Water Usage- Douglas Apple

1A.)

In my hometown of Hatfield Pennsylvania, we get water from the North Penn Water Authority. In this system, approximately 15% of the water is treated groundwater and the remaining 85% is treated surface water from the Forest Park Water Treatment Plant located in Chalfont. The source water that is treated at Forest Park Water is from the North Branch Neshaminy Creek. The FPWTP combines conventional treatment processes with advanced techniques to ensure water safety for the customers. Upon the completion of the treatment process, water is distributed through a vast system of water main pipes, valves, fire hydrants, and booster stations that is known as the distribution system. The distribution system ensures that an average 10 million gallons per day is distributed to 30,000 customers in 21 townships and boroughs in Montgomery County. The largest distribution system is the water mains that stretch over 560 miles ranging in diameter. In addition, over 11,500 valves are placed in strategic locations to allow this water to travel to where it needs to go. This water could travel directly into the homes for customer usage, or it is stored in the water storage tanks throughout the area. Once the water is goes through the drain, it is pumped to the North Wales Water Treatment plant. The system uses gravity to drain the water out of the houses and it is carried to this physicality where it is treated and then distributed back into the North Branch Neshaminy Creek.

 

1B.)

Activity                                        Times a Day                                   Gallons Used         

Brushed teeth                                     3                                                 0.9

Wash Hands/Face                              6                                                  6

Shower (8 Minutes)                             1                                                 40

Toilet Flushes                                      5                                                 15

Drinking Water (16.9 oz. bottle)          4                                                 0.5                  

Total Gallons                                                                                  62.4 Gallons

1C.)

I tracked my activity for the entire day on Monday and I found that I used roughly 62.4 gallons of water. This number varies on the day, for example if I did a load of wash that day, but this is a good estimate for a typical day. Since I am a freshman living in a dorm, I do not have to do the dishes, which could bring this number down slightly from what it would be if I were living in an apartment. On Tuesday, I attempted to live on only two gallons of water and it was very challenging. To knock off the largest daily supply of my water, I did not shower. Luckily I did not do any physical activity the day before so I did not smell. The next activity that I knocked off was flushing the toilet. I only flushed the toilet one time when it needed to be flushed which ended up saving 12 gallons. I still drank the same amount of water and washed my hands the same amount of times but for a much shorter period. The same goes for when I was brushing my teeth as I only turned it on when I needed to rinse my mouth. Overall, I calculated to use only 7 gallons of water. Although this exceeds the 2-gallon mark that is being used in Haiti, I thought I did a very good job saving over 50 gallons from my typical day. I believe this was a great individual action and it can be used as a collective action if a larger population did this activity. I feel as though this mark of 7 gallons would be unachievable due to the lifestyle that we live in, I think each person can significantly lower their daily water usage. As for the North Penn Water Authority, there are over 30,000 customers and if everyone lowered their usage, there would be drastic changes to the environment. There is a limited amount of drinkable water for humans. In fact only 1% of the world’s water is safe to drink. Eventually, we will not be able to sustain this amount of water usage so cutting down each day could set a mark that can be sustained.

2 thoughts on “Water Usage- Douglas Apple

  1. Hi Douglas, my name is Johnna. It’s relieving to see some one use such little water a day. I used around 200 gallons in a day. I you did a great job during the experiment. I wasn’t able to save that much water. It’s amazing how little things like showering every other day and turning the sink of when you brush your teeth can save water.
    You can refer to my blog at:
    https://wp.me/p3RCAy-bsG

  2. Hey Douglas it’s Rob. It is nice to see someone else use as little water a day (even less) than me. By being conscious about what you do, it is certainly possible. It is interesting to see how only 1% of the worlds water is safe to drink, only further proving the geography is important when it comes to water. Just because you have access to it does not mean it is usable.

    Link: http://sites.psu.edu/geog30/2016/02/09/module-4-water-u…-through-my-town/

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