SAVE WATERSAVE WATER

School Outreach Programme

Auroville Water Harvest

2005

Did you know that the water you drank this morning might

have been the same water a dinosaur drank millions of

years ago?

There is the same amount of water on Earth today as there

has always been. The water keeps moving around in an

endless cycle called the water cycle.

THE WATER CYCLE

Water evaporates from oceans, rivers and lakes

(water in its liquid form) and rises into the

atmosphere (water in its gas form) where it

condenses to form clouds. Precipitation then

falls to the earth in the form of rain (water in

its liquid) or snow (water in its solid form)

where it flows into oceans, rivers and lakes

and the process begins again

Precipitation Moisture

over landEvapotranspiration

Infiltration

Moisture over land

Evaporation from ocean

EvaporationEvaporation

Soil Moisture

Amount of fresh water in the world …

Of all the water on Earth, only a small amount is available for us to use. It's true!

96.5% of the Earth's water supply is salt water.Only 2.8% is fresh water!

•That 2.8% is divided like this: •0.76% is groundwater (we can use some of this

water) •0.0132% is in lakes and streams (we can use

some of this water) •1.74% is in glaciers and icecaps

•0.001% is water vapor

Pollution of water

DOMESTIC POLLUTION Safe water supply Sanitation – open defecationDrainage Solid waste disposal

AGRICULTURE POLLUTION Pesticides Fertilisers Over extraction of ground water

INDUSTRIAL POLLUTION

Chemicals

Untreated water

Ground water contamination

Water and health The body is comprised of 75%of

water.

We cannot live without water for

more than 24 hours.

1.8 million people die from

diarrhoeal death where 90% are

children.

88% is attributed to unsafe water

supply, inadequate sanitation and

hygiene.

How water is linked to health

Drinking dirty water leads to ill health.Unclean water sources like latrines near hand

pumps or taps can contaminate the water from the ground.

Not washing hands before eating.

Leaving drinking water containers

uncovered.

Household wastes near homes leading

to breeding ground for flies.

No proper drainage near homes –

stagnant water where mosquitoes breed.

How to avoid health problems …

Protect all drinking water sources Drink water from only protected water

sourcesWash hands after going to the toiletUse toilets – don’t openly defecateWash hands before eatingWash vegetables well before cookingCover all food

Personal hygiene Have bath dailyComb hair dailyBrush teeth daily twice Cut your nails Wash hands with soap after going to toilet Wash hands before eatingWear clean clothes

Sanitation

Don’t defecate in the open

Always wash yourself

Use toilets where they are

Don’t defecate near water sources

Dispose of your waste in a responsible

manner

Reuse your bathing water

Environment

Don’t throw your household waste near drinking water sources

Clean your house and surroundings daily Don’t throw paper, plastic, households wastes

into open drains that run through the street Throw litter into a bin and dispose of it properly Don’t cut down trees but grow more plants See that the drains are not blocked

Do you know …..

In 1955, an Indian citizen had 5000 cubic

meters of water at her disposal. Today she

has less than 1500 and it will get lesser in

the future.

More than 1 billion people in the world

have no access to improved water

sources and nearly 2/3 live in Asia.

Why do you think so …..Because there is not enough water left for

everyone…..

So we must try to conserve water and

harvest rain whenever we can

Using water wisely

Lifestyle choices, population growth and

climate change are placing increasing

demands on our water supplies. It's

important that we do not take this precious

resource for granted and that we all use

water wisely to ensure that there is

enough for everyone in years to come.

Saving water starts with you

Check your water meter and track your

bills

Wash fruits, vegetables in a pan of water

rather than running water

Collect the water you use for rinsing

produce and reuse it to water houseplants.

Time your shower to keep it under 5

minutes. You'll save up to 4000 ltrs a

month.

When you give your pet fresh water,

don't throw the old water down the drain.

Use it to water your trees or shrubs.

When you are washing your hands, don't

let the water run while you lather.

Turn off the water while you soap and shampoo

yourself. You can save more than 200 ltrs a

week.

Check all taps and pipes for leakages. A

dripping tap can waste 140 liters a week.

Turn off the water while you brush your teeth

and wash your face. Keep water in a mug. You

waste 6 liters a minutes with running water.

Do one thing every day that will

save water.

REMEMBER – every drop counts

Do you know how much water it takes to …

Bath 50 lts

Brushing teeth with tap running 6 lts per min

Brushing teeth with water from mug

1 lt

Dripping tap 140 lts per week

Washing machines 65 lts

Why do we need to harvest

rainwater?

The ultimate source of water that we utilise

in our daily life is from the monsoons.

The rain used to fall on the ground and

slowly seep inside till the underground

storages were filled up. But today, there

are more building and roads and less

water is being able to seep inside.

At the same time, people are drawing out

more and more water from the

underground storages.

The result being that there is less and

less water for us to use.

Our duty is to see that we can get

enough water to use and also

have some left for the future.

You can do something to save the environmentYou can do something to save the environment

Save Water : Reduce the demands on scarce and ground water sources.

Stored water can be used in non monsoon months.

Reduces erosion and storm water run-off

Saves natural resource presently wasted

Prevents ground water depletion

Supports water conservation & self-

dependence

Stores water that would otherwise lead

to flooding.

How do we harvest rain?

Simple ….

Catch it in anything that

holds waters. Once you

have a container, simply

put a tank/drum beneath

where the rainwater runs

off your roof and you

have started harvesting.

Precipitation

Methods of saving water

Rain water harvesting in Chennai and Bangalore

Environmental cleanliness

We depend on nature for life. We need to protect nature or else we get

fucked up Nature fucked up – we pretty big fuck up

Solid waste management

Separate solid wet and solid dry (organic

and ….. Wastes) into different containers

Dig a pit and put organic wastes in to it

with a layer of soil – can be used for

compost

Don’t burn plastic or bury it

Recycle paper, plastic, metal, glass

What schools can do …

Form committees for drinking water and sanitation

These committees will be in charge of the school and see that

the drinking water areas and toilets are maintained well.

Ensure that the school practices water conservation and water

harvesting

Have exhibitions in their own schools for the neighbourhood

MAKING PONDICHERRY WATER FRIENDLY