There’s no shortage of information available online for people who are interested in learning about water conservation.
Whether it’s an organization like the World Water Council that looks at the issues of scarcity, sustainability and management on a global scale or the Alliance for Water Efficiency’s Home Water Works Program, which seeks to inform people how small changes in the water usage decisions they make every day in their own homes can add up to big savings. In fact, to make wiser water choices, no desktop is necessary. There’s a whole host of handy mobile apps that let people delve into some aspect of their personal water usage. Here, we look at three great examples.
1. Dropcountr
This app lets users track their own water consumption and compare usage across a multitude of parameters. It also lets users see how they stack up against their neighbors. Participating utilities can also benefit from the additional data and new customer communication channel the app provides. Dropcountr’s developers claim that people can save up to 9% of their monthly water usage with the app.
2. Rain Harvest
Using rainwater for domestic purposes is not a new idea. As long as humans have been growing crops, collecting and storing rainfall has been a part of the agricultural equation. As the practice of urban gardening for food production has become more popular and widespread, rainwater collection has entered a kind of renaissance. This app uses some simple calculations based on roof size, the number of downspouts and rainstorm duration to let people know how much water they could easily collect and save with a few well-placed barrels.
3. Water Timer
Deceptively simple, this application does one thing – it tells you how much it costs you to turn on a tap. For example, tell the app how much your water utility charges you for a liter of water plus the flow rate of the faucet, then press start right before you turn it on. It might make you think twice about that 15-minute shower.
These three apps go about it in different ways, but they all have the same end goal in mind: reducing personal and household water usage. Try them out or take a scan through the iOS, Android or whatever app store you use for others.
