Recently in Water & Healthy Living Category

It is always a good reminder to look at the health benefits of drinking enough water everyday. When I look at all the upsides, I can't believe I ever forget my water bottle when I leave the house.

To start with, drinking water throughout the day keeps us alert gives us more energy. Water is essential to the body's circulation. If you are a little dehydrated, your blood becomes more viscous and moves slower in the body, making you feel sluggish and tired. Some say that water is better than coffee in the long run to keep you alert and productive throughout the day.

Two, drinking water helps keep the extra pounds off. If you are dehydrated, your liver cannot process your excess fat into energy and therefore the fat is stored in body. An ample water supply for your body helps you metabolize fat more efficiently.

Three, drinking water helps you absorb nutrients more effectively. Water increases the absorption of electrolytes, vitamins and minerals into your body from food. This in turn will give you mor esustainaned energy as well as general health long term health.

If you want to find out how much daily water intake is right you, use this simple water calculator.

While last summer's Cash for Clunkers program that got gas-guzzlers off the road is long gone, a new Cash for Appliances trade-in deal is here. The new eco-friendly deal is an especially sweet sounding one for water conservationists because beyond energy-saving attributes, it rewards consumers for water-saving features, too. Swapping out an old top loading clothing washer for an Energy-Star rated model could save an astonishing 40 to 45 gallons of water...per load!

The program is dishing out $300 million dollars in the form of rebates ranging between $50 and $200. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) deals differ from state to state, so before you run out and replace your old washer, dryer, dishwasher, air conditioner, water heater, refrigerator or other appliance, check the rules for your location.

In New York the Great Appliance Swap-Out, starting in February, will hand out over 170,000 rebates, including impressive $500 rebates for consumers who scoop up a three-appliance package of a refrigerator, dishwasher and clothes washer. California's program is scheduled to begin in March with $50 to $100 rebates. Illinois plans a two part program with one phase for large appliances including heaters, furnaces and air conditioners in January and another for smaller appliances like dishwashers, refrigerators and clothes washers scheduled to begin on Earth Day. We also love that some states are giving extra bucks to recyclers. Florida, for example, is giving an additional $75 to participants who present a receipt showing they recycled their clunker appliances.

Sounds like the perfect excuse to go get that Energy Star rated refrigerator with a filtered tap water dispenser in the door that you've always wanted!

Photo by Chris Corwin on flickr under a Creative Commons license.

The U.S. Green Building Council has awarded an Innovation in Design credit under its LEED program for a specific two-stage water filtration system to eliminate the need for bottled water.

The combination of filtration technologies - an automatic self-cleaning screen filter at the main water supply's point of entry, followed by point-of-use filters at each faucet - delivers tap water of a quality equal to bottled water, without the environmental impact associated with the production, distribution and disposal of plastic bottles.

The two-stage process is what makes this system so innovative and environmentally friendly. By removing suspended sediments from the building's water supply at point of entry, the automatic filter minimizes the load on the point-of-use filters. This significantly increases the longevity of the cartridges in the home units.

And, they're made by an NYC company!

Photo: Betterwaters.com

Here's a sign of things to come if I've ever seen one. California environmentalists are appealing a judge's decision to keep active more than 100 long-term water delivery contracts to farmers in the agriculturally rich Central Valley.

In an appeal filed Monday in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the San Francisco Baykeeper say the decades-long water contracts would harm aquatic life (particularly Smelt) in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

Based on a 2005 Biological Opinion that has been thrown out in federal court, they are asking the appeals court to have the contracts renegotiated to reflect current science to safeguard the Smelt which is listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

Some of the contracts being challenged allow the diversion of over 300,000 acre-feet of water from the Delta to San Joaquin Valley growers for the next 25 years. Others allow diversion of 2.2 million acre feet annually.

"We're talking about agreements that hand over California's real wealth, its water, for decades to some growers watering desert soils full of toxic minerals for a fraction of the real value of that water, all at taxpayer and urban water users' expense," said Earthjustice Attorney Trent Orr.

Photo: Wikimedia commons

If you need to encourage anyone to ditch the bottled water habit, here's a little motivation: It could lead to a bad sex life. A recent study of Chinese factory workers who were exposed to high doses of bisphenol A (BPA) on the job found they had a higher occurrence of sexual problems including lower sexual desire, impotence and even satisfaction.

The study, published by the journal Human Reproduction, reported that the men exposed to high levels of BPA were four times more likely to experience erectile dysfunction than other factory workers in the same town. 

While there's no need for the average person to be alarmed -- the men in the study had BPA levels 50 times that of the norm for American men -- it does bring more attention to the importance of limiting exposure.

The FDA still calls the trace amounts that leach out of plastic bottles and canned food safe. But with study after study linking BPA to reproductive and nervous system issues not to mention prostate and breast cancers, heart attacks and diabetes, the FDA is taking another look. In the meantime, stay away from bottled water and choose a BPA-free refillable bottle for drinking tap on the go instead.
 
Photo by Phil Dragash on flickr used under a Creative Commons License

A slum in Lima, Peru is the first to install fog catchers to collect water. Shown at left, the fog catchers are about 26 feet by 13 feet and are installed on mountaintops alongside fog catching trees which are adapted to the arid climate.

At first, the fog catchers just irrigate the trees, but as the trees grow larger and send roots deeper (in their second year), they begin to irrigate themselves. Then channels are installed underneath the trees and a part of the water that falls down from their leaves and branches is skimmed off for human use. It works out to about 60 liters of water per night in winter!

The water is mostly used for drinking and cooking, but can also be used to irrigate small vegetable gardens. And although the nets cost about $800 each and water purifying tabs are needed for drinking, but having access to clean water and being able to raise food is well worth the cost. 

In Lima, more than 1.3 million people have no access to drinking water. Water trucked in is to expensive for most people in the poorer areas so they often go without. But the 200 residents of Bellavista del Parasio are going for water independence with their fog catching system.

To learn more about catching fog, the German NGO Alimon, and the Green Desert Project check out their website - the photos are great.

Photo: Green Diary

Starting this week, a group of students at Texas A & M University are giving up all beverages like juice, soda and bottled water and are only drinking tap water for 14 days. The money saved by students will be collected by The Wells Project and given to Living Water International  which aims to give those in water deprived areas new wells for drinking water.

It is estimated that every $1 donated to the construction of wells in developing areas, provides drinking water for one person for a year. So, each time you refrain from buying one iced tea or soda you could be helping one or two people for an entire year! That is a huge impact.

In general, this is really a great way to raise money for water. Everyone gets to appreciate and be thankful that we, as Americans, have easy access to clean water, while helping others who are less fortunate by giving away money we would have spent otherwise.

Who knows, some people may realize, after the 14 days, that only drinking tap water is the way to go. After all, it not only saves you money, it is also very healthy.

Photo Credit: 'Dan4th' via Flickr

California's water situation seems to be perpetually grim. So conserving water is often top-of-mind for residents there. Now Ventura County residents can get a free water audit of their house or apartment from California American Water, a water utility serving about 20,000 households there. You've gotta love free stuff and this is one free thing that should save you cash, too.

The free Water Wise survey will look at both indoor and outdoor water usage to help customers save water and in turn, lower their water bills. Inside your home, they'll test flow rates of showerheads and faucets, estimate toilet flush volumes and test for leaks. Outside, they'll examine irrigation design and watering schedules.

Besides the evaluation. Residents will get resources and tools they need to conserve water including a free conservation kit with low-flow showerheads and garden hose nozzles. Plus, they'll get tips on how to tell if they're over-watering their lawns and gardens, recommendations for drought tolerant plants that could be better matched to California gardens and information on toilet, clothes washer and landscape rebate programs.

If you're a California American Water customer and think you might be eligible for the free program, email lani.olsen@amwater.com to sign up. Otherwise, look at your water usage yourself. Check for leaky faucets, swap out old showerheads and faucets for low-flow options and install a bag in your toilet to save water. You can also check out Water Use It Wisely's 100+ ways to conserve water.  

Image by tlloyd on Stock.xchng.

Studies have shown that prescription drugs are present in our drinking water. Some of the traces of pharmaceuticals come from pills we take, which are later excreted after they pass through our bodies and others come from medications that get flushed down the toilet right into our water systems.

Even though the levels of drugs in our water are low and probably have very little impact on us, it's a different story for fish and other animals who are exposed to the water beyond drinking it. Cholesterol medications can change an animals metabolic rate and birth control can contribute to turning male fish into hermaphrodites, for example.

So what should you do with prescription drugs that are expired or no longer needed? The Federal Drug Administration (FDA) has created a list of medications that could pose a danger to people or pets in your home such as opioid painkillers that are highly addictive. They urge people to flush these medications (currently there are 26 on the list) for safety reasons.

However, the brains behind SmartRx Disposal say you should never flush medications or pour them down the sink drain. Instead, they offer an environmentally responsible and safe alternative for disposing of prescription drugs. First, pour medication into a plastic bag you can seal. Crush any solid pills or capsules or add liquid to dissolve them. Next, add a mixer that will make the medication less appealing to kids and pets like coffee grounds, sawdust or kitty litter. Then, seal the bag and put it in the garbage. No flushing into our water supply necessary.  

Image by personalfx on Stock.xchng.

While searching around the 100K house website this morning, I came across the concept of Net Zero Water. Now you all know what Net Zero Energy is - building with zero net energy consumption, zero carbon emissions annually and being 'off the grid.' Well, Net Zero Water is a similar concept.

In order to be considered 'water independent' a building needs to capture all precipitation, manage its storm water runoff and re-use all household wastewater.

Wastewater can be considered either greywater or blackwater (water that has come into contact with human waste or other organic matter) and different types of water require different types of treatment. Rainwater can be captured, stored, and treated with a relatively small amount of energy. Rainwater is fairly clean - it just requires ultra-violet sterilization to be used for drinking purposes. Greywater can be naturally filtered in a constructed wetlands system, or living machine.

Now you have to admit, the concept of Net Zero Water is a tough call, even for those of us who live in areas that get a lot of rain. For people living in Arid regions of the U.S. its basically impossible. But if you're building and you want to build green, you can opt for a greywater system. This one is a nice little streamlined stand alone system designed to serve a typical household of 4 - 6 people. It captures water from your bath and shower, cleans it and channels it to your toilets. After all, why flush clean drinking water!