Our Water Environment – the Big Picture

There’s a lot of discussion about climate change: how it’s linked to carbon emissions and how it will affect growing populations. But nobody has ever looked at how dieting and climate change could be linked. 

“Wait a minute. What’s all this about?” I hear you cry. Well, think about it. It has been shown that faddy yo-yo diets don’t work. What does work is making small changes that improve your lifestyle. Eat a bit less. Exercise a little bit more. The extra steps seem small but they can all add up to pounds off.

It’s the same with looking after the climate. The ways in which water and sewerage moves through our environment can all be affected by climate change. And the way that we interact with this environment can be changed by some very small, simple steps. 

Today, we’re sharing pages which explain more about the water environment, how water and sewerage moves through that environment and more about the small steps we can all take to make a difference.

Three Ways to Protect our Water Environment

It’s not many but it’s a start. After all, no one person is responsible for changing the environment overnight but we can all pull together on the small things. 

So here they are. Three tips on little things you can do that will help to reduce our impact on the climate and the water environment. Oh, and it might help to keep your future water bills down too:

1. Dispose of paint thinners, motor oil and other hazardous materials responsibly.These should not be tipped down the drain or they can end up polluting rivers and streams, which then have to be cleaned up by water companies. This uses energy, which creates carbon emissions, it is also expensive - and water customers have to pay the bill.
2. Check if your home plumbing is properly connected to the waste water sewerage system. If your pipes aren’t connected properly dirty water from your sink, washing machine and even your toilet could be going straight into local rivers and streams. The Connect Right website can help you to identify a misconnection and gives tips on how to correct it.
3. Use slug pellets and other pesticides sparingly.The chemicals used in these products can enter the water cycle. This can also cause pollution in local water streams and rivers.
   

Make Climate Week the occasion to take small steps to contribute to the Big Picture.