I just came back from a weekend retreat with 40 middle school students who have joined a watershed conservation group at their school. With 40 13 and 14 yr. olds, I'd hardly call it a retreat. A chaotic break from normalcy is maybe more like it. But it was good. I got to spend some good one-on-one time with students that I have mentored in the past. And I also received some valuable info on water conservation.
In case you didn't know...
- 5 gallons of water is used each time you flush the toilet
- Keeping the water running while you brush your teeth uses 2 gallons
- For every minute of your shower, 5 gallons of water goes down the drain
- 1 quart of oil spilled into a creek contaminates 250,000 gallons of water
But here's the real crazy info that is hard to digest...
- 60% of all sewage in my county goes raw into the creek, no treatment, no filter!
- Last week, a diesel truck flipped over on the road near the creek in front of my house. 7,500 gallons spilled into the creek, killing 2,500 fish in 4 miles of stream.
McDowell County, W.V. is a small dot on the USA map, that's for sure. But one day, I hope, that dot will have properly treated sewage.
As for me, I'm thinking of putting a composting bathroom in my yard...(well, maybe not)...
3 comments:
First of all, congrats on becoming an official blogger. And secondly, I love your water facts. I wish more folks were so enlightened about water conservation. Keep learning!
if it's yellow, let it MELLOW!!! it's my bathroom credo, for sure. and with how many times a day i seem to need to pee... good thing.
a lot of my friends are reading books about environmental spirituality (or whatever you call it), and i may need to join the club soon. hard to find time with all my injury biomechanics reading...
merilee, I want a blog too but I'm too embarrassed to do it. help!?
-blogless in massachusetts
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