Drought alarm, rationing and advice to avoid wasting water

The drought warning is not new news, but it is now emergency. After a mild winter with little rainfall, heat waves are following one another that are keeping temperatures above average for long days. Most of the Regions are decreeing state of emergency and calamitybut indications could arrive at the regional level that have already been applied by some municipalities.

Among the hypotheses are the rationing by time slots of the water supply until the stop at night and the prohibition of use in uses not considered primary needs such as filling swimming pools. There are municipalities where water cannot already be used to water the gardens and wash the car and where tankers have already been used.

The areas most in difficulty are those of Po Valley. The saline wedge, the rising of the sea into the river, has reached 21 kilometers. Lake Maggiore has a filling of 20%, that of Como 18%. Lake Garda is still saved, at 60%.

The bulletin of the CNR Drought Observatory, published on 10 June, says that over 40% of irrigated land has been affected by severe or extreme drought in the medium and long term. A quarter of the Italian soil is at risk of desertification. Water is not to be wasted right now and always. Here are some tips to follow according to Altroconusmo.

First of all you need to prefer tap water because bottled water consumes 3500 times more natural resources. Altroconsumo also recommends applying aerators to taps to mix air to water by reducing flow and splashes to save tens of thousands of liters per year. They cost from 1 to 2 euros each.

It always has to avoid letting the tap water run when it is not necessary: ​​when soaping, when brushing your teeth. You need to pay attention to losses: a drop that falls from the tap makes about 1,750 liters of water in a month. In the case of the toilet, the flow of water leads to waste about a thousand liters a week. The button to stop the flow of the toilet allows you to avoid wasting 35 cubic meters of water per family per year.

There shower it is always preferable to the tub because it saves 23 cubic meters of water per year. You can reduce the flow of the shower and do it quickly: every minute you save from 7 to 9 liters of water.

The domestic appliances that use water must always be used with a full load. Do not wash the dishes by hand, but with the dishwasher which saves about 50 liters of water per day: you need up to 70 when washing by hand compared to 15 for the appliance cycle.

– Air conditioners, from May 1st the rules for the summer come into force

– Energy saving, driving against expensive bills without suffering from the heat