Governor of California Declares a Drought State of Emergency

Water, water everywhere, but not a drop to drink! This week, Governor Brown released an official State of Emergency for California's water supply. As January comes to a close without even an inch of rainfall in the state, we are officially in a drought, folks! In fact, this drought is the worst since we started measuring our water supply, over 100 years ago. This means that water allotments must be diverted from agricultural uses to urban uses, which has a domino effect on our whole system. Rising food prices, water rationing, decreased water quality, wildfires, economic losses and food shortages are on the horizon for California, but luckily, there are things that YOU can do to help. Think about all the ways that you use water in your day to day life. Think about it much deeper than just turning the water off while brushing your teeth. What are you eating? The amount of water used to produce different foods varies greatly from product to product. How many gallons of water do you use in your daily routine? Showering, watering your plants, doing the dishes; every simple task of your day involves some amount of water. Here are some easy tips to help you conserve water:

1. Limit the length of your showers and use warm water instead of hot (heating up water actually consumes more water).
2. When using water-hungry appliances like dishwashers and washing machines, make sure that they are running at full capacity. No partial loads!
3. Eat low on the food chain. The EPA estimates that it takes about 2,500 gallons of water to produce a single pound of beef whereas it only takes about 25 gallons to produce a pound of wheat. Have some whole grain pasta with veggies for dinner and skip the steak. Doing this a few times a week can dramatically lower your water usage.
4. Got plants? Instead of letting your shower water run down the drain while it's warming up, collect it and use it to quench your green friends. With some humidity-loving houseplants, you can even put them right in the shower with you!
5. Know the peak water usage hours for your area. In San Francisco, the best water usage times are before 12:00pm and after 6:00pm.
6. Take advantage of your geographic situation. Open windows to create a cross breeze and cool your apartment without the a/c. On cold days, resist the urge to crank up the heat and bundle up in your favorite sweater instead.
7. Buy clothes secondhand! The amount of water used in the textile manufacturing process is astronomical. Buying used clothes is more sustainable and uses much less water.

These are just a few of the many simple changes you can make in your day to day water usage. For more information on conserving water in California, visit http://saveourh2o.org/ a website created by the California Department of Water Resources and the Association of California Water Agencies with the goal of permanently reducing water usage in our state, whether or not we are in a drought.