Harwich Water Department - Water Facts

The Water Facts of Life - Did You Know?

There is the same amount of water on Earth today as there was 3 billion years ago.
Three percent of the water on Earth is freshwater and only 1% is available for human consumption.
Sixty-six percent of a human being is water.
Seventy-five percent of the human brain is water.
Seventy-five percent of a living tree is water.
You could survive about a month without food, but only 5 to 7 days without water.
On the average, each American uses about 160 gallons of water a day at a cost of 27 cents.
Bottled water may cost up to 1000 times more than municipal drinking water and may not be as safe.
Two-thirds of the water used in an average home is used in the bathroom.
Typically 4 to 6 gallons of water are used for every toilet flush.
On the average, a person uses 2 gallons of water to brush his or her teeth each day.
A 10-minute shower uses about 55 gallons of water.
A leaking faucet can waste up to 100 gallons of water a day.
The average person spends less than 1% of his or her total personal expenditure dollars for water, waste water, and water disposal services.
There are about 60,000 community water suppliers in America.
Public water supplies must meet or exceed Environmental Protection Agency standards. Many public water supplies consistently supply water that is much better than the minimum standards.
The Amendment to the Safe Drinking Water Act in 1986 increased the number of contaminants to be regulated from 26 to 83 and expanded EPA's enforcement authority.
If a drinking water supplier violates any federal standard, the utility by law must tell the customer.
Current water treatment methods are designed to make drinking water clear and to kill germs.
The pipes that carry drinking water from treatment plants to homes are regularly cleaned.
It takes about 39,000 gallons of water to produce the average domestic auto, including tires.
It is not safe for hikers and backpackers to drink water directly from remote streams.
One gallon of gasoline can contaminate approximately 750,000 gallons of water.
You can help prevent pollution of drinking water sources by carefully disposing of the chemical products you use in your home.
An acre of corn contributes more to humidity than a lake of the same size.