Dr. Karen Bell

Keep Liberty Beautiful

During the month of June, Keep Liberty Beautiful had the opportunity to share the importance of keeping our water clean in association with World Ocean’s Day and Pollinator Week. We had over 200 students learn about water and what impact it has on our lives if we don’t take care of it. 

Keep Liberty Beautiful had volunteers clean up the waterways located throughout Liberty County: Riceboro Boat Ramp, Jones Creek Park, Sunbury Boat Ramp, Bryant Commons, and Eve Park Pavilion / Half Moon. The volunteer’s cleanup efforts were not just about picking up litter, they were about saving lives. Their work directly contributed to preventing 1,425 pounds of land litter from becoming marine debris, a potential threat to our precious marine life.

The volunteers also recycled 225 pounds of recyclable materials. Keep Liberty Beautiful provided all the cleanup supplies, and volunteers received KLB T-shirts.

When we consider water, we might assume that the earth has an abundance of it, and we need not worry. However, water is not just a resource; it’s a lifeline. We are utterly dependent on it. Yet, every day, people waste hundreds of gallons of water! This is a pressing issue that demands our immediate attention.

When we take the initiative to learn and adopt better water practices, we can all become water savers instead of water wasters.

Here are several water-saving ideas from the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. These are practical steps that you can implement to start your water-saving journey.

Household Ideas:

• Never let water go to waste when there could be another use for it, such as watering a plant or garden. For instance, reuse fish tank water on your household plants. This is not just a smart way to conserve water. It’s a practical step that you can take right now to make a difference. It also makes for good fertilizer, showing that even small actions can have a big impact.

• Verify that your home is leak-free. Many homes have hidden water leaks. Read your water meter before and after a twohour period when no water is being used. If the meter does not read the same, there is a leak.

• Repair dripping faucets by replacing washers. If your faucet is dripping at the rate of one drop per second, you can expect to waste 2,700 gallons per year. That is money going down the drain.

• Insulate your water pipes. You’ll get hot water faster and avoid wasting water.

Laundry ideas:

• Unlike your dishwasher, your washing machine uses an adjustable amount of water, so plan loads and adjust according to the load size.

• Look for a water-saving washing machine to purchase.

• Frontload machines use less water than topload machines.

Kitchen ideas:

• Minimize the use of kitchen sink disposals. They require a lot of water to operate properly. Start a compost pile as an alternate method of disposing of food waste.

• Store drinking water in the refrigerator rather than letting the tap run to get a cool glass of water.

• Do not use running water to thaw meat or other frozen foods. Defrost them overnight in the refrigerator.

• When washing dishes by hand, fill one sink or basin with soapy water. Quickly rinse under a slow stream of water from the faucet. Use the dirty water to run your sink disposal, if necessary.

• Fully loaded automatic dishwashers use the same amount of water regardless of the amount in them.

• Buy dishwashers with water and energy-saving options.

Bathroom ideas:

• Check for toilet leaks by adding food coloring to the tank. If the toilet is leaking, color will appear in the bowl within 30 minutes. Check the toilet for worn-out, corroded, or bent parts. You can buy kits to do this, but this is essentially what the kit will do.

• Consider purchasing low flow toilets that can reduce indoor water use by 20%.

• Avoid flushing the toilet unnecessarily.

Dispose of tissues, insects, and other similar waste in the trash rather than the toilet. It is not a trash can!

• Replace your showerhead with an ultra-lowflow version to save up to 2.5 gallons per minute.

• Take shorter showers. Try a “Navy” shower: get wet, turn off the water, soap and scrub, then turn the water on to rinse.

• Use the minimum amount of water needed for a bath by closing the drain first and filling the tub only 1/3 full. The initial burst of cold water can be warmed by adding hot water later.

•Don’t let the water run while shaving, washing your face, or brushing your teeth.

For more information on conserving water, contact Keep Liberty Beautiful at www.keeplibertybeautiful. org, (912) 880-4888, or klcb@libertycountyga. com.