EarthCARE
Water Related FAQs
- How is water usage measured?
- How many litres of water does a garden hose
use per hour?
- How much water is used in a shower?
- How much water is used in a regular toilet
per flush?
- What is the average use per student each day?
- How much would be lost by a leaking faucet
or toilet?
- How does a water-saving shower head work?
- How much does water cost, by the litre? by
the gallon?
- How do the 3"R"s (reduce, reuse
and recycle) apply to water conservation?
- List 2 ways in which water is treated in
order to make it safe to drink
- How much water do we use in a year in Canada?
Is our water clean enough? Will water be scarce in the future?
If so, then how can we stop that?
- What percentage of the earth's surface is covered by water?
- Where is the greatest amount of fresh water found on the earth?
- What percentage of a living tree is water?
- How long can a human being survive without water?
- How much water is used during the growing and production of a loaf of bread?
- How many liters of water does the average Canadian adult use in 1 year?
1. How is water usage measured?
Water is measured in cubic meters - [1 m3 =
1000 litres] - [1 m3 = 220 imperial gallons] - [
1 m3 = mass of 1000 kilograms]
2. How many litres of water does a garden
hose use per hour?
1100 litres per hour
3. How much water is used in a shower?
A typical shower will use 160 litres.
4. How much water is used in a regular toilet per flush?
16 to 23 litres per flush
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5. What is the average use of water per student
each day?
The average usage is 10 to 15 m3 per day.
6. How much water would be lost by a leaking faucet or toilet?
A leaking toilet would lose 400 litres per day ($200 per year) and a faucet would lose 5000 litres per year.
7. How does a water-saving shower head work?
The amount of output of water is reduced with a water-saving shower head; hence, there are related water savings.
Water Use
- Regular shower head uses 2 to 10 gallons per minute (gpm)
- Water-Saver shower head uses 2 to 5 gallons per minute
Older showers may use from two to ten gallons of water per minute (gpm) fully opened. Newer shower heads may use about 2 to 3 gpm. The low-flow shower heads designed to use less water differ in spray patterns, mounting and functions.
The low-flow shower head looks like a regular shower head but has a built-in flow restrict. Simply put, the amount of water output from the head is reduced by the restrictions (smaller openings). Some units have a built-in pulsar feature that will increase the actual water pressure through the head if more water pressure is needed. If a shower head is replaced with a low-flow type, note whether or not there is a ball joint on the shower arm. Presence or absence of the ball joint is important in selecting the correct replacement head.
Cost can range from $7 to $70. The payback depends on the size of your household and the number and length of showers. Householders taking two four-minute showers per day may save enough hot water in two years to pay for the cost of replacing the shower head with a low-flow head. Areas where water use is restricted and not readily available, making it costly, may save even more. Utility charges for heating water affect the savings on energy bills as well.
8. How much does water cost, by the litre? by the gallon?
The price of water is very much dependent on the area and the service provided. We suggest you contact the local municipality or water company for prices in a specific area.
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9. How do the 3"R"s (reduce,
reuse and recycle) apply to water conservation?
The three "R"s - Reduce, Reuse and Recycle - apply to any
substance we can reduce, reuse or recyle. The focus with water,
as with all other substances or energy forms, should be on reducing
our use. For example, turning off taps when they do not need
to be running, fixing leaking faucets, etc. Some appliances
are built to reuse some water - for example, some washing machines
have a 'suds saver' feature that also saves the wash cycle water
for use in another wash cycle. Recycling water can be done by
using water from laundry for gardens, watering plants with leftover
tea, etc. The first step is to think about the water you are
using (is it necessary?) and how you might use it again. You
will be surprised what a difference you can make.
Rain water is also collectable for future use such as watering
plants, etc. Some people have several rain barrels to collect
water to use for many purposes - it si soft water and very nice
for washing your hair!
Another question is "WHY SHOULD WE CARE"?
Water is the most common substance on Earth, covering more
than 70 percent of the planet's surface. Water makes up two-thirds
of our own bodies. But the abundance of water is an illusion.
Only a tiny fraction of the planet's water is drinkable. Ninety-seven
percent is sea water, which is expensive and difficult to desalinate.
About 2 percent is caught in polar ice caps. That leaves just
1 percent to sustain life in the next millennium. Already, 26
countries are classified as water-stressed -- meaning they don't
have enough water to sustain agriculture and economic development.
A third of Africans live without enough water, as do most in
the Middle East. Looking out to 2025, the number of people living
in water-stressed countries will increase six and a half times.
A child dies every 8 seconds from drinking contaminated water
due to the lack of good drinking water. Before it is too late,
we need to stop and think about our natural resources and preserving
the quality of life we have.
10. List 2 ways in which water is treated in order to make it safe to drink.
Treating water with ultra violet light and chlorination are 2 ways in which we make our water safe to drink.
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11. How much water do we use in a year in Canada? Is our water
clean enough? Will water be scarce in the future? If so, then
how can we stop that?
We consume an average of 343 litres of fresh water per person per day
in the residential sector alone, and the numbers are rising. It's a
rate second only to the US, and more than double the amount used by
most Europeans. This is not necessary. Of the cities surveyed in
Canada, Charlottetown used the least amount of water residentially, at
156 litres per capita per day, while St. John's, at 659 litres, used
the most. Victoria and Vancouver were close to the national average,
using 340 and 357 litres per-capita, respectively.
The United States uses 392 litres; Israel uses 135 litres.
Canada has 7% of the world's renewable fresh water. It is easy
for Canadians to assume that they have an almost endless supply
of clean, fresh water. After all, we're often told that Canada
has some 20% of the world's total freshwater resources. However,
less than half of this water - about 7% of the global supply
- is renewable. Most of it is fossil water retained in lakes,
underground aquifers, and glaciers. For Canada's 30 million
people - about half a percent of the world's population - this
is still a generous endowment. But, more than half of this water
drains northward into the Arctic Ocean and Hudson Bay. As a
result, it is unavailable to the 85% of the Canadian population
who live along the country's southern border. That means the
remaining supply, while still abundant, is heavily used and
often overly stressed.
The chart below shows Canadian water usage broken down by industy.
12. What percentage of the earth’s surface is covered by water?
80%
13. Where is the greatest amount of fresh water found on the earth?
Polar Ice Caps
14. What percentage of a living tree is water?
75%
15. How long can a human being survive without water?
~3 days
16. How much water is used during the growing and production of a loaf of bread?
567 litres
17. How many litres of water does the average Canadian adult use in 1 year?
500,000 litres
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