Water, water everywhere…
Part 1-a) In Grand Rapids Michigan we get our water from the Grand River. From the river it goes through a process to ensure it is potable for human consumption. From the treatment facility it is brought into homes throughout the area. After water is used and flushed or drained it goes to a waste water facility where it is filtered, treated (if needed) held for a certain amount of time and released back into the river.
Where I live now we do not utilize public water. We have a well that produces ground water, pumps it through a sediment filter and into a holding tank. After we use the water it is flushed into a septic tank where it is held and filtered and released back into the ground.
Part 1-b) Daily water usage:
Brush Teeth- 1 cup of water
Drinking water throughout the day- 1 gallon
Bathroom- 1 gallon per flush (roughly 4 flushes per day)
Washing hands- roughly 2-3 gallons per day
Water for animals- (not sure if this counts) 5-7 gallons per day
Cooking- 4-5 gallons per day
Bathing- 15-20 gallons per day
Part 1-c) Living on two gallons of water a day is difficult, but not impossible. Especially if you literally only have two gallons of water per day. Obviously, rationing enough water to ensure you have enough to drink is paramount. After that ensuring you have enough water for cooking and sanitary functions is the next most important step. There have been multiple times in the military where we were placed on water rations. It is relatively easy to survive on a certain amount of water when it is all you have. You either manage your water properly, or you run out and have nothing left! Considering I use half the rationed amount of water just in drinking I do not think I would make living on two gallons of water a day! One’s geographical location is crucial when considering water use. If you are in an area where there is an abundant water supply you do not need to concern yourself, as much, with water restrictions. Whereas if you are in an arid climate that is void of natural water sources you need to pay much closer attention to your water usage because you are either paying a premium to import your water or have a scarce amount available naturally.
Hi Brian my name is Kevin and your blog post stood out to me because I definitely agree with the difficulty in living on two gallons per day. I think being in an area like Mozambique or Haiti from the example, this is completely because the social norms are totally different there. However when living in a more development country its very difficult to compare that to living conditions here where we live with more accessible water supplies.
Feel free to check out my post by the way: http://sites.psu.edu/geog30/2016/02/10/daily-water-usage-k-leimkuhler/
Hi Brian here is a link to my blog post for this week: https://wp.me/p3RCAy-bos. I strongly agree that it is difficult to survive on 2 gallons of water a day, but not impossible. I like the point you made about how it is easier to ration when you actually only have access to 2 gallons instead of the unlimited supply we are used to. I think it is interesting how you were put on water rations in the military and had to choose wisely about what you used your water for. Also I agree that once you decide how much water to use for drinking and cooking the next thing to focus on is sanitary functions.