Fact Sheet: Schools and Water Efficiency
Remember that some areas of your school may be off-limits without permission from your teacher or principal, and some projects should be done with at least one partner. Check with your teacher before beginning any of the activities or projects listed here.
Why It Matters
The world's supply of clean, fresh water is limited. We should protect clean water and use it efficiently. But often, we do just the opposite: We waste huge amounts of water, and we make it dirty and unsafe.
It's easy to take water for granted. After all, you just turn on the tap, and out it pours -- as much as you want. But in drier parts of the country, or when there's a drought, water is scarce. Water could become more scarce if we keep wasting it. Schools, just like homes, farms and offices go through thousands of gallons of water a day, often using far more than they need.
People use two types of water: surface water (from rivers, lakes or reservoirs) and ground water (from between two layers of rock, sand or gravel deep in the earth). In some parts of the country, water is being pumped from these sources faster than it can be replaced by rain or melting snow. Demand for water continues to grow, so this problem could become even worse in the years to come.
Did you know that using too much water also affects water quality? The wastewater from sinks, showers and toilets gets mixed together on its way to sewage treatment plants, which clean it before releasing it back into the environment. The more water there is in this mixture, the harder it is to get it clean. Extra water also puts more pressure on sewage pipes, which can leak or overflow before water reaches treatment plants, especially if the pipes also carry rain. When this happens, polluted water that hasn't been cleaned at all spills into rivers and lakes, or backs up into streets and basements. That's not just gross -- it's also extremely harmful. These spills can kill plants and animals. And they can threaten your health, particularly if you swim in sewage-contaminated waters.
What Kids Can Do
You can find lots of ways to save water at school. Follow the tips below, and learn about the things your school should do.
- Don't let the water run: Don't let the water run when you're not actually using it. For instance, when you wash your hands, you really only need running water to wet them and then to rinse the soap off. Keep the faucet off while you're lathering up.
- Report leaks immediately: Whenever you see a leak, tell a custodian or your teacher right away. Fixing leaks promptly can save thousands of gallons of water.
What Your School Can Do
Some of the most important ways to save water involve buying, replacing or adapting faucets and toilets. Look into whether your school is following these steps.
- Buy the most efficient faucets and toilets: When it's time to replace or add faucets or toilets, buying efficient models can make a huge difference. A good place to check is Green Seal, which has a brochure on water-saving fixtures.
- Install timed faucets: Timed faucets automatically switch off after a few seconds, so worries disappear about forgetting to turn off the water or turning it off only part way.
- Use toilet dams: If your school has toilets with tanks, it should put toilet dams or similar devices inside. Toilet dams can be bought or made from such common items as plastic bottles. When they're inside the tanks, they take up space that would otherwise be filled with water. So each time the toilet is flushed, less water is used. Toilet dams can save a lot of water at home, too. (But don't use bricks for this purpose. Pieces can chip off and hurt the plumbing.)
- Install aerators: Aerators go inside faucets. They reduce the water flow, but add air, which keep the pressure feeling strong.
Project Ideas
- Reminders to stop running: Make signs or posters to put near faucets to remind people to turn them off. Change them periodically, so people will keep reading them -- and remembering the message.
- Calculate how much water a dripping faucet wastes: Check out WaterWiser's Drip Calculator to see how much water is wasted when a fixture drips. Enter the number of drips per minute, then see how much it adds up to each day, month or year. You'll be amazed!
Related Fact Sheet
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