Homespun Methods Of Water Conservation

FOR more ideas here are some methods gathered from residents in a Euro Weekly News survey.

• 'I have a tank and water is expensive, so if I have bath, I leave it in and use the water to wash my plates. I add soap! I also filled the toilet with bricks, so it only makes a little [flush] and saves 5 litres,' Judith van Trump, Benissa, Alicante.

• Another resident, Michael Santos, commented: 'Living in a small community of just eight properties, the most expensive cost we have is water for both the pool and gardens. We have cut the length of time that each garden receives communal water. . . reduced from 10 minutes to 3 minutes.'

• Another tipster said: 'Always use a dishwasher as it is far more environmentally­friendly than washing by hand as it uses less water.' It is estimated that hand­washing dishes uses up to 3.5 times more water than a dishwasher.

• When visiting the toilet is it always necessary to flush? Without going into too much detail there is the well­known phrase: 'If it's yellow let it mellow, if it's brown flush it down,' a memorable contribution from Mayor Ed Koch, who reportedly urged New Yorkers to take up the practice during a water shortage.

In Conclusion

BY taking decisive steps to conserve water resources, actions already taken have created an example for other municipalities facing similar drought challenges.

What we all hope to see shortly is some monsoon type weather lasting long enough to top up the aquifers (underground water catchment areas) and reservoirs in the short term and the creation of more desalination plants by the coasts in the long term.