Even though summer’s been in full swing for some time there’s always time to start practicing precaution when using water, and making sure to conserve indoor and outdoor water use as often as possible for the remainder of the summer.
Currently the entire state of Washington is listed under severe to moderate drought, which is affecting an estimated population of 6,642,056 people. Three thousand and thirty five people of that 6,642,056 are from White Salmon and Bingen.
The cities of Bingen and White Salmon both expect to experience water shortages this year due to the drought. So far neither city has declared any emergency restrictions.
“Water is the lifeblood of human communities as well as natural environments,” said Tova Tillinghast district manager of Underwood Conservation District, in an email to The Enterprise, “the up-side of a year like this one is that our awareness of this essential element heightens. However, we, individually and as a community, need to take that awareness a step further and improve our management and use of water, today and into the future.”
According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) a four person household uses about 400 gallons of water a day. To try and preserve water locally there are some small changes that can be made to save water, and money, this summer.
The Klickitat Public Utility District recommends a few ways homeowners can save water on its Web site. They include:
Not leaving the sink running while you brush your teeth.
Fully load your dishwasher and washing machine before running them.
Repair dripping, leaking faucets and toilets. Leaks can add up, about 200 gallons of water could be wasted every day if a leak goes unnoticed, which is equivalent to flushing a toilet 50 times.
Don’t over water your lawn. When irrigating, water early in the morning to avoid excess evaporation from midday heat.
Swap out the hose for a broom when cleaning a driveway, or sidewalk.
Cover your pool, or hot tub, to reduce water loss from evaporation.
When landscaping, plant drought resistant trees and shrubs that aren’t invasive to the area.
Reuse water whenever possible. Keep a bucket in the shower to catch water when the shower’s warming up to use later for indoor plants or cleaning.
Install water saving devices, like low flow toilets, shower heads, faucet aerators, or flow restrictors.
A tip when checking for toilet leaks is to add food coloring to a toilet tank, then check the bowl (without flushing) for any color that’s leaked in. That will determine a leak, which then has to be located.
Another resource for those seeking conservation is the EPA Web site, which offers a kid-friendly source for youth to learn about conserving water. Here are some of their tips:
Take a shower instead of a bath. A shower typically only uses 10 to 25 gallons of water, while a bath can use up to 70 gallons. To go even further, keep your shower under five minutes. The shorter the shower the less water used; try timing yourself next time you hop in the shower.
Use a bucket and sponge instead of a hose when washing a car or bike. A hose can waste six gallons per minute if left running, while a bucket and sponge only use a few gallons. If going to a car wash, check to make sure the one you visit recycles the used water.
When washing dishes in the sink make sure you turn off the faucet in between scrubbings. Scrape dishes before putting them in the dishwasher instead of rinsing, or use a washcloth to wipe off excess food.
Even though you may be conserving water inside by taking shorter showers and only running full loads of laundry and dishes there’s still room to improve outdoor water consumption habits.
“Water is too frequently wasted. Due to a number of reasons, such as evaporation, over-watering landscapes, and running off onto concrete or into storm drains,” Tillinghast explained when addressing water waste.
Tillinghast’s concerns for water waste aren’t unwarranted, the State of Washington’s Department of Ecology (DOE) has found that as much as 50 percent of water used outdoors is wasted from inefficient watering methods and systems.
To try and avoid water waste outdoors try these tips from Arizona’s Water-Use It Wisely campaign (http://wateruseitwisely.com/):
Purchase an inexpensive hose timer to avoid over-watering, or use a soaker hose to avoid evaporation.
Collect rainwater to use for watering landscaping.
Let your lawn go dormant (brown). Dormant grass only needs to be watered every three to four weeks, even less if it rains.
Weed your lawn regularly. Weeds compete with other plants for nutrients, light, and water.
Fertilizers promote plant growth, but also increase water consumption. When fertilizing apply the minimum amount of fertilizer needed.
To measure sprinkler output use an empty tuna can, or general shallow can, three-fourths to one inch of water is enough to apply when irrigating.
Set a timer when watering landscaping as a reminder to turn it off. An unchecked running hose can discharge up to 10 gallons per minute.
Check your sprinkler system and frequently adjust sprinklers to ensure that only your lawn is being watered, and not the sidewalk or street.
Water dry spots by hand instead of running a sprinkler or turning on an irrigation system.
Water your plants deeply, making sure the water soaks in, but less frequently to encourage deep root growth and drought tolerance.
A little change like fixing a leak, or moving your sprinkler from watering the pavement, might not seem very substantial, but if the 3,035 people of White Salmon and Bingen make small changes to their water habits big savings could be the result. Every drop counts during a drought.
“Water, when left in streams without being diverted for human use, is very important to wildlife, especially fish,” Tillinghast explained, “Buck Creek is where most of the City of White Salmon’s water comes from. It’s also the new home to salmon and steelhead which are beginning to recolonize after the removal of Condit Dam.”
“Less water in [the] stream makes it more vulnerable to increased water temperature too, which greatly affects aquatic life and productivity. Using less water from this stream could go a long way this year in providing some level of supportive habitat to these fish,” said Tillinghast.
Keep fish in mind this summer when using water, the less you use, the more room the fish have for spawning and habitat in Buck Creek. Practice some, or all, of the water conservation tips and help preserve fish habitat this season.
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