Ladies and gentlemen, I’m going to show you the greatest kitchen appliance ever made. You can chop onions with it, and the only tears you’ll cry will be tears of joy.
Inventor and Ronco founder Ron Popeil knows how to sell a product. His Veg-O-Matic sliced, diced, chopped and julienned its way into 11 million homes through his television sales pitches and demonstrations.
You won’t believe everything this can do.
Popeil would have a great time selling water conservation. Saving water has become as useful and multi-purpose as the Veg-O-Matic these days. Cities, counties, sanitation districts, water providers and gas and electric companies throughout Southern California are connecting the dots, recognizing that water conservation can help reduce energy use and green waste, and even keep our rivers and oceans free of pollutants. Oh, and did we mention it saves money, too?
Let’s start with how water conservation helps keep rivers and oceans clean. On an average dry and sunny day, more than 100 million gallons of water pour into Los Angeles County streets and gutters and from there, into the watershed. The culprit? Sprinklers left on too long. And as that water runs to the street from waterlogged lawns and gardens, it becomes a stew of water, chemicals, oil and trash ultimately deposited in the ocean.
“The most important thing one person can do to keep our ocean and rivers clean is to stop overwatering the lawn, plants and trees,” said Melinda Barrett, public relations manager for the Los Angeles County Public Works Department. “It’s that simple.”
There’s also a related health benefit—watering only as much as needed to keep plants healthy prevents standing water, which can be a breeding ground for mosquitoes carrying West Nile Virus.
But that’s not all!
Turning down the sprinklers and using water-wise plants are easy ways to cut home water use in half. But the savings doesn’t stop there. The proof can be found at the city of Santa Monica’s experimental garden/garden project built in 2003 with funds from Metropolitan’s City Makeover program. The unusual demonstration shows two homes sitting side-by-side, one landscaped traditionally with grass and thirsty flowers, and the other featuring California native plantings and state-of-the-art irrigation, along with earthen berms to prevent runoff.
The native garden uses just a fraction of the water needed by its thirsty next-door neighbor, said Kim O’Cain, water resources specialist with the city of Santa Monica. And while the grass and flowers require weekly mowing and trimming as well as fertilizer, the native garden needs only a monthly check-up. The amount of time needed to maintain grass and flowers? Eighty-nine hours a year. The native garden? Just 51 hours annually.
But wait, there’s more!
Using less water, particularly hot water, means energy savings as well, and nowhere is this more apparent than in the average restaurant or cafeteria which, according to the California Urban Water Conservation Council, has the highest energy use per square foot of any business.
The San Ramon-based Food Service Technology Center released a study last year that found boiler-based food steamers, commonly used in cafeterias, hotels and restaurants to heat or reheat food, use 30 times more water and five times more energy daily than their more efficient connectionless counterparts. The savings comes from using a built-in tank instead of a constant stream of water to produce steam, and the ability to capture water from condensation. Installing low-flow spray valves that automatically shut off when not in use to sweep food from plates prior to dishwashing cuts water and energy use by 66 percent.
The connection between water and energy savings exists on a broader level as well. “Few people realize how much energy we use when we turn on the tap,” said Ronnie Cohen, a policy analyst with the National Resources Defense Council and co-author of the 2004 study, “Energy Down the Drain.”
“Conserving water and improving efficiency doesn’t just save water, it also saves energy, cuts electricity bills, and reduces pollution from power plants,” Cohen said.
Dr. Gary Wolff, principal economist and engineer with the Pacific Institute, calculates that conveying, treating and distributing water consumes about eight percent of California’s total energy use. His numbers have gotten the attention of policy makers, as well as water and energy experts who are looking for ways to preserve resources. The full ramifications of the water/energy connection are still being determined. “Energy in water is significant, and worth understanding,” Wolff said. “But no one is saying that less energy use is always better.”
And if you act now, look what else you’ll get!
Popeil undoubtedly would have closed the deal for water conservation with the best benefit of all—value for the money. The Veg-O-Matic cost just $2.98, solved myriad challenges in the kitchen, and even came with free gifts.
The value of water conservation also shows up on the balance sheet for consumers, business owners, cities and public agencies. Restaurant owners installing the pre-rinse spray valves see water, energy and sewer costs drop by $500 to $1,000 a year. Santa Monica’s native plant garden costs just $800 a year to maintain, compared to the traditional garden’s cost of $3,000. Reducing pollutants flowing into waterways saves millions of dollars in clean-up costs. There is nothing to lose by conserving water except higher bills, pollution and more yardwork. In fact, it seems a sure way to a better future.
So you can see, this is an amazing offer you cannot afford to pass up. Operators are standing by, so call in now! If the lines are busy, try bewaterwise.com.
