Tips to help save water and maintain a beautiful space:

• Water your lawn and garden in the morning orevening when temperatures are cooler to minimize evaporation.
• Adjust sprinklers so only your lawn is watered and not the house, sidewalk, or street.
• Choose shrubs and groundcovers instead of turf for hard-to-water areas such as steep slopes and isolated strips
• Plant in the fall when conditions are cooler and rainfall is more plentiful.
• Spreading a layer of organic mulch around plants retains moisture and saves water, time and money.
• Use a broom instead of a hose to clean your driveway and sidewalk and save water every time.
• If water runs off your lawn easily, split your watering time into shorter periods to allow for better absorption.
• Check the root zone of your lawn or garden for moisture before watering using a spade or trowel. If it's still moist two inches under the soil surface, you still have enough water.
• Adjust your lawn mower to a higher setting. A taller lawn shades roots and holds soil moisture better than if it is closely clipped.
• Use sprinklers for large areas of grass. Water small patches by hand to avoid waste.
• Collect water from your roof to water your garden.

• Check for leaks regularly.
• Leaks waste water, and money, every second of every day until they are repaired.
• Repair leaky faucets easily by replacing the washer which costs very little.
• Always turn off your taps tightly so that they do not drip.

Sink savings

• The kitchen sink is a hub of activity in any home.  Water is used for a wide range of activities such as washing dishes, rinsing fruits and vegetables, and cleaning your kitchen counters.  Most people are unaware of how often they leave the tap running while performing these day to day tasks. Becoming more aware will help you save water and money.

Did you know?

• Installing an aerator on your kitchen tap can reduce your water usage by 25-50%.
• Less than 1% of all drinking water produced by the City of Cornwall is actually consumed.

Clean and safe drinking water is a basic requirement for our body’s survival.  It is vital to ensure that our water sources are safe and reliable for everyone today as well as in the future.

You can survive up to one month without eating food, but only a week without water. Water makes up 60% of your body.

• Keep a container of drinking water in the refrigerator.  This addresses the wasteful habit of running tap water to cool it before drinking.
• Save water from cooking vegetables and use it for soups and gravies, or use it to give your houseplants a drink once the water is cool.
• Boil vegetables using just enough water to cover them.  Steaming vegetables not only uses less water, it conserves more nutrients.
• Soak your pots and pans instead of letting the water run while you scrape them clean.
• Kitchen sink disposals require a lot of water to operate properly.  Instead, start a compost pile as an alternate method of disposing of food waste.
• Use a pail or basin instead of running water when cleaning your home
• Do not use running water to thaw meat or other frozen foods.  Instead, defrost foods overnight in your refrigerator or use the microwave’s defrost settings.
• Install an instant water heater in your kitchen so you don't have to run water for it to heat up.  This also can reduce heating costs in your home.