State of the City: Water Conservation

Preserving our

greatest resource April is Water Conservation Month

WRITTEN BY RACHEL SLOCUMB, WATER RESOURCES CONSERVATION COORDINATOR

Water is a finite natural resource. What we have now is what has always been here and will always be here. The only thing that changes is how much is available for use and how polluted it may be. Have you ever thought about how much water you use in a day? The average person in central Florida uses around 100 gallons of water per day. Did you turn the faucet off for those two minutes while you were brushing your teeth? If not, you just wasted approximately four gallons of water – eight if you have the same practice at night. Water use can easily add up without much effort.

April is Water Conservation Month and to celebrate, the City of Ocala will be highlighting the importance of water conservation. Protecting our finite natural resource begins in our homes and businesses. City of Ocala customers use an average of 12 million gallons of water a day. It is estimated that half of this water is used exclusively for irrigation, including the watering of lawns.

There are ways to reduce water use on your lawn. One simple way is to measure the amount of water that is being used during an irrigation cycle. Prior to running your irrigation system, place straight sided cans, such as an empty tuna can, around your yard. After your sprinkler cycle has finished, measure the depth of the water in the can. Irrigation systems should deliver no more than half to three-quarter inches of water per cycle. If this amount is exceeded, then the amount of time your system runs needs to be reduced. You may be surprised about how little time is required to meet that water level threshold. Make sure that you are only watering on your designated irrigation day and during the specified time.

Wetland Recharge Park

During this time of year, residents and businesses are permitted to irrigate two days a week. Odd numbered or non-numbered addresses can irrigate Wednesdays and Saturdays while even numbered addresses can irrigate Thursdays and Sundays. Watering should not take place between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. These restrictions are also in place for those using irrigation or private wells. You should also only water when needed. You can determine if your turf needs watering by simply stepping on it. If the blades of grass spring back to their original place, the lawn can wait on watering. If your grass stays down, it could use a drink.

What are some other ways you can conserve water? Something as simple as using the dishwasher instead of handwashing dishes can have a dramatic impact on your water consumption. The typical kitchen faucet uses two gallons of water per minute. If you let your water run for a few minutes before you start washing your dishes to ensure it is hot, that’s about six gallons of water. Running water while washing and rinsing those dishes for up to 15 minutes could waste another 30 gallons of water. That’s 36 gallons of water for a small number of dishes. By using an Energy Star rated dishwasher, your water consumption will be around four gallons. Even if you are using an older model dishwasher the water consumption will be closer to 15 gallons. That is over a 50 percent reduction in water use, just by using a dishwasher.

The water we have is the only water that has ever been, or will ever be, here on Earth. Although April is Water Conservation Month, let’s make every day water conservation day.

Want to learn more about how you can save water or what the City is doing to help promote conservation? Call the City of Ocala Water Resources Department call 352351-6772 or email Rachel Slocumb, Conservation Coordinator at rslocumb@ocalafl.org.

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