Embrace Water Smart Practices This Holiday Season

‘Tis the season to celebrate with family, food, and festivities. Although everyone’s celebrations may look a little different, preparing traditional or elaborate holiday meals will likely occur. With this increased food consumption comes a rise in water usage.

While the holidays are a time to relax and enjoy moments with our loved ones, we don’t need to neglect our water conservation efforts. In fact, with a bit of preparation, you can save a significant amount of water this holiday season.

Dealing with Dishes

•  When it’s time to deal with the piles of dirty dishes, people often tend to keep the tap running while rinsing dirty food down the drain. While this may seem like a simple solution, it wastes a significant amount of water, and food should not be allowed down your drain . Instead, scrape any leftover food from dirty plates into the garbage, or if you want to go the extra mile, consider composting to make the most of your leftover food. 
• Place all dirty dishes into the dishwasher and run it only when full. Use the lower setting on the dishwasher. This will make the most of your water usage.
• If you don’t have a dishwasher and need to clean dishes in the sink, fill two sinks with water, one for washing and one for rinsing, to avoid a constantly running tap.
• Also, try to use a single water glass for the entire celebration to lessen the burden of washing extra dishes. You can even get creative with a holiday-themed glass marker or charm, which is a festive way to keep track of your glass.

Proper Food Prep

• Cooking a large holiday dinner requires lots of water. There are vegetables to rinse, steam, and boil, hot water used for thawing, and water glasses to fill. The good news is that all of this water doesn’t have to be poured down the drain after use. You can conserve water by recycling what’s left over for other purposes like watering plants.
• The same concept for cleaning dishes can be applied to rinsing vegetables. Rather than running the tap, fill a bowl with water to rinse all fruits and vegetables. Also, water used to boil vegetables can be used to make vegetable broth. 
• You can also lessen the amount of water you use with a little preparation. Instead of thawing turkeys and other meats in hot water, think ahead and put these items in the refrigerator instead. This will save water but will take extra time.
• The leftover water from glasses and vegetable prep can be recycled in house plants, compost, and used outdoors in your garden. Leftover water from glasses can also be used as a drinking supply for household pets.

Keep in mind that every drop of water saved is important, particularly in the desert. Conservation is essential for preserving our water for both present and future generations, so it’s crucial that we all contribute. Happy Holidays!

For over 55 years, the Arizona Municipal Water Users Association has worked to protect our member cities’ ability to provide assured, safe, and sustainable water supplies to their communities. For more information, visit www.amwua.org .