There comes a time in all of our lives when we begin to question some of the things we were told as a child – pull a funny face when the wind changes and you’ll be stuck like that; sit too close to the TV and your eyes will go square. Now don’t get me wrong, I loved Sesame Street and The Muppets as much as anyone (okay, so I still do!), but it’s time to let the proverbial frog out of the bag: Kermit was fibbing when he sang “It’s Not Easy Bein’ Green”...
The reality is it’s very easy – sorry, Kermit. Just a few very simple changes to your daily routine can significantly improve your green credentials (not to mention your bank balance).
However, to give Kermy his due, the difficulty is often in motivating yourself into wanting to be green and taking action now. What’s more, as one of the UK’s largest non-domestic water suppliers, you’re probably wondering why on earth we’d want to encourage you to use less of our product.
Water is a finite resource. Despite a growing population there is the same amount of water on earth as there was 2 billion years ago and, to this day, less than 1% of that is suitable for human consumption (check out this nifty graphic demonstrating exactly that point). It’s for this reason the focus of the 2012 EU Green Week Conference is water.
Take five seconds to imagine life without water: no flushing toilets; no showers; the agriculture industry would literally dry up; transport would grind to a halt; manufacturing and engineering would cease to exist and industrial pollution would contaminate the land. Oh, and there’s the small matter of human beings requiring water to survive.
The challenge, then, is how do we meet a growing demand when we only have a limited supply? Well, put simply, we reduce the demand.
In keeping with the Sesame Street theme, I’ve listed ten tips to help you reduce your water consumption (if you listen carefully, you can almost hear Count von Count reciting them with you):
One!
Make it a rule to only turn on the office dishwasher when it’s full – you’ll save 30 litres of water per cycle
Two!
Fix leaking taps and save up to four litres per tap every day
Three!
Work in a factory or production site? Turn the hose off when it’s not in use and save almost 700 litres of wasted water every day
Four!
Screw an aerator on to your taps and cut your waste by reducing the water flow by half
Five!
Install a water saving hippo in your toilet cistern and save three litres of water per flush
Six!
Ask to have a water smart meter installed on your premises to help track and monitor your consumption (traditionally helps reduce use by an average of 20 per cent)
Seven!
Fill the sink rather than leaving the tap running when you wash your hands and save three litres per wash
Eight!
Clean business vehicles with a bucket and sponge – or use a hose with a shut-off valve, so it isn’t constantly running
Nine!
Install urinal control devices and cut your water use by half
Ten!
Request a free water efficiency pack either through Twitter, in the comment box below or on our website.
This blog was brought to you by the letter ‘W’ – for water, the number ‘10’ and the colour ‘green’.