After the rainy spring we've had at Canyon Lake, the focus on water conservation this year isn't likely to be as strong as it has been the last two summers. That's a shame, because history has taught us that it doesn't take long for drought to settle in here in Central Texas. It's a good idea to always think of water conservation in our beautiful, yet fragile ecosystem. With that in mind, the Edwards Aquifer Authority has published a top ten list of ways to save water in the Hill Country. I'd like to share it with you:
1. Limit shower time to less than five minutes.
2. Only order water at restaurants when you want it.
3. Turn water off when brushing your teeth and fill a cup for rinsing.
4. Check your toilets for leaks and drips.
5. Run only full loads of laundry and dishes.
6. Don't run the hose when washing the car.
7. Plant water-saving plants.
8. Water lawns during the cool parts of the day.
9. Install water-saving shower heads or flow restrictors
10. Use a broom instead of a hose to clean the driveway and sidewalks.
Some of these seem pretty tough to me, but my family has found other ways to save water. We still take longer showers, but have installed low flow shower heads and still use less water than we used to. We've gone to all native plants in the yard as well. They require very little watering. We've installed a couple of rain barrels and collect AC condensation for watering the plants we do have. It works very well. Turning off the water when shaving or brushing our teeth is also painless and yields big results. Over the last year, we've cut our water usage by over 300 gallons per month without affecting our quality of life at all. We currently use just over 2000 gallons per month.
Many newcomers to Canyon Lake don't realize how much drier it is here than at home. For example, Houston averages close to 50 inches of rain a year. We get just over 30 inches and most of it runs off our hilly, rocky terrain very quickly. It also tends to come all at once. Last summer, we went months without measurable rain.
The bottom line is that there's no reason we can't continue to grow and have all the water we need, but it pays to think about what might have, and save a little for a rainless day!
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