Water Use - Direct

Activity Liters Used Activity Liters Used
Brushing teeth 7 / min Leaking faucet 10/day
Washing hands 7 / min Watering lawn 35/min
Shaving 7 / min Washing machine 210
Showering 17.5 / min House cleaning 25
Tub bathing 105 Automatic dishwasher 53
Flushing toilet 20 Washing dishes 30
Getting a drink 1 Cooking a meal 22
Water the lawn 1,100 Wash the car 190


Water Use - Indirect

Agricultural Industrial
Item Liters Used Item Liters Used
1 egg 140 Mining/manufacturing 640/person/day
1 orange 350 Cooling electric plants 2450/person/day
1 ear of corn 266 1 L gasoline 50
1 loaf of bread 147 1 kg steel 270
1 kg flour 578 1 newspaper 980
1 kg sugar 962 1 kg synthetic rubber 2310
1 kg rice 3853 1 kg aluminum 7707
1 kg beef 19,274 1 car 331,888
1 Christmas tree 18,053
1 barrel crude oil refined 7,000
1 hamburger 4,925

Percentage of water “consumed” by various uses

Power generation 60 % Municipal 11 %
Manufacturing 20 % Agriculture 9 %

Domestic Uses of Water

toilet flushing 45 % laundry 20 %
washing/bathing 30 % cooking/drinking 5 %


Questions

1. Estimate, off the top of your head, your individual daily water use in liters.

2. Using the table above, calculate your actual direct individual daily water use.

3. Compare your calculated water use with your estimated water use. Comment.

4. Assuming everyone is like you, determine the total daily water used by every student in the school.

5. Consider a few of the Indirect uses of water and explain why so much water is used for each.

6. Make a list of both the Direct and Indirect ways in which you use water.

7. Make suggestions for reducing your use of both.

8. Although domestic water use is a small fraction of our overall total, why is it important to conserve water at home?

9. What are the most common places where water is being wasted in the home?

10. What is the major use of water in the home?

11. What is the major use of water in Canada? How does this differ from the US?