Water is essentially the life force of the world. Without it even the healthiest of humans will die within a week, sadly dehydration is the cause behind over 7000 children in poor countries daily. Most of the world’s people must walk at least three hours to fetch water. Yet people fortunate enough to be born in places where water is at their disposal think nothing of the excess amounts of water they let go down the drain. It may seem like we have an endless supply of water but it is actually a limited resource that we need to use wisely, only 1% of the world's water supply is usable, 97% is ocean and 2% is ice frozen at the poles. Water continually cycles throughout the environment and both water treatment and water use rely on this system.

“The less water we use, or abuse, the less we degrade this precious natural resource – and the less we have to spend bringing our water resource back to an acceptable standard for public use.” (Environment Canada) So many of our daily routines depend on the use of some water but by being aware and following even a few of these simple suggestions we can minimize the amount we use.

A five minute shower uses about a third of the water of a bath, saving up to 400 liters per week, cutting one minute off your shower time can save 31,500 liters of water per month.

Leaving the tap running while you clean your teeth can waste nine liters of water, instead fill a glass for rinsing. For men who shave, plugging the sink and filling it with a water can save an additional 10-20 liters.

Don’t let the tap run while cleaning fruits vegetables either. You can save 12 liters a minute by washing them in a sink or bowl filled with clean water.

A full load in the washing machine uses less water than two half loads and can save you up to 30 liters. An energy-smart clothes washer can save more water in one year than one person drinks in an entire lifetime!

Leaks can waste 14% of all the water we use in our homes, one drip per second wastes around 1200 liters of water in a year; that's around 4 liters a day; and 90 liters of water if the drips are breaking into a stream. That's more than the average person uses in two weeks. Check taps, toilets, shower heads, outdoor pipes and hoses.

A third of all household water use is from the toilet alone. The average person flushes over a 100 liters down the drain daily! A water saving device in your toilet cistern can save up to three liters per flush.

Just like turning off the lights when you go on vacation makes sense, don’t forget to use vacation setting or turn off the water heater if you go away.

On average, washing a car uses 500 liters of water! Use buckets instead of the hose whenever possible, there are also car washing products that require no water at all.

Keep a bottle of drinking water in the refrigerator instead of running the tap for cold water.

In half an hour, a garden sprinkler uses as much water as a family of four does in one day.

Once a week is all the water your lawn needs even in the hottest weather. Over-watering can weaken your lawn by encouraging roots to seek the surface.

It may still work but by replacing older model shower heads with water efficient models you can go from using an average of 18-30 liters per minute to 9.5 or less and save money on your water and energy bills. A family of four could save up to 160,000 liters of water in one year!

While your waiting for the shower to get hot, put a bucket or watering can underneath and save the water for pets cleaning or watering plants

When boiling vegetables, use only enough water to cover the foods. Steaming uses even less water while conserving more nutrients.

Water consumption usually drops 18-25% when a water meter is fitted.