Action needed to conserve water

There is an ongoing campaign in the Emirates, a move to save water where the public is urged to take action immediately.
The recent oil slick led Sharjah residents to experience rationing of water. "Simple and basic things can be done and they need to be started right now, be it at home or outside," said Habiba Al Marashi, chairperson of the Emirates Environmental Group (EEG). "When people see a puddle of water on the road because of a leak of some sort, they should immediately inform the municipality," she said. Delay in reporting leads to more wastage.

Water is a valuable resource that is easily wasted. The EEG's campaign makes the public realise that treated water is a carefully manufactured product, which appears in homes and offices only after travelling through kilometres of pipeline and lengthy treatment processes.

The EEG states that just one per cent of the entire water supply in the world is available for human use, the rest is salty or locked in icecaps and glaciers. This one per cent keeps the world's agricultural, manufacturing, community, household and sanitation needs operational. Drinking water comprises around one per cent of treated water and the rest goes down on lawns, in toilets and drains.
In the Emirates, almost all our tap water comes from desalination plants, but this is an extremely expensive process that only a few countries can afford.

Here are a few tips given by the EEG on how we can save water.
Take a five-minute shower instead of a bath. A dual flush toilet system can be fitted which discharges smaller volumes of water for liquid waste and large volume for solid waste. Better still, place a plastic bottle full of water in the flush system, it will reduce the amount of water flushed by half and the amount saved is 12 or more gallons per day. When brushing teeth, use a glassful of water instead of running the tap.

Further, low flow showerheads can be fitted to maximise water coverage and minimise water volume. When washing dishes by hand, fill up the sink with soap and water instead of leaving the water running. Amount saved is 25 gallons per load. Use full load when using your washing machine or dishwasher. Check for leaks and dripping taps. A dripping tap is equivalent to 10 deep bath-fulls of water per month. Fit water conserving devices. Thaw frozen foods in the refrigerator, not under running tap water.

Water your lawn during the early morning or late evening hours when temperatures are low. This reduces the amount of water you lose from evaporation. If washing a car at home, use a bucket of water instead of the hosepipe. Every drop saved per second can amount to 200 gallons per month or 2,400 gallons per year. Help conserve water so that the future generations won't go thirsty.