we intend to use metaphorical slogans to depict that our efforts matter, we say every drop counts! But we often need to catch up on its literal side. We miss acknowledging that even a drop of water wasted can become a waste of our future or human future, to be precise!
That is why, we sometimes fail to count the leakage-free criteria over affordability, efficiency, or appearance while installing a faucet or pipe at home. And even if we do so, we mostly remain negligent in keeping an eye on, and maintaining, them!
Not anymore!
It is high time we get only leakage-free faucets and pipes, and eliminate all possibilities of water leakage. Here, we can choose the widespread touchless faucets or go for other models.
Moreover, such a change in your household shall not only stop water wastage. But also save 10% on your water bills.
6) Generate Recycled Water with Sanitation-Friendly Bio-Toilets
Alas! As Indians, we commonly feel that open defecation is more a sanitary option than to use those dirty public toilets on the roadside. They are too untidy, unhygienic, and unsafe. They are ideal breeding grounds for viruses, bacteria, and other disease-causing pathogens!
What if we replace these with bio-toilets, that ensure safe sanitation and generate recycled water from human waste?
Perhaps, it will be a one-plus-one offer for us! The one where we can get a suitable hack on how to stop wastage of water, and at the same time use public toilets that are free from germs.
Such a social change can serve with a 90% reduction in solid waste, recycling more water for construction or irrigation pursuits.
Bio-toilets typically last for 35 years. It means an enormous amount of usable water can be generated, alongside inflammable biogas, while disposing of human waste within the public restrooms.
7) Install Drip Irrigation System
Did you know, the probability of plants dying every day due to overwatering them is more than the lack of watering them?
Indeed! The rainfall-like effect of sprinkler irrigation makes us salute our modern technologies, but we lack awareness about the amount of water wasted for it!
Unlike overhead sprinkler irrigation, drip irrigation is a type of micro-irrigation system. It is also known as trickle irrigation, the process in which you water crops and plants, drop by drop, directly into the roots through a network of valves, pipes, tubes, and emitters.
By adopting this drip irrigation technique, we can stop wasting water unnecessarily on weeds, and save it for other uses. It shall allow plants and crops to utilize the water they receive, and even minimize water leaching below the root zone.
Won’t that be economical in all ways?
8) Conduct More Environment Testing and Water Analysis
Tell me, what is a common thing we hear from word-of-mouth across all societies and communities concerning the topic of preservation?
It is none other than the fact that we shall never know what awaits in our future, so we can always stay prepared for it!
Yes. We don’t know how long humans can keep getting water. But we can always conduct more research and environmental testing to find new hacks for wastewater management, and save this natural resource.
We must encourage and scientifically advocate more wastewater, groundwater, and drinking water analyses in various regions. It is more because, in recent times, we have multiple state-of-the-art technologies to use and benefit from!
We have to undertake much more fecal sludge treatment and experiments on decomposing fecal sludge into bio-solids and usable water.
No doubt, such measures can enhance public health and sustain our ecosystem and its most vital element; water!
9) Avoid Recreational Water Toys and Ornamental Water Architectures
While we already know that water, like all natural resources, is likely to come to an end one day, why waste it on recreational and ornamental kinds of stuff?
I agree that water fountains add beauty to your garden and are an aesthetic architectural style in malls, shopping centers, and other recreational spots. I agree that kids love to play with water toys. But both require a constant water stream. And we can’t afford that, unless the water we use therein is recycled.
If we still have to purchase and install water fountains, as to not let go of the style statement, we must remember to install them in proper places. We must see where the fountain water can evaporate less and wind drifts are minimal. That shall be our suitable placing!
Yet again, it is scientifically advisable to avoid using them when we can, actually, do without them!
10) Be Careful About Keeping The Water Taps Closed When Not Using Them
Last but not least, the answer to our question of how to stop the wastage of water lies with ourselves. If we can be more conscious about our daily water usage, we can help stop its wastage!
For that, we need to stop keeping the tap open when brushing our teeth or shaving. We must stop water from running out of the taps when washing clothes or dishes.
We need to wash edibles in a pan or bowl filled with water instead of using the running water from the tap. We must re-check all taps before going to sleep every night.
We must cover the drain pipe in the bathtub before turning on the tap. We must try taking showers within 5 minutes or so!
Final Thoughts
Now that you can fill a bit of your knowledge gap by reading how to stop the wastage of water, I hope you get set to adopt the measures, and make the world a better place to live in!
You can also pursue other everyday hacks to save water, from installing rainwater harvesting plants at your home, to encouraging schools and governments to promote and develop water-saving behaviors. The responsibility is on you, me, and all of us!
