How To Keep Nova Scotia Swimming In It
It’s hard to believe that Canada’s Ocean Playground would ever have to worry about water. After all, we’re surrounded by the sea, boast the world’s highest tides, and are dotted with lakes galore. Throw in the fact that Canada has nine per cent of the world’s renewable fresh water supply vs. 0.5 per cent of its population, and you might think our proverbial well could never run dry.
But these days it’s more important than ever to protect our watery wealth. One in five Canadian municipalities have already experienced serious water shortages, and some of those have been right here in Nova Scotia.
The good news is that with a few small changes we can actually slash our personal water consumption by as much as half, without even noticing it! That will save us a bucket of money on our household budgets, and help keep a precious resource from going down the drain. Want to find out how much water you’re using now? Use this calculator. Then dive in for information on ways to save:
In the Kitchen
In the Bathroom
On Laundry Day
In the Yard
Five Reasons to Use Less Water
In the Kitchen
Fix That Leak in Your Wallet
Drip … Drip … Drip … Drip. Did you know one single faucet losing just one drop per second wastes close to 9,000 litres of water a year? This is one of the easiest ways to start saving money and water – tighten up that tap! It’s so easy, you probably won’t have to hire a plumber and don’t have to be super-handy either. Just ask at your local hardware store, Google “fixing a leaky faucet,” or check out this site.
Tap Tip: While you’re in the hardware store, pick up a tap aerator. It works the same as a low-flow showerhead, reducing the actual amount of water coming out while maintaining the pressure and strength. You’ll be able to do all the same tasks with less water.
No More Dishpan Hands
The debate has long gone on about which method uses less water: washing dishes by hand or using the machine. The happy answer is: modern dishwashers (those qualified by Energy Star) use half the energy, one-sixth the water, and less soap than handwashing!
Keep in mind, this only applies to the newer, efficient models. If yours is harvest gold or avocado green, it’s time to upgrade (or buy some gloves). Find your next model, or check your current one here.
Grey Is the New Green
We send a lot of perfectly good water down the drain every day. Think about it: every morning you probably run your tap to flush the overnight water out before you fill the kettle or coffee pot. Later on you run it again to get the water good and hot for washing or nice and cold for drinking. There’s even the water you used to rinse the lettuce and scrub the potatoes. Your lawn, garden and plants would love to get their roots on the stuff we’re letting slip away!
Some environmentally designed homes have sophisticated systems that capture this “greywater” and recycle it throughout the house, so what starts in the kitchen ends up flushing the toilet. But you don’t need to do an entire retrofit to start reusing your greywater. It could be as easy as keeping a plastic tub handy to catch the water that runs off simple kitchen tasks*, then taking that water out to the yard.
If you’d like something a little more installed, check out the Canadian-made Envirosink or ask at your local hardware store about what solutions they offer.
*Note: water that has come in contact with raw meat should not be put on your garden.
Tap Tip: Keep a jug of water in the fridge so you don’t have to run the water to get it cool.
Get Water-logged
Keep track of your actual water use and see how much you can save by keeping your own personal water-use log.
In the Bathroom
Canadians are the second-highest per capita users of water in the world and we use most of that in our bathrooms. In fact 75 per cent of our home water gets used while we’re flushing, flossing, and freshening up. This is one place where we can really clean up the way we use our water.
Toilet Training
One-quarter of the water we use in the bathroom is used to flush the toilet. And when you hit that handle, the water that rushes down into the bowl from the tank comes from the same source as your drinking water - just ask your dog (but don't follow his example). That’s a real waste.
The first thing you need to do is make sure your toilet isn’t leaking. Here’s an easy test: put some food colouring in the tank. If it appears in the bowl within 15 minutes, you’ve got a leak, which is easily fixed.
Having a nice, tight toilet is just beginning, however. Now it’s time to reduce the amount of water it’s using to flush. Once again, the solution is easy. Just get a toilet-tank water dam at your local hardware store. This will trick the tank into thinking it’s fuller than it really is, so it stops filling up with water. Do not use a brick. Bricks break down over time and mess up your system.
What if you’re ready to go for a whole new piece of porcelain? You might want to consider a low-flow model that uses less water for every flush. Or you could consider the dual-flush style, which uses just the right amount of water for the job, if you know what we mean.
Before you make your investment, check out the Canadian Water and Wastewater Association’s Maximum Performance test of the most popular models.
Clean and Green
It’s perfectly possible to go green in the bathroom without sacrificing that heavenly hot shower in the morning. But first, you’ve got to throw in the towel on that regular, full-strength shower head. Every minute you stand in the shower uses 15 – 30 litres of water. Cut that way back with a low-flow head. You won’t feel the difference, but you’ll see it on your water bill or in your well-level!
Ready for more bathing savings? Get a timer and keep your shower to five minutes. That’s really more than enough time to do what you’ve got to do! Most pop songs don’t even last that long, so you can still sing in the shower. And try turning the water off while you’re soaping up. That will save you water and soap! What about that tub? A nice long soak is lovely, but the typical bath uses 75 litres of water, whereas a five-minute shower uses half that.
At the Sink
Dentists say you should brush your teeth for two-to-three minutes at least twice a day to keep your pearly whites white. And if you turn the taps off while you brush and floss, your dentist, our water levels, and you will all have something to smile about. (The same goes for soaping your hands!) Don’t forget: any leaky faucet can waste thousands of litres of water a year, so the first way to shave your water usage it to make sure your tap doesn’t drip.
Get Water-Logged
Keep track of your actual water use and see how much you can save by keeping your own personal water-use log.
On Laundry Day
You may have heard people raving that those front-loading washing machines do an excellent job on delicates, saving some people a chunk of change on dry cleaning. But clothes aren’t the only things they’re easy on: front-loaders use up to 40 per cent less water, and 50 per cent less energy, than traditional top loaders. They don’t use as much soap either. If it’s time for you to save a load on laundry, do your research here.
In the Yard
Every summer, our water usage goes up by 50 per cent. We’re out there setting up the sprinklers, watering the garden, and washing the car so it sparkles in the sun.
If you’ve followed the news for the past few summers, you’ll have noticed that it’s also during the hot days that some Canadian communities have experienced severe water shortages.
But cutting down on our water consumption doesn’t have to mean paving over our lawns, pulling up the posies and driving around with “Wash Me” written in dust on the back window. Just follow these tips to get the most from the least water:
- Plant a camel. Some garden plants and flowers require more frequent watering than others. Choose hardy local varieties or wildflowers that look great and go a long time between sips. Ask your local garden centre for advice.
- Root for your lawn. Follow Clean Nova Scotia’s advice on sustainable landscaping.
- Roll out the barrel. Catch rainwater or runoff in a barrel for use in your garden. If you’ve been collecting safe kitchen greywater, use that, too.
- Sweep, don’t soak. Your driveway doesn’t have roots and does not require water. Use a broom to sweep it clean instead.
- Pick the bucket. Soap up your car using a bucket and sponge, then rinse off with your hose.
Get more ways to save water in your yard and around your neighbourhood, along with a personal water log that let’s you track your use.
Back to Top
Five Reasons to Use Less Water
Water is one of our most precious resources. Recently, Nova Scotia has embarked on the development of a water resource management strategy to ensure we all continue to have access to a clean, safe, plentiful supply. By changing the way each of uses water today, we can help make that happen.
Why do we need a water resource management strategy?
1. Climate change
Having such a strategy will prepare the province to handle the inevitable effects — some known and some unknown — of climate change.
2. Public health
Stronger regulations would greatly reduce the risk to public health.
3. Security and emergency preparedness
We need a plan to ensure access now and in the future to a secure and plentiful water supply, even in an emergency.
4. Economic prosperity
We need water for everything from agriculture to recreation. Our economy depends on it. Having a water resource management strategy to protect and conserve our valuable water resources will help ensure a strong economy for generations to come.
5. Ecosystem Integrity
The health of the ecosystem is our primary concern. Strategies for the management of water,
natural resources, and our coasts cannot be addressed in
isolation from each other.
How else can you help? Find more ways to get involved in water conservation and protection here.
Back to Top