“We never know the worth of water till well is dry.”

Hi & happy last day of November – WHERE has 2016 gone!?

This month me and Stephi (@desertanddates) are challenging ourselves (& you guys) to take part in a ‘Zero Waste December’.

December is definitely up there with one of the best months of the year, family time, Christmas & lots of festive fun, I think everyone loves it – everyone probably except from the planet.

During the festive period, we buy a lot, cook a lot but we also waste – a lot. So, over the next few weeks, me & Stephi are going to share a few ways in which you can reduce waste through out the month (these don’t need to be applied only to December) to try to raise awareness of the price that waste has on our planet.

Let’s start with water.

Fun fact – Water covers 70% of the Earth, so why worry? Did you know that only 3% of it is clean and suitable for human consumption? Nearly two million people die from a lack of safe drinking water every year. & it’s expected that within the next 15 years – half the world’s population might be living in areas of high water stress.

Water is running out, and pretty quickly too. Not even the governments know what will happen when water runs dry – but they have figured out it won’t be great. We could face serious famine & lack of clean water could give us all sorts of life threatening diseases. You might not care just now because it doesn’t effect you, but have you ever sat & thought what it would be like if you were the one living in a village with no clean water? For some people this isn’t a potential consequence, its real life.

& it’s not just our fellow species that are dealing with the repercussions, our animal friends are suffering too. Animal species are becoming extinct faster than ever due to lack of water which we are using & human activity.

So what can we do? Here are some of my tips & ideas which I am going to start implementing in my appartment:

  • Cut back on the meat & dairy – animal Agriculture is responsible for 20%-33% of all fresh water consumption in the world today. – Cowspiracy
  • Get the maintenance guys in – I’m guilty for this one as I have had a little leak in the bathroom recently which needs fixed. A shower head leaking at 10 drips per minute wastes more than 500 gallons per year. – EPA
  • Turn the tap of when your brushing  – a really effortless action which can have a huge impact – just by turning off the tap while you brush your teeth you can save up to 8 gallons of water – EPA So don’t be lazy & just turn it off.
  • Cut back your shower time – Ok I’m not saying don’t shower or compromise your personal hygiene, but do you really need to be standing in the shower for 30 minutes contemplating your life? No, contemplate every decision you ever made elsewhere don’t take your issues out on the planet. 
  • Don’t flush your facewipes – Your wasting water by flushing them, get a little bathroom bin, there not supposed to go down the loo anyway.
  • Feed your plants your leftovers – giving your furbabies fresh water? feed the old water to your plants, they aren’t fussy. 
  • Think about how you wash your dishes – For example, let pans that need some elbow grease to sit & soak instead of leaving the tap running. If you have a dish washer – don’t run it until it’s ram packed.
  • Think about kitchen stuff you use  – For example, if you use a huge pot to boil pasta, the chances are your going to use more water than needed. Just because you can fill your pot to the brim with water doesn’t mean you should. 

If you look at these small ideas above you will see how tiny little changes can have huge impacts. I do believe that everyone can play their part in some way, whether you decide to take drastic action or you just become more mindful when you’re doing your dishes. Either way, the facts are black & white, we need to take action of some sort, we have no choice.

For me I am 100% going to make more of a conscious effort with my water usage. By doing this you are showing compassion to other people, the animals & the planet – not to mention your bank balance which I am sure we could all use, especially in December! Head over to Stephi’s blog – desertanddates to read all about plastic bag waste – whip out your reusable bags people! Keep an eye out for the rest of our posts this month! Jess xx

“Cherish the natural world, because you’re a part of it and you depend on it.”  – Sir David Attenborough