A 2003 Government Accounting Office (GAO) report stated, “Water managers in 36 states anticipate shortages in localities, regions, or statewide in the next 10 years.”1
1. Freshwater Supply: States’ View of How Federal Agencies Could Help Them Meet the Challenges of Expected Shortages. U.S.
• Worldwide consumption of water is rising at double the population growth rate.
• One inch of rainfall drops 7,000 gallons, or nearly 30 tons of water, on a 60-foot-by-180-foot plot of land.
• On average, 50–70 percent of residential water is used outdoors for watering lawns and gardens.
• It is estimated that on a typical Thanksgiving, after dinner, 16.4 million Americans watch football. At halftime, American toilets flush 16.4 million times and use up to 48.5 million gallons of water (depending on the toilet type). Using water-efficient toilets would save 22.3 million gallons of water, or the same amount of water needed to fill 1,476 swimming pools.
• The average five-minute shower uses 15–25 gallons of water.
Source: American Water Works Association
More Water Statistics
– Americans use five times the amount of water that Europeans use.
– An average human uses about 50 gallons (190 liters) of water daily.
– A person pays about 25 cents for water use on a daily basis.
– Two thirds of the water used in a home is used in the bathroom.
– To flush a toilet we use 1.6 to 7 gallons (6 to 26.5 liters) of water.
– To brush your teeth you use 2 gallons (7.5 liters) of water. (IF you let the faucet run!) While brushing your teeth, instead of leaving the tap running, you should fill up a glass to rinse your mouth.
– For an automatic dishwasher 9 to 12 gallons (35 to 45 liters) of water is used.
– Saving a bottle of cold water in the fridge is better that taking it from the tap, because it saves time and water.
– Baths use less water than a typical shower. Soaking in a partially filled tub will use less water than a short shower.
– The average person spends less than 1% of his or her total personal expenditure dollars for water, wastewater, and water disposal services.
– Less than 1% of the water treated by public water systems is used for drinking, cooking, and bathing.
– Bottled water can be up to 1,000 times more expensive than tap water and it may not be as safe.
– Public water supplies must meet or exceed certain standards. The kind of standards that are used differ for each country. Many public water supplies consistently supply water that is much better than the minimum standards.
– Today, drinking water meets over a hundred different standards for drinking water quality.
– The principal sources of contamination are associated with the post World War II chemical age.
– 1 gallon (Four liters) of gasoline can contaminate approximately 750,000 gallons (2.8 million liters) of water.
– If all new sources of contamination could be eliminated, in 10 years, 98% of all available groundwater would then be free of pollution.
– Most of the world's people must walk at least 3 hours to fetch water.
– Freshwater animals are disappearing five times faster than land animals.
– It takes 1,500 gallons (5,680 liters) of water to process one barrel of beer.
– It takes 120 gallons (450 liters) of water to produce one egg.
– To process one chicken we need 11.6 gallons (44 liters) of water.
– To process one can of fruit or vegetables we need 9.3 gallons (35 liters) of water.
– About 6,800 gallons (25,700 liters) of water is required to grow a day's food for a family of four.
– It takes 1,850 gallons (7,000 liters) of water to refine one barrel of crude oil.
– To manufacture new cars 39,000 gallons (148,000 liters) of water are used per car.
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