The Nature Conservancy. Protecting nature. Preserving life.™

The problems facing our fresh waters are complex. We need to work together to conserve water.

Join The Nature Conservancy by taking these simple steps to help conserve water, and restore rivers and lakes around the world:

Consider cutting a little water usage from your morning routine. Does anyone really need to shower for more than 5-10 minutes? Keeping a timer in your bathroom will remind you to wrap up and get out. And please turn off the faucet while brushing your teeth. All that perfectly clean tap water is just going down the drain.

If a home renovation is in the cards, splurge on low-flow and water-efficient appliances − they’ll save you money in the long-run:

• If you can’t install a low-flow toilet, reduce the amount of water your toilet used during each flush by placing a jar or other closed container full of water into your toilet tank.
• Install low-flow shower heads and sink spigots, which can both be purchased at your local hardware store, or contact your water utility company to find out if they distribute them for free. A low-flow shower head can save over 5,400 gallons of water in one year.
• Upgrade to a front-loading washing machine. These models use 40-60% less water than top-loading machines, and 30-50% less energy.
• When running the dishwasher, make sure it’s full to get the maximum use per drop. There’s no need to pre-rinse, since most of today’s models can handle any kind of grime. An added environmental bonus: save energy by turning off the auto-dry setting and letting your dishes dry naturally.

Check for—and hastily repair— leaky pipes and faucets. The tiniest leak has far greater impact than you’d think. In fact, many cities lose 40 to 60 percent (or more!) of their water supply due to leaky pipes. Use the U.S. Geological Survey’s leak calculator to see how much water is lost through your drips.

Don’t use your sinks and drains as trash cans, and dispose of oil and other toxic materials properly. Just one gallon of oil reaching the sewer can contaminate one million gallons of fresh water.

Reduce water use in your own yard:

• Try collecting rainwater by placing containers at the end of each gutter. It’s perfect for watering your garden.
• Water your lawn or garden in the morning or the evening when the water will evaporate less rapidly. Adjust sprinklers to avoid the pointless watering of sidewalks or paved areas.
• Sweep patios and sidewalks rather than hosing them, which wastes water and carries contaminants into freshwater systems.
• Limit pesticide use. Pesticides are the only substances we intentionally introduce into our environment to kill living things, and besides being potentially dangerous to people, pets and wildlife, they’ll eventually be carried into our freshwater supply by runoff.

Take the easy way out and hit the car wash. A car wash typically uses about 32 gallons of water per vehicle, but the EPA estimates that washing it yourself can use up to 500 gallons of water…not to mention loads of your time and energy.

Take local action:

• Encourage your local city council to provide financial incentives for homeowners to remove any landscaping that requires regular watering.
• Ask your local politicians to pass building codes requiring that rainwater and household "gray water" be collected and recycled for appropriate household uses like toilet flushing, or for commercial uses, such as golf course or park irrigation.
• Then take it a step further and contact your congressman or congresswoman:
• Demand a critical evaluation of all existing dams to determine which ones are still doing more good than harm for society. Ask those representatives to approve funding to remove those that don't pass the test.
• Ask your congressional representatives to create strong financial incentives for improving irrigation efficiency on farms, and legally protect all of the saved water from being removed from rivers in the future.

Get involved with a local river monitoring organization. The more you learn about local issues, the more empowered you will be to help solve any problems it may encounter.

Take advantage of recreation opportunities on local lakes and rivers, and learn about the wildlife they support. It will help you understand what we could lose if we don't manage our water wisely.

Perhaps most importantly, introduce a child to a river or stream! Giving a child the opportunity to discover freshwater habitat is the best way to manifest a sense of stewardship towards preserving our fresh water resources.