The overuse of water in maintaining landscapes and athletic fields results in many kinds of pollution as well as wasting the resource. By improving how efficiently we use water, we can provide for agriculture and industry, protect the environment, and ensure that there is plenty of clean water for our future generations.
Facts About Water Use:
-On average 70% of all household water is used outdoors on lawns and athletic fields.
-There are over 30 million acres of green lawns in the U.S.
-Seventy million pounds of pesticide get applied to home lawns, trees, and shrubs a year, polluting groundwater and sending phosphates and nitrates into lakes and streams.
-Every day 7.8 billion gallons of water is devoted to outdoor uses, mostly landscaping and athletic fields, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
-Scientists note that reservoir levels are dropping as cities like Phoenix, Las Vegas, New Mexico, California, Florida, Georgia and many more continue to expand. The Southwest drought has become so severe that even the desert plant life is dying.
-It takes 2.5 billion gallons of water to support the world's population of 4.7 billion people. Ironically, this is the same amount of water 2.5 billion gallons that is used every day to irrigate the world's golf courses.