Water

 

#1 Reduce your Boot and Save your Loot!
Make your water footprint (the water you use each day) smaller. Everything that goes down the drain goes back into a river and must be cleaned before it can be consumed again – you and your community pay for that.  Learn more at http://www.waitakere.govt.nz/CnlSer/wtr/wtrsavetips.asp
 
#2 Be an Eco-Smart Shopper
Think about what you buy. Generally less water (and energy) is used in making a less processed or transported product - so eat fresh, buy local and support Kiwi made. Also buy energy efficient appliances to help reduce loads on our hydro lakes. Learn more at http://www.reducerubbish.govt.nz/shop/index.html
 
#3 Stay off the Bottle
If you want to carry your water with you, recycle a bottle and fill it from the tap! Not only is bottled water expensive and in many cases no different from what comes from the tap, it produces large amounts of plastic bottle waste.
 
#4 Go for the Full Load
Only run the dishwasher or washing machine with a full load. Try using fewer dishes over the course of the day so you have fewer loads to do. This will help make the most of the water, energy, and detergent the machine uses. Learn more at http://www.waitakere.govt.nz/CnlSer/wtr/wtrsavetips.asp
 
#5 Waste Not, Want Not
Reduce the amount of water you waste in your home-turn off the tap when brushing your teeth or shaving, don’t rinse dishes excessively under running water and take shorter showers. Waste water goes down the drain and needs expensive treatment before it can be disposed back into the environment. Learn more at http://www.consumerbuild.org.nz/publish/maintenance/money-saving_-tips.php
 
#7 $ from the Sky
Install a rainwater tank to collect water from your roof gutters to water the garden. If you live in a water-short area or pay separate water rates this will save you money and keep your garden green. It will also take pressure off the storm water system. Learn more at http://www.sustainablehouseholds.org.nz/actionpdfs/save_water_action.pdf
 
#8 Drains are only for Rain!
Protect our living streams by not washing paints, solvents, oil, detergents or chemicals down stormwater drains. Water from these drains does not go to the sewage treatment plant: it goes into the same waterways that we fish and swim in. Learn more at http://www.bethedifference.gw.govt.nz/story2378.cfm?
 
#9 Look after our Water Filters
Don’t drain or pollute wetlands. Natural wetlands do a fantastic job at cleaning up the planet and protecting our water resources. Water drains through a wetland slowly, getting cleaned on the way by the huge amount of life sustained by them. Learn more at http://www.doc.govt.nz/templates/summary.aspx?id=33685
 
#10 Silt Stoppers
Plant trees or shrubs between waterways and land that has little vegetation cover. This helps prevent soil from hillsides washing into streams, where it kills the insect life that fish feed on, and makes downstream areas more susceptible to flooding.