Economical ways to survive the upcoming US Waster Shortage - By: Liz Andrews

According to the US government close to forty states face water shortages over the next 5 years. An increase in the temperature mixed with an increase in population are the main factors contributing to the water challenges that most of us will face in the near future. Basic economics supply and demand theory teaches us where their is great demand and limited supply. A price increase usually follows. There are also current talks in Congress about allocating funds to help our water problem. Clean Water Trust Fund and Clean Water Act are just two of the organizations that will be funded. Government is also planning an overhaul on our outdated water system. How will they fund all this? Well, you most likely will see a price increase in your water and sewage treatment bills. For those of you with private companies running your local water and sewer companies. You are already paying over 30 percent more than government run sewage and water organizations. These privatized utility providers are expected to only increase the price of these fundamental sectors. Taking all of this into account. Basically we are almost destined to see a price increase for water and sewer charges. On a brighter note our water usage is comparable to a large portion of the US population driving gas guzzling cars. This was not a problem when the price of gas was under two dollars. When gas prices sky rocketed over the past few years people became more conscious of their gas consumption. As a result people also starting purchasing fuel efficient cars. The same type of situation applies to our water usage. The inevitable price increase for water will lead many of us to find smarter alternatives to our water guzzling ways. An example of how careless we are about our water usage is the fact that we waste fourteen percent of our water usage on leaks in the home. I would assume a sharp increase in the water prices would result in a sharp decrease in the previous statistic. Fortunately there are also products for saving water. These products are already available and are becoming more and more popular. Many plumbers have already seen an increase in demand for water conservation products. According Plumbing Manufacturers Institute 22% of the toilets in the US are now low flow toilets. Dual flush toilets, which is a type of low flow toilet is used all around the world. In water scarce Australia dual flush toilets are mandatory. Just like fuel efficient cars are little bit more expensive so to are water saving toilets. However they both pay off over time. Research done at Florida University states that we use about 50% more water outdoors than indoors. Watering our lawns has a huge impact on our outdoor water usage. Water moisture sensors which have evolved over the years are now very accurate. By installing these senors in our lawns we can decrease water usage by over seventy percent. Only a few minor improvements and being conscious about our home's water usage will make the upcoming hike in water and sewer costs a lot less painful.

About the Author

Water saving toilets like a dual flush toilet is a great way to save water. In a year this type of toilet saves at least 4,000 gallons per household.

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