In my hometown of State College, PA, the water supplied to the town is retrieved from a few different areas. The Shingletown Reservoir is probably the largest source, as rainwater and mountain runoff all run directly into this reservoir. Seven well fields are also utilized in the area, and a six million gallons per day water treatment plant is located in the town itself. Water used throughout the town is recycled, as part of an effort by the town to try and limit the footprint that it has on the water supply. From these sources, water is transported to one of the 13 main storage tanks located around an area that services 75,000 people per day on average. Over 270 miles of water lines helps transport water from the reservoir and treatment plant to these storage tanks, and from the storage tanks to everyone’s homes. Once used in the home, the water follows a path back to the treatment plant, or out into the ecosystem depending on the use of the water. All information for this portion of the activity was retrieved from the State College Borough Water Authority’s webpage (http://www.scbwa.org/about.php).

For the experiment part of this activity, I decided to set my priorities as such; water for drinking was paramount (necessary to live), bathroom usage and handwashing was next, while brushing my teeth was last. Showering, along with the other things in this list could be put off a day for the sake of the experiment. As I attempted to go about my day without using more than two gallons of water, I realized how impossible for my lifestyle this was. Drinking water, as well as cooking with water, do not use up a huge portion of the two gallon budget, however even 0.3-0.4 gallons was ~20% of my budget. The biggest challenge was presented by the fact that a single flush of an old toilet (which is what my apartment uses) uses between three and four gallons. Because of this, my experiment failed. Too many of the ways I use water are essential for every day life, such as dishwashing and flushing. I think in my current living situation, it is impossible for me to use live off of 4% of my average daily water usage (from part 1-b). Geography matters because if you are in an area located by a large source of water, such as a reservoir or lake, then you have to be less strict with your usage. I am lucky that State College is located near several water sources.