Conserve Water!

Cutting back on our water use is good for the environment, for wildlife and salmon, and for our future. When you save water, you help guarantee a long-term sustainable supply of water for homes, industry, and agriculture, as well as protect rivers and streams for future generations to enjoy.

Water Conservation 101: What you can do at home

    * Shower power. Install a low-flow showerhead and save more than 500 gallons of water per week. Not sure whether your showerhead needs replacing? Test it! If your shower can fill a one-gallon bucket in less than 20 seconds, replace it with a water-efficient showerhead. If you shorten your shower by a minute or two, you'll save an additional 1,800 gallons of water per year.

    * A royal flush. Average homes flush 19 gallons of water per day down the toilet. By replacing an old toilet (especially models installed before 1994) with a low-volume model, you can cut the amount of water your house uses by more than half to 8 gallons per day - and save more than $1,000 in water and sewer charges over the next 10 years. (To get the most whoosh for your flush, look for a FlushStar model.)

    * Tanks for everything. All toilets waste water as the parts in the tank wear down; even if you don't hear your toilet running, water may be leaking silently from the tank into the bowl. Check your existing toilet for leaks by putting food coloring in your toilet tank. If the color seeps into the bowl, you've got a leak. Fix the leak by installing a new flapper and save more than 600 gallons of water per month.

    * Insulate! Save time and water by insulating your hot water pipes so that you don't have to run as much water to get the hot water up to your faucets.

    * Fair-a-faucet. Fixing a leaky faucet only takes a few minutes and a little elbow grease, but it will save you 140 gallons of water a week. Install 1 gallon per minute faucet aerators in your bathroom and 2 gallon per minute aerators on your kitchen faucet and save water every time you turn on the tap.

    * Get scrappy. Compost kitchen scraps instead of running the garbage disposal.

    * A lawn time coming. Water outdoor plants in the early morning hours when air temperature is cooler, adjust your lawn mower to a higher setting because longer grass better shades root systems and holds in soil moisture, and mulch around plants to reduce evaporation. Save even more water by choosing low-water plants for your yard.

    * Dish up water savings. Unless you're a superstar washer of dishes, dishwashers use less water than hand washing. Get an Energy Star model, and save water, energy, and time - most new dishwashers don't require you to pre-rinse your dishes.

    * A clothes call. Save water by washing full loads of laundry. If you have an older washer, consider replacing your old top-loading machine with a water-saving front-loader and save thousands of gallons of water each year. Front-loaders are gentler on clothes, reduce drying time, require less detergent - and you may even be able so save a few bucks on one through the WashWise program.

Check out these links to tips and suggestions for water conservation:

A great website we recommend: Water-Use It Wisely.

The Pacific Institute for Studies in Development, Environment, and Security is an independent, non-profit organization created in 1987 that conducts research and policy analysis in the area of sustainable development. The Institute offers several excellent reports on sustainable water use.

WaterWiser is an information clearinghouse about saving water everywhere and anywhere.

H2ouse.org offers numerous easy ideas for saving water in the home.

Washington State University offers resources on how to conserve water when irrigating

Savingwater.org is offered by an association of Seattle-area utilities dedicated to conserving water.

Thanks to a SPLASH grant from King County, CELP and The Partnership for Water Conservation have produced a brochure entitled, Our Water is Worth Saving, regarding the benefits of water conservation. Our Water is Worth Saving also details the amazing water conservation story of one of the area's oldest and largest companies.