1. Water is Life: Enjoy it, Respect it and Conserve it
Water is essential to existence.
Our bodies require it, as do our souls.
It is the stuff of life and death, of sweat and tears, of need and wonder.
Water bubbles through our imaginations, splashes through our forms of play and winds through the tributaries of human spirituality.
Yet, as precious as we know water is, we have treated it as if it were infinite and cheap, which has led to an international crisis of epic proportions.
Source: OneWater.org

2. Water is Life: Enjoy it, Respect it and Conserve it
There is the same amount of water on Earth today as there was when the dinosaurs roamed.
The earth has a limited amount of water.  That water keeps going around and around in what we call the "Water Cycle".
And just less than one percent of the planet's water is available to meet the daily drinking water, sanitation and food needs of nearly 7 billion people and millions of other species. 1

3. Water is Life: Enjoy it, Respect it and Conserve it
Water is the most common liquid on Earth. It covers about 71.4% of the Earth. Pure water has no smell, taste, or colour. Water is very important for life.
However, some studies suggest that by 2025 more than half of the people around the world will not have enough water.
ONE CHILD DIES EVERY 20 SECONDS FROM A WATER-RELATED ILLNESS
ALMOST 1 BILLION PEOPLE DO NOT HAVE ACCESS TO SAFE WATER. 2.5 BILLION PEOPLE LACK THE DIGNITY OF BASIC SANITATION 2

4. Water is Life: Enjoy it, Respect it and Conserve it
Uses of water
Plants and animals (including people) must drink water to live. It gives a medium for chemical reactions to take place, and is the main part of blood. It keeps the body temperature the same by sweating from the skin. Water helps blood carry nutrients from the stomach to all parts of the body to keep the body alive. Water also helps the blood carry oxygen from the lungs to the body. Saliva helps animals and people digest food. Water helps make urine. Urine helps remove bad chemicals from the body. The human body is 60–70% water. 3

9. Signs of global water scarcity
Strawberries for export
Coto Doñana National Park, southern Spain 8

10. Signs of global water scarcity
Cotton for export
Former Aral Sea, Central Asia 9

11. The water footprint:
making a link between consumption in one place and impacts on water systems elsewhere
Water use for cotton production can have major impacts on the environment. Particularly intensive irrigation schemes can have disastrous effects, as shown for example in the case of Uzbekistan and the desiccation of the Aral Sea.
Shrinking Aral Sea 10

12. Signs of global water pollution
Devecser, Hungary, Oct. 5, 2010 11

13. Signs of global water pollution12

14. Water footprint: 2700 litres for 1 cotton shirt
Water footprint: 2700 litres for 1 cotton shirt. In order to get 1 kg of final cotton textile, one requires 11,000 litres of water (as a global average). Thus, when we have a shirt with a weight of 250 gram, this shirt costs 2700 litres. Of this total water volume, 45% is irrigation water consumed (evaporated) by the cotton plant; 41% is rainwater evaporated from the cotton field during the growing period; and 14% is water required to dilute the wastewater flows that result from the use of fertilisers in the field and the use of chemicals in the textile industry. Globally, the annual cotton production evaporates 210 billion cubic meters of water and pollutes 50 billion cubic meters of water. This is 3.5 % of the global water use for crop production.
[Hoekstra & Chapagain, 2008]

15. It costs about 21,000 litres of water to produce 1 kg of roasted coffee. For a standard cup of coffee we require 7 gram of roasted coffee, so that a cup of coffee costs 140 litres of water. Assuming that a standard cup of coffee is 125 ml, we thus need more than 1100 drops of water for producing one drop of coffee. Drinking tea instead of coffee would save a lot of water. For a standard cup of tea of 250 ml we require 30 litres of water.
[Hoekstra & Chapagain, 2008]

16. The water footprint of pure chocolate is 2400 litres for a 100-gram bar (as a world average!). Composition of dark chocolate: 40% cocoa paste (water footprint litres/kg); 20% cocoa butter (water footprint litres/kg); 40% sugar (water footprint 1526 litres/kg). We then can calculate: 40% % % 1526 = litres/kg = 2400 liters for one 100gr chocolate bar. The water footprint of milk powder is 4600 litres/kg, so that milk chocolate will have a bit larger water footprint (about 2500 litres for one 100gr chocolate bar) than dark chocolate when total cocoa content remains the same. Most crucial for the water footprint of chocolate is the cocoa paste and cocoa butter content.
[Hoekstra & Chapagain, 2008]

17. For 1 kg of refined sugar from SUGAR CANE we require about 1500 litres of water. Sugar cane consumes about 220 billion cubic meters of water annually, which is 3.4 % of the global water use for crop production. Sugar from sugar beets requires less water per kg.
[Hoekstra & Chapagain, 2008]

18. [Hoekstra & Chapagain, 2008]17

19. [Hoekstra & Chapagain, 2008]18

20. The water footprint of a beef cow is 3,100,000 litres
The water footprint of a beef cow is 3,100,000 litres. In an industrial beef production system, it takes in average three years before the animal is slaughtered to produce about 200 kg of boneless beef. The animal consumes nearly 1300 kg of grains (wheat, oats, barley, corn, dry peas, soybean meal and other small grains), 7200 kg of roughages (pasture, dry hay, silage and other roughages), 24 cubic meter of water for drinking and 7 cubic meter of water for servicing. This means that to produce one kilogram of boneless beef, we use about 6.5 kg of grain, 36 kg of roughages, and 155 litres of water (only for drinking and servicing). Producing the volume of feed requires about litres of water in average.
[Hoekstra & Chapagain, 2008]

21. The water footprint of beef is 15500 litres of water per kg of beef.
[Hoekstra & Chapagain, 2008]

22. The major part of the water footprint of a hamburger refers to the water needed to make the feed for the cow.
[Hoekstra & Chapagain, 2008]

23. Water footprint: 10 litres of water for one A4-sheet of paper
Water footprint: 10 litres of water for one A4-sheet of paper. We assume here eighty-grams paper (80g/m2). Further we assume that the paper is produced from wood.
Sources:
Hoekstra, A.Y. and Chapagain, A.K. (2008) Globalization of water: Sharing the planet's freshwater resources, Blackwell Publishing, Oxford, UK.
Van Oel, P.R. and Hoekstra, A.Y. (2010) The green and blue water footprint of paper products: methodological considerations and quantification, Value of Water Research Report Series No.46, UNESCO-IHE, Delft, the Netherlands.
[Hoekstra & Chapagain, 2008]

24. Water is Life: Enjoy it, Respect it and Conserve it
In and around the house / business
Turn the tap off between washing your face, brushing your teeth or shaving.
Taking a five-minute shower a day, instead of a bath, will use a third of the water used bathing in a bath tub, saving up to 400 litres a week.
Use low-flow showerheads, dual-flush toilet mechanisms and water-efficient washing machines.
Kettles should not be filled to the brim but with just enough water for your needs. This will reduce your electricity bill too.
Don't over-fill containers like cooking pots, as this may result in using more energy to heat the water.
Reducing the toilet flush volume alone can save 20% of total water consumption.
Source: OneWater.org

25. Water is Life: Enjoy it, Respect it and Conserve it
In and around the house / business
Fix a leaking toilet otherwise it can waste up to litres of water in one year.
Avoid flushing the toilet unnecessarily. Every time you flush the toilet, 12 litres of water is used.
Use "grey water" - used water from baths, washing machines and other safe sources - to flush your toilet.
Do not over-fill or excessively backwash your swimming pool.
Use a bucket rather than a hose to wash your car. If you have to use a hose, use a sprayer that can be turned off in-between spraying the car. Using a garden hose could use as much as 30 litres of water per minute.
Source: OneWater.org

26. Water is Life: Enjoy it, Respect it and Conserve it
In the garden
Always water your plants during the early morning hours or in the evening, when temperatures are cooler. Between 10:00 and 15:00 one can lose up to 90% of water to evaporation.
Focus on indigenous and non-water-consumptive alien plants (but not invasive alien plants).
Group plants according to their water needs and to mulch around them.
Water gardens less frequently, but water well. Using a garden hose could use as much as 30 litres of water per minute.
Remove invasive alien plants on your property.
Roof water can also be profitably stored in tanks, for watering gardens.
Use "grey water" - used water from baths, washing machines and other safe sources - to water your garden.
Source: OneWater.org

27. Reducing humanity’s water footprint – Consumers
Reduction of the direct water footprint:
water saving toilet, shower-head, etc.
Reduction of the indirect water footprint:
substitution of a consumer product that has a large water footprint by a different type of product that has a smaller water footprint;
substitution of a consumer product that has a large water footprint by the same product that is derived from another source with smaller water footprintrom governments
“Save water in the supermarket”
Consumers can reduce their direct water footprint (home water use) by installing water-saving toilets, applying a water-saving showerhead, turning
off the tap during teeth-brushing, using less water in the garden and by not disposing of medicines, paints or other pollutants through the sink.
The indirect water footprint of a consumer is generally much larger than the direct one. A consumer has basically two options to reduce his or her indirect
water footprint. One option is to change the consumption pattern by substituting a specific consumer product that has a large water footprint by another type of
product that has a smaller water footprint. Examples include: eating less meat or becoming vegetarian, drinking plain water instead of coffee, or wearing less
cotton and more artificial fibre clothes. This approach has limitations, because many people do not easily shift from eating meat to being vegetarian and people
like their coffee and cotton. A second option is to select the cotton, beef or coffee that has a relatively low water footprint or that has its footprint in an area
that does not have high water scarcity. This requires, however, that consumers have the proper information to make that choice. Since this information is
generally not easily available, an important thing consumers can do now is ask product transparency from businesses and regulation from governments. When
information is available on the impacts of a certain article on the water system, consumers can make conscious choices about what they buy.
Source:
Hoekstra, A.Y., Chapagain, A.K., Aldaya, M.M. and Mekonnen, M.M. (2011) The Water Footprint Assessment Manual: Setting the Global Standard, Earthscan, London, UK.
Page 106. 26

28. Meat versus Vegetarian Diet
Meat diet
kcal/day
litre/kcal
litre/day
Vegetarian diet
Developing countries
Animal origin
350
2.5
875
200
500
Vegetable origin
2350
0.5
1175
2500
1250
Total
2700
2050
1750
Since food consumption gives the most important contribution to the water footprints of people, even in industrialised countries, dietary habits greatly influence the associated water footprint. In industrialised countries the average calorie consumption today is 3400 kcal per day; roughly 30% of that comes from animal products. When we assume that the average daily portion of animal products is a reasonable mix of beef, pork, poultry, fish, eggs and dairy products, we can estimate that 1 kcal of animal product requires roughly 2.5 litres of water on average. Products from vegetable origin, on the other hand, require roughly 0.5 litre of water per kcal, this time assuming a reasonable mix of cereals, pulses, roots, fruit and vegetables. Under these circumstances, producing the food for one day costs 3600 litres of water.
In developing countries, the average consumption is lower: about 2700 kcal per day per person, only 13% of which is of animal origin. Such diet costs 2050 litres of water per day.
These numbers are averages over averages, because, first, total caloric intakes and meat fractions assumed vary between and within nations, and, second, the water requirements actually vary across production regions and production systems. The averages shown here mainly function to make a comparison between the water footprints of a meat-based versus a vegetarian diet.
A vegetarian diet has a smaller fraction of animal origin (not zero, because of dairy products still consumed). For industrialised countries, this reduces the food-related water footprint by 36%. In the case of developing countries, the switch to vegetarian diet saves 15% of water.
Consumers can reduce their water footprint through reducing the volume of their meat consumption. Alternatively, or in addition, consumers can reduce their water footprint by being more selective in the choice of which piece of meat they pick. Chickens are less water-intensive than cows and beef from one production system cannot be compared in terms of associated water impacts to beef from another production system.
Source:
Hoekstra, A.Y. (2010) The water footprint of animal products, In: D'Silva, J. and Webster, J. (eds.) The meat crisis: Developing more sustainable production and consumption, Earthscan, London, UK, pp 27

29. Energy Efficiency at Work at Century Home Show - 27 October to 4 November
Century Home Show which is to be held at Waterfall Estate between Sunninghill and Kyalami from 27 October to 4 November. The theme of the Home Show s ‘Going Green, Living Green for the sake of our planet”.
Century have commissioned 12 different teams of architects, builders, landscapers and interior designers to come up with their most innovative designs in terms of energy savings, reduced water consumption and keeping the carbon footprint as low as possible.
The home show is designed to cater to the entire family. While the public are house viewing and seeing how they can become more energy conscious , the kids will be kept fully entertained with a host of fun activities in a secure environment, ranging from face painting, jumping castles and trampolines to organised games. There’ll be a food court nearby – boasting more than ‘green’ salads. 
Since food consumption gives the most important contribution to the water footprints of people, even in industrialised countries, dietary habits greatly influence the associated water footprint. In industrialised countries the average calorie consumption today is 3400 kcal per day; roughly 30% of that comes from animal products. When we assume that the average daily portion of animal products is a reasonable mix of beef, pork, poultry, fish, eggs and dairy products, we can estimate that 1 kcal of animal product requires roughly 2.5 litres of water on average. Products from vegetable origin, on the other hand, require roughly 0.5 litre of water per kcal, this time assuming a reasonable mix of cereals, pulses, roots, fruit and vegetables. Under these circumstances, producing the food for one day costs 3600 litres of water.
In developing countries, the average consumption is lower: about 2700 kcal per day per person, only 13% of which is of animal origin. Such diet costs 2050 litres of water per day.
These numbers are averages over averages, because, first, total caloric intakes and meat fractions assumed vary between and within nations, and, second, the water requirements actually vary across production regions and production systems. The averages shown here mainly function to make a comparison between the water footprints of a meat-based versus a vegetarian diet.
A vegetarian diet has a smaller fraction of animal origin (not zero, because of dairy products still consumed). For industrialised countries, this reduces the food-related water footprint by 36%. In the case of developing countries, the switch to vegetarian diet saves 15% of water.
Consumers can reduce their water footprint through reducing the volume of their meat consumption. Alternatively, or in addition, consumers can reduce their water footprint by being more selective in the choice of which piece of meat they pick. Chickens are less water-intensive than cows and beef from one production system cannot be compared in terms of associated water impacts to beef from another production system.
Source:
Hoekstra, A.Y. (2010) The water footprint of animal products, In: D'Silva, J. and Webster, J. (eds.) The meat crisis: Developing more sustainable production and consumption, Earthscan, London, UK, pp 28