Saving Water

Australia is a dry country. This means that there is not much rain water here. Countries like the United States of America have plenty of rain every year. Other countries don’t have enough water and people there live in poor conditions. In Australia there are 22 million people but the water is not enough. When there is not enough rain, food prices go up a lot. That is why we need to do something to save water.
In your kitchen you can wash up your dishes by hand or use a dishwasher. Each dishwater has a label to tell you how much water and electricity it uses. You can check this label before you buy a dishwasher. On the label you can see stars. The more stars the dishwasher has, the better it is.
When you wash up your dishes, try not to use a lot of water. Only use a dishwasher when it is full. Try to take a shower in 4 minutes only. This will save you a lot of water every day. If you have an old shower head, replace it with a new water-efficient one. You can call your water company or go to their web site and see how you can do the job yourself.
In some countries people spend as much time as they like under the shower because these countries have a lot of rainfall. There is no problem there. In Australia it is not the same. When you have a shower it is a good idea to use a bucket to collect water and use it for cleaning and to do other things around the house. You can use this water when you wash clothes too. If you have a leaking tap, try to fix it or get a plumber to do the job for you but this will cost you quite a bit.
You can only water your garden in certain times during the week. This will normally be twice between 6 and 8 am. You can not wash your car using a hose outside your home. You can only use a bucket and wash the windows and mirrors.