In the spirit of March Madness, let’s fill the top “sweet 16” brackets of ways to protect and conserve our precious natural resource—GROUNDWATER! Here are four to get you started…
1) Take shorter showers
2) Check for leaky faucets/toilets and have them fixed
3) Shut water off while brushing your teeth
4) Dispose of chemicals properly
Earth as Art, photos provided by USGS
Ok, I'm installing water saver showerheads!
Regular pumping and maintenance of on-lot septic systems
7) Install a rain garden.
How about properly abandoning old unused wells. In Nebraska many Natural Resources Districts provide cost share for well decommissioning.
As we head into spring/summer, remember to only water your lawn, not the driveway, streets, and sidewalks.
Better yet, get rid of all that grass that serves no purpose but to take lots of water so it grows, then needs mowing, then more water so it will grow again, only to be mowed again (crazy huh!). Instead use native plant materials and save lots of water, money, time and maintenance while providing lovely habitat for the birds and butterflies.
What if we had a human waste management system that used no water to flush? How much water could we save if we didn't flush 1.2 to 3.5 gallons of water every time we used the toilet? Just a thought.