The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that the average American family uses 300 gallons of freshwater, and the vast majority of that use -- as much as 70 percent -- stems from indoor activities, such as toilet flushes, bathing, and leaky faucets.
Although for many Americans, the availability of freshwater resources seems abundant, the fact is that water scarcity is a stunning issue across the globe. Although 71 percent of the Earth's surface is covered in water, a whopping 99 percent of that water is not fresh or potable by human beings and other living creatures.
In other words, freshwater is a scant resource that needs to be respected and protected by us in order to survive and thrive on this beautiful planet, and yet, even the simplest things we do every day might be jeopardizing that delicate balance.
For example, plumbing leaks account for an estimated 13.7 percent of daily water use in American households, which means that every day, the average family loses 41.1 gallons a day due to lack of leak control. Experts estimate that adds up to about a trillion gallons of wasted water each year in America alone.
Water is also wasted en masse thanks to litter control and efforts to recycle wasted plastic containers, and as much as 80 percent of liquid detergents are made of water meant to dilute their harsh chemical compound properties, which is an immense amount of water waste. Dry detergents are water soluble in the wash and do just as good a job, if not better, in releasing the necessary cleaning agents during a cycle.
Dropping those liquid detergents can be an easy first step towards shoring up your daily water waste today!