Are you trying to protect our oceans? Aside from litter picking at the beach and supporting the right charities you might feel a little confused about how to do it. But did you know that by looking after the water in your home, you can protect our oceans? It doesn’t take as much time and effort as you may think. Our water is all in one cycle, so protecting it anywhere on its journey can help. We’re going to show you today what you can do at home to protect our oceans.
Protect our oceans at home
For decades we’ve been talking about protecting our oceans. Thinking they are separate from the water in our home. But if you were paying attention in secondary school, you’ll know that the water cycle is infinite. This means that the water your flush down your drains – although it is treated at special facilities – will end up back in the ocean.
The regulation that water companies must go through to put water back into the ocean is extensive, but microplastics are everywhere. The extent of microplastics has gone so far that we are now consuming them on a regular basis.
What we’re saying, is that we can’t put all the pressure on water companies to clean 100% of the water we, as users, dirty every day. We can do so much to protect our oceans just by being careful about the items we flush. Here’s some practical advice.
Using fewer chemicals at home
It’s far too easy these days to grab a bottle of bleach and chuck it down a toilet. While at first it can be satisfying to quickly blitz through the bathroom with pretty chemicals that go fizz, pop, bang. They can do a lot of harm. Especially if they leak out into our environment before they reach treatment facilities. However, there is a way to overcome this and it’s to limit the number of chemicals you use in your home.
Most of the chemicals you use at home have an eco-friendly and natural substitute. In your bathroom, use a mixture of 50% water and 50% white vinegar to clean your glass and tiles. Then add some baking soda to form a paste. This will help remove mould and grime around the bathtub, grout and tiling. All you need to do is rinse it with warm water afterwards. You can even use this paste to clean your toilet bowl!
Away from your bathroom, you probably use a lot of chemicals in the kitchen. Grab your baking soda, white vinegar and water again but this time add a lemon. The added lemon is great for removing any bacteria and odours lingering from food. For more ideas on how to clean with natural products check out our blog here.
Fixing any leaks at home
It’s true, that any waste of water has an impact on our oceans. Water supply reaches homes by being removed from the natural environment and treated. Where we take, something must give. If we take too much it can make an impact further round the cycle. The best way to protect our oceans is to use less water which is why a leak can be extremely detrimental.
You might be surprised to discover that a leaking loo could waste as much as 300 litres of water a day. Adding a shocking £200 to your annual water bill. As the cost of living rises across the country we know this is an added expense we could all do without. However, unless you see a dripping tap or hear your toilet dripping it can be difficult to know if it is leaking. Check out our previous blog which helps you to discover and fix leaks at home.
Stop using the toilet as a bin and protect our oceans
Just like fixing leaks, using your toilet as a bin can lead to excessive water use, but that’s not all. For the items that we flush which aren’t designed to be we run the risk of causing blockages in our waterways. In some areas, our waterways are nearly 100 years old. They’re not designed to cope with wet wipes, floss and tampons.
While these items do not directly end up in our oceans due to water treatment processes, they certainly run the risk of releasing microplastics into the water and causing blockages. It’s important to consider these blockages because it means that everything put in our wastewater can be released – including those chemicals. Blockages and burst pipes put us all at risk – including our oceans. Remember you should only be flushing human waste and toilet paper. Nothing else!
Minimise your water usage to protect our oceans
You’ve probably figured out the theme of this blog now. The best way to protect our oceans is to reduce our water usage and keep our waterways clear. It sounds simple and that’s because it is. However, we’re aware that adopting these habits is a lot trickier than it seems. Just because there’s a simple solution doesn’t mean it’s simple to do. If you’re a member of Greenredeem check your Everyday Essentials area for some water-saving tips around the home.
It’s normal that when asked how to protect our oceans you automatically think of beach and ocean clean ups. Litter is one of the most problematic issues for our environment, inland as well as out at sea. We support these clean ups and they’re a great way of directly protecting our oceans. But we don’t want anyone left out and feeling helpless because they live too far away from the water. So make sure you harness your eco-power at home using our tips above. There’s no reason we can’t all protect our oceans.
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