“Many people have lived without love,but none without water.”

A few simple ways to

be the change we want to see around us:

A slow dripping tap can waste up to 20 liters of water a day!

Get all leaks fixed right away.

Until then, bucket the leak.

Run the water tap with minimal force,only when needed.

Keep it closed while

• Brushing

• Shaving

• Soaping hands• Scrubbing vessels

Remember: "1 billion people (already) lack enough waterto simply meet their basic needs!" - WHO

E.g., a dual flush system can operate at half the tank capacity.

Flush very judiciously.

Get a low flush toilet that lets you regulate the water outflow.

* Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toilets_in_Japan#Squat_toilet

Indian squat toilets: Water efficient and hygienic! *

Don’t use the toilet as a wastebasket!

upto 16 liters of potable water

Every time you flush,

goes down the drain!

Source: “Hunting Down Water”,an award-winning documentary

Choose a restrained bucket bath,

over a prolonged shower bath.

Bath tubs are a great deal worse.

to cool the house exteriors, etc.!

Why pour water where a wet cloth would do?

Water is too scarce a resource to be splashed about

Delhi alone guzzles 4.5 crore liters every day

for car washing! *

* Source: “Hunting Down Water”, an award-winning documentary

Make sure to infuse these tips into your maid/helper too.

The hand-washing of cloths is not only greener,

Prefer semi automatic.

It lets you reduce the cycle time and reuse the water for another load.

• Must choose an automatic one? Go for front loading, then.

Can’t somehow avoid a washing machine?

• Lower the washing frequency.Running the machine only at full load saves energy + water.

it can also generate extra income for maids.

An RO (Reverse Osmosis) filter discards double the quantity of water it purifies. *

Employ it only when unavoidable.

Can’t do away with RO?

Bucket the outgoing water; Reuse it in cleaning, washing cloths, etc.

Yet another practical way to reuse water:

Wash fruits/veggies in a bowl (& utilize that water elsewhere).

* Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reverse_osmosis#Disadvantages

Efficiency needs to be extended to water too!

Rainwater harvesting

Storing the rain falling on your house also prevents theflooding of streets, apart from groundwater recharge.

Catch me when you can!

“By 2025, ~60% of India’s groundwater blocks will bein a critical condition.” – World Bank

The next world war will not be fought over land or oil, but over water!

- Serageldin, former VP, World Bank (among other experts)

Plenty of water overflows away (invisibly). Why? We don’t know when exactly to turn off the motor!

Invest in an automatic water motor controller.

It also saves power by auto-closingwhen the water in-flow stops.

[1] http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/earthglacier.html [2] http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090119210532.htm

Climate change severely aggravates our water plight.

• Glaciers store ~75% of the world's freshwater. [1]

• Gravely many glaciers are receding, thanks to global warming.

"Scientists agree human-induced global warming is real, survey says”. [2]

Just a minor temperature rise? Not quite!

[1] www.washprofile.org/en/node/3381 [2] Centre for Science and Environment [3] National Crime Records Bureau

Climate change perturbs the entire weather cycle!

Between 1973 and 1982, ~1500 natural disasters occurred, while from 1993 to 2002, they increased to as many as 6000! [1]

the right amount (not less, not more), at the right time. [2]

1.84 lakh Indian farmers committed suicide between 1995 & 2007. [3]

68% of our farmers need rain:

• Floodwater contains infectious organisms, along with chemical & other waste.

• Grossly inadequate mechanisms to store rainwater before•

it hits the drains/oceans.

How come floods & (safe) water crisis

rise together?

Thankfully, the climatic crisis too can be conquered…

but only if each of us upholdsIndividual Environmental Responsibility:

• ‘Deadly dozen’ diseases could stem from global warming. [1]

[1] http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/10/081007-climate-diseases.html [2] http://business.rediff.com/slide-show/2009/dec/10/slide-show-1-countries-worst-hit-by-climate-change.htm

• India is one of the 10 countries worst hit by climate change. [2]

• A great deal of eco problems originate locally, so passing the buck to the developed nations is just flawed escapism.

Enormous air & water pollution; Massive depletion of oil/trees, water, energy & fuel;

in production + transportation + disposal!

[1] EPI: http://www.earth-policy.org [2] ToI, Bangalore, dated 30-8-08

1500 plastic bottles end up as garbage, every second! [1]

Just (re)use, don’t throw!Huge waste burning, giganticlandfills & now ocean-fills too!

In place of multiple

Tissue papersDisposable cupsPlastic bagsDisposable bottles

Use one

HandkerchiefMug/glassJute/cloth bagReusable bottle

Many Indian offices consume 60000 paper cups in ~2 weeks! [2]

Quite a few companies (e.g., TI, McAfee) have alreadyphased out paper cups for steel/ceramic mugs! [2]

A myth: Recycling magically fixes all evils of consumerism!

• Most paper cups contain a plastic resin, making them non-biodegradable, non-recyclable.

They end up in a landfill, emitting methane.

• Only 6.8% of all plastics were recycled in 2007. [1]

[1] Environmental Protection Agency [2] ToI, Bangalore, dated 30-8-08

Recyling is useful, but limited. First reuse; then recycle!

• Recycling (when possible) guzzles 12 trees, 26k liters of water & sizable energy/oil – for 60k cups! [2]

Buying from local markets - as opposed to malls – curbsthe hefty emissions tied to transportation and flashy publicity.

Exception: the local stuff that lacks energy-efficiency

Farming is exceedingly water intensive.

Eliminate food wastage.

Hand-made products are greener and create more jobs!

Purchase products with minimal/reusable packaging.

“Nothing will benefit human health and increase chances of survival as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.”

Animal products account for 51% of the world's total emissions!- “Livestock and Climate Change” by Goodland and Anhang, World Bank environmental advisers

• Substituting every kg of chicken with veggies saves a mammoth 7000+ liters of water in India! – Using stats from National Institute of Hydrology, Roorkee

Albert Einstein :

Killing an animal yields few meals once;

Cut down on meat as much as possible.

• Humongous depletion of land (fodder), water (fodder, drinking,

bathing), energy (cooling/transport)

Raising it takes months of daily meals!

Increasing reliance ondiesel generators

Skyrocketing energy consumption

Dangerous levels of damaging pollutants (including Black Carbon & Nitrogen Oxides)

Escalating power cuts

A one-time investment in solar systems (heating, lighting)fetches recurring environmental & monetary savings.

Configure power options such thatthe monitor closes after an idle time of few minutes,

& the CPU/laptop hibernates after half an hour, automatically.

Suspend or hibernate it for breaks >= ½ hour.

Turn off the CPU/laptop at the end of the day.

A screen saver saves nothing & burns energy.

Why not switch off the monitorevery time we leave the desk

for few minutes or more?

30% of Bangalore’skids are asthmatic! *

Choked roads? Where?!

buses!Just 2

* Source: http://www.rediff.com/news/2007/nov/06asthma.htm

Prefer Non-motorized

[Cycle, Cycle Rickshaws]

&

Mass transport [Bus, Train,

Shared autos, Vehicle pooling]

It’s also good for the body and light on the wallet!

Minimize the use of individual autos & personal vehicles.

Flying less (and light) saves tremendous fuel/emissions.

Sir Albert Einstein Promote Green

Employment

Long walks/rides are as pleasurable as long drives,& healthy too!

* Source: Bharat Petroleum {http://www.bharatpetroleum.com/YourCorner/petrozine/quart2_2008/index.html}

If and when you must drive a motorized vehicle,

Electric cars do pollute (via the coal-based power they run on),

• Keep the tyres fully filled (for increased mileage).

• Turn off the engine at the signal when

the waiting time is > 15 seconds. *

but less.

Consider mileage/energy more than looks/comfort while buying vehicles and appliances.

E.g., pay up a bit extra and buy a higher BEE * starred (say) fridge to save on power & money on a monthly basis.

efficient as CRT!

Replace Tube lights by LED lightsor CFLs of lower Watts (if LED infeasible).

* Bureau of Energy Efficiency, Government of India

power that desktops do!

LCD {TV, Monitor} is ~twice as

Laptops consume < half the

• Print only what’s necessary. • Print two-sided.

• Utilize all available space in notebooks (& unwanted print-outs).

* Source: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_trees_do_you_save_with_one_ton_of_recycled_paper

A 200-member company,with a daily average of only 2 print-outs per person,

eats away 1 full tree in just ~20 days! *

At home & in the car [More desirable: Curtail the car usage!]

Favour stairs to elevators whenever possible.

Why lose power, instead of gaining health?!

Curtail the AC usage; Raise its temperature:

Check the use of coolers (consuming loads of water), too.

Help prevent small kids from working in awfullyunhealthy & unsafe confines of fire cracker factories.

We have a right to celebrate, but at what cost?

Compost the kitchen waste [dailydump.org].In the very least, throw it to the plants/garden.

Segregate waste: bio-degradable (kitchen, paper) & otherwise.

Sell as much waste as possible (plastic, paper) to scrap dealersfor recycling/reusing.

Clichéd, but crucial: Plant & protect trees!

Celebrate special days by funding tree plantations(treesforfree.org).

Only after the last tree has been cut off, and the last river poisoned,

will we realize that we can’t eat money!

Thank you!

Email: pulkitparikh@gmail.com