Water Conservation
Save water – it saves you money and helps the environment too!
Australia is the driest continent, with seventy per cent of the country classified as arid or semi-arid, receiving less than 400mm average annual rainfall. It is a land of many years of drought, followed by a year or two of rain and flood. Yet Australians continue to overuse water. Near-empty reservoirs and drought-enforced water restrictions across the country have forced many people to re-think their approach to water use.
Water usage in Central Australia
In the dry heart of the country there are no water restrictions. How can this be? Alice Springs has a mean annual rainfall of 280mm and an annual evaporation rate of 3000mm. Any surface water is quickly lost. The town water supply is from an aquifer 90 metres underground which is recharged by rainfall. With a ready and seemingly unfailing source of water, Alice Springs residents are not dependant upon seasonal rains and fluctuating dam levels. The cost of water in Alice Springs is about half as much as in Melbourne. Consequently, Alice Springs residents are among the greediest water consumers in Australia, using on average almost 1000 litres per person per day—twice the amount used in Australian capital cities. (Compare this with the average person from Ghana, Africa who uses only 4½ litres per day, or 1600 litres per annum.)
Water Consumption (litres per person per day)
Where water is used and wasted
With water being under-priced, it should come as no surprise that it is under-valued and over-used. Of the water we use, only 1 per cent is consumed. For every litre of water we drink or use to cook with, another 99 litres goes down the drain: to flush the toilet, wash ourselves and our clothes, fill the pool, wash the car and water the garden.
In Alice Springs, the average household water use is 700,000 litres per annum, enough to almost fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool. Over 60 per cent of this is used on the garden, of which an estimated 80 per cent are over-watered.
Water use in Alice Springs homes
How to reduce your water consumption and save $$
If water consumption in Alice Springs reduced to a comparable level with the major south-east cities, then households could save about $175 for each person in the house on their annual water bill.
A few simple changes can save you a lot. By following these tips, you can reduce your water consumption, which helps the environment and saves you money too.
Arrange a water audit from dka coolmob. It costs just $10, takes about 1 hour, but will save you hundreds of dollars in the long run.
-
Reduce the frequency of garden watering, giving a little more, less often. This will help the plants develop stronger root systems and better tolerate the dry heat of the centre.
-
Water the garden before sunrise or after sunset. Day-time watering loses up to 50 per cent in evaporation.
-
Spread mulch over the garden to keep water in. Mulching reduces evaporation by up to 75 per cent.
-
Fix leaking or dripping taps. Check your meter when no water is being used. Re-check the meter five minutes later. If the meter reading has changed, then you have a leak somewhere.
-
Choose water-efficient appliances, such as front-loading washing machines
-
Install tap aerators or flow restrictors into taps
-
Install a water-efficient showerhead and take shorter showers, no longer than 4 minutes. Put an egg-timer in the shower to time yourself.
-
Cover or shade your pool to reduce evaporation. During summer up to 300 litres per day can be lost through evaporation.
-
Use bio-degradable detergent and hand-wash dishes in a tub. Empty the ‘grey’ water into the garden.
References
Desert Knowledge Australia COOLmob, 2007, Greenhouse friendly action in Central Australia
Desert Knowledge Australia COOLmob, 2008, Home water audits, brochure
DKA COOLmob website
Power and Water Corporation, 2006, Green Guide
Conservation Links
For more information about how you can save money and help the environment too, visit these select websites.
|
Australian Conservation Foundation www.acfonline.org.au |
|
Desert Knowledge Australia COOLmob www.dkacoolmob.org |
|
Alice Solar City www.alicesolarcity.com.au |
|
Arid Lands Environment Centre www.alec.org.au |
|
Department of Natural Resources, Environment |
 |
PowerWater www.powerwater.com.au |
Carbon Neutral
Carbon footprint of the expedition
Item |
Amount |
Carbon produced (kg) |
Diesel fuel |
$1700 |
4500 |
Electricity |
$200 |
1160 |
Cooking fires |
50 |
|
SUB TOTAL |
5,710 |
|
Add 50% to cover unknown additional items |
2855 |
|
TOTAL |
8,565 kg |
|
The cost of purchasing carbon offsets is about $20 per tonne of carbon. This expedition will aim to be carbon negative by purchasing additional carbon offsets. In total, $170 will be spent to make the expedition carbon negative, so the only footprints left from the expedition will be mine in the red sands of the desert, which will soon be blown away by the southeast winds.
Calculating your carbon footprint
What impact is your lifestyle having on the planet? Determine your carbon footprint by using the Carbon Neutral online calculator www.carbonneutral.com.au
Carbon neutral
If you are concerned about the planet, then you can do things to reduce the carbon-causing impact of your lifestyle, then offset the remainder by contributing to a carbon-offset provider.
Some carbon neutral product providers are listed below:
