Do You Know Your Water Footprint?

A footprint is a trace left behind that represents where you have been.  It’s a statement of  “I was here.”  Sometimes the impression is positive as in the quote:

“Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart.”  ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

Sometimes a footprint left behind is not such a great thing.  It is a piece of evidence that can incriminate you:

“We all leave footprints in the sand, the question is, will we be a big heal, or a great soul.” ~ unknown

Going about our daily lives, we are leaving a water footprint for the present and future generations.  The water footprint of a consumer is the total volume of freshwater used to produce all the goods and services consumed, whether you are an individual, community or business.  Your footprint represents both direct and indirect uses of water.

Direct uses of water are obvious and the solutions for reducing your footprint here are relatively easy and offer instant affects to your monthly budget.  For example:

1. Turn off the water when brushing teeth and shaving.
2. Install water-saving toilets and showerheads.
3. Fill up the sink when washing dishes and turn the water off.
4. When using the washing machine or dishwasher, always wash full loads.
5. Use greywater  to water plants and landscaping.
6. Harvest your rainwater by capturing water from downspouts or install an underground system, which can come in various sizes and shapes depending upon your needs.

These tasks, as well as other direct uses, make up ONLY 5% of the water used in the average American lifestyle.

Indirect uses of water requires conscious lifestyle changes and advocacy.  You might say that our day-to-day lives are “all washed up.”  According to WatersWorthIt.org,  the amount of water that it takes to produce the average American diet is still more than the global average footprint of 900 gallons per day for diet, household use, transportation, energy and the consumption of material goods.  More than 50% of your water footprint goes to growing and processing the average American diet.  Consider these indirect sources:

1. It takes 88 gallons of water to produce a 3 oz. serving of poultry.
2. It takes 108 gallons of water to produce a 3 oz. serving of pork.
3. 634 gallons is required to make one hamburger.
4. A gallon of cow’s milk uses 880 gallons of water to produce.
5. A gallon of gasoline uses nearly 13 gallons of water and almost 670 goes toward daily electricity production.
6. It takes 700 gallons to make a cotton shirt and 2600 gallons to make a pair of jeans (most of the consumption is in the growing of the cotton.)  This means on average, each dollar spent on clothes and shoes costs about 23 gallons of water.

Everything we buy requires water to manufacture.  Additionally, we share in the footprints of many businesses such as restaurants, hospitals, and schools.  The opportunities to indirectly make an impact on your footprint are not as easy as choices that make a direct impact.  It could mean making conscious lifestyle choices, such as reducing the amount of meat you eat per week or researching and choosing manufacturers of goods and services who are actively pursuing water reclamation and conservation.

Ready to find out what mark you are leaving behind?  Click here for a quick individual water footprint calculator.

If you want more information about reducing your footprint, let us know below or ask us a question on our Facebook, Google+ or Twitter pages.