| Water Matters ... Save, Protect, Treasure |
Tybee Neighbors has been concerned about conserving water for years and has been involved with a number
initiatives in this area.
Our first initiative was sponsoring an educational workshop. An overview of this workshop can be viewed by
clicking here on Water Works.
Presentations from the workshop can be viewed by clicking below.
Presentations by:
Deatre N. Denion, Program Coordinator for WaterFirst
Sarah Barlow, Environmental Planner for the City of Savannah
Paul Wolfe, City Council of Tybee Island
Most recently we sponsored a survey focusing on ways to conserve water. We had many excellent responses
that are shared below. We will be bringing these survey results to the attention of the
City's Community Resource Committee in the near future.
We also were very supportive of the recent Tybee Water Fair sponsored by the City's Community
Resource committee. The Water Fair is an overview of the event that can be viewed
by clicking on Water Fair.
We have also taken an artistic approach on this important issue by developing a beautiful post card and a
wonderful tile using the theme “Water Matters...Save, Protect, Treasure”. We distributed our cards to the
hundreds of visitors and sold our tiles. We also distributed the easy tips below.
We will again be doing this at the Seafood Festival on May 7th.
“Water Matters...Save, Protect, Treasure”, was developed to raise awareness of our island’s diminishing natural
resources.
The Water Matters tile and card came out of a collaborative effort between an artist and the non-profit group,
Tybee Neighbors.
Artwork was created from an original watercolor and donated for the project.
Funds raised through this project will be used to promote water saving initiatives on Tybee in the future.
The hope is to make residents and visitors more aware of the need for water conservation on Tybee. Since the
source of our potable water is finite, the more we conserve, the more we will have.
Here’s to hoping that art can make a difference for the planet in 2011.
initiatives in this area.
Our first initiative was sponsoring an educational workshop. An overview of this workshop can be viewed by
clicking here on Water Works.
Presentations from the workshop can be viewed by clicking below.
Presentations by:
Deatre N. Denion, Program Coordinator for WaterFirst
Sarah Barlow, Environmental Planner for the City of Savannah
Paul Wolfe, City Council of Tybee Island
Most recently we sponsored a survey focusing on ways to conserve water. We had many excellent responses
that are shared below. We will be bringing these survey results to the attention of the
City's Community Resource Committee in the near future.
We also were very supportive of the recent Tybee Water Fair sponsored by the City's Community
Resource committee. The Water Fair is an overview of the event that can be viewed
by clicking on Water Fair.
We have also taken an artistic approach on this important issue by developing a beautiful post card and a
wonderful tile using the theme “Water Matters...Save, Protect, Treasure”. We distributed our cards to the
hundreds of visitors and sold our tiles. We also distributed the easy tips below.
We will again be doing this at the Seafood Festival on May 7th.
“Water Matters...Save, Protect, Treasure”, was developed to raise awareness of our island’s diminishing natural
resources.
The Water Matters tile and card came out of a collaborative effort between an artist and the non-profit group,
Tybee Neighbors.
Artwork was created from an original watercolor and donated for the project.
Funds raised through this project will be used to promote water saving initiatives on Tybee in the future.
The hope is to make residents and visitors more aware of the need for water conservation on Tybee. Since the
source of our potable water is finite, the more we conserve, the more we will have.
Here’s to hoping that art can make a difference for the planet in 2011.
Ten Easy Tips for Saving Water on Tybee Flush less Use low-flow shower heads and faucets Insulate outdoor pipes instead of dripping in colder weather Run dishwashers and washing machines with full loads Use water-saving appliances ( front loading washers, low flow toilets, etc.) Repair leaking faucets and pipes Water lawn during early hours observing Tybee's watering schedule Use mulch and garden with native and drought resistant plants Turn off water when brushing teeth, shaving, etc. Take short showers . |
Ideas on Ways to Personally Conserve Water at Home
“We run the dishwasher only when full, wash dishes by hand with a plugged sink, avoid use of the garbage
disposal by composting almost all kitchen waste, water yard plants at the roots by hand, have allowed most of the
lawn to die and are replacing it with mulched material, planted drought-tolerant landscaping, limit our showers,
use an eco-efficient front-loading washing machine with weight sensors to adjust water, sweep rather than hose
down the driveway & wash our cars in- frequently. We would like to install lo-flow toilets as we had in our former
home but have not yet done so. Until then we are following the "let it mellow" flushing system. We have aerators
on our faucets, but have not yet installed lo-flow showerheads. (Intend to do this soon.) “
“In the summer, we collect the condensate from the AC overflow pipes and use it to water the garden. We do not
run water while brushing our teeth, nor do we let the water in the sink run while we walk around the kitchen.”
“We should all conserve. One of the easiest is to capture rain water and water from HVAC condensation.”
“We do not have low flow toilets, but the tank level at the minimum. We also practice "We are an island in the sun,
so we don't flush for number one."
“Change shower heads to low flow, I can’t think of anything else but am more than willing to participate in water
conservation on Tybee Island”
“We recently purchased a low flow toilet which works very well and only uses .8 gallons per flush. It is a new
company and it was a little expensive but if purchased in quantity the price would be very reasonable. The same
company also sells low flow showerheads which greatly reduce water usage. If the large condos and motels
converted to these units it would reduce the island water use significantly. My wife has the information on this
company and would be happy to share it with anyone who is interested.”
“We plant only drought resistant plants and avoid outdoor watering.”
“rain barrels for gardening”
“restrict use of water for car washing and gardening to set times”
(Note: The State of Georgia has returned to a non-drought schedule for outdoor water use. Under a non-drought
schedule, outdoor water use is allowed three days a week on assigned days using odd and even-numbered
addresses.
• Odd-numbered addresses can water on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays.
• Even-numbered and unnumbered addresses are allowed to water on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays.
Water use may occur at any time of the day on the assigned days, but to be water efficient, landscape watering
should not occur between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. )
“low usage plumbing”
“Xeriscaping”
“The only idea I have will probably be resistant to most of you. People just do not understand that their
dishwashers will NOT remove food from unrinsed plates. This necessitates a second washing cycle and in many
cases a scrubbing episode in the kitchen sink. How much water does that waste when a simple quick rinse in the
beginning would have taken care of it? “
“People that have automatic watering systems, should have sensors that shut the water supply off during rain,
middle of the day, & only water 2 times a week for 20 to 30 minutes at a time. Conserve our own water at home.”
“I have a charge of 1 unit on my water bills most months. I almost never use water on my yard. All of my toilets
are 1.6 gal except from one that is dual flush at .9 gal. I catch my rain water in a cistern.”
“I use two rain barrels and mostly native vegetation. Lots of mulch and compost.”
“Wider use of rain barrels connected to the air conditioning systems”
“As to the water bills, it took quite a while, but I finally do understand. I do not think a discount on a water bill
should be given to those who allow their toilets to leak. It is our responsibility to keep things in working order. To
gather water for outdoor watering, I have an assortment of all shapes and sizes of buckets and barrels catching
rainwater from the roof. It may not look great, but it serves the purpose. I also read in an article that if a family of
4 would urinate while taking a shower instead of flushing a 2 1/2 gal. toilet, the potential savings for a year would
be 3650 gals. of precious water. Something to think about.”
“Grow something other than grass in your yard.”
“We don't flush except when necessary. I think locals know what needs to be done. We need to focus on our
visitors...information, education, and enforcement.”
“We have two Mansfield Eco-Quantum dual flush toilets in our Tybee house that use 1.1 gallons/flush since we
never use the 1.6 option. They work fine. We just installed the Niagara Stealth toilet that uses 0.8 gallons for
every flush in our CT home and it is so quiet and effective! We'll have to buy more!”
“I do the usual things - don't run the dishwasher until full, turn off faucet while brushing teeth, mulch plants, no
grass. I bucket flush from the bathtub 2-3 times a day. I have a rain barrel but one is not enough. I like to see a
way to obtain the large containers at the community garden for residential use(400 gallons I think.)”
“People, including children, are dying ALL DAY, EVERY DAY because of the lack of clean water . . . and so many
people just allow it to drip from their shower, their faucet or toilet. A leaky faucet is not only throwing money away,
it's STEALING water from other Tybee residents! AND IT'S ALL WE HAVE!”
“We do not have low flow toilets, but use the &"if it's yellow, let it mellow"; motto. I never rinse dishes before
putting them in the dishwasher; only run laundry and dishwasher with full loads. Avoid use of disposer. When I
need hot water, I use the faucet closest to the hot water tank to avoid wasting a ton of cold water while waiting for
it to get hot.”
Ideas to Share with the City’s Community Resource Committee
“We were mandated by Tybee Zoning to put in grass before we could obtain an occupancy permit for our new
home almost 3 years ago. Not only did that result in a significant expense to us but it wasted a tremendous
amount of water to keep the newly sodded yard JULY through SEPT. Later on the Zoning Dept simply said they
were following the state regulations. MY SUGGESTION: Tybee officials need to set an example by showing its
citizens that they are informed. City officials irresponsibly enforce laws that they should know are non-sensical
(like mandating that a resident sod their yard in the heat of the summer). This arbitrary enforcement of
ordinances and regulations undermines the citizens efforts to act responsibly in the face of water shortages.
BEGIN BY EDUCATING CITY EMPLOYEES AND HAVING THEM SET AN EXAMPLE OF RESPONSIBLE WATER
USE.”
“THERE ARE MANY FOLKS OUT THERE THAT WILL FEEL WHAT I HAVE WRITTEN HERE IS ABSOLUTELY
DISGUSTING!!!!
There are ways and equipment in place today to reprocess water to actual distilled quality. Not just drinking
quality but distilled!! The city of Tybee already process, in small amounts, this same distilled quality water to run
the lab tests on the water run through our waste water treatment before it is re introduced to the ocean. This is
not the first time I have discussed or mentioned this reprocessing to city council members. The waste water
treatment plant in Columbia South Carolina reprocesses their water and sells it to a bottling company that in turns
further processes it bottles it and sells it everyday out of vendors , gro. stores conv. stores hospitals, restaurants
etc. all for public purchase and consumption.
I of course will not divulge the product name or the bottling company to avoid getting some adverse reaction from
them over loss of sales of the products.
I do not know the exact stats on how much the city of Columbia re-uses or sells or what percent of waste water
recapture to public water disbursement to users is. I feel sure that they are at least reprocessing 75%. I also am
aware that this type system is very costly. With all of the greening going on in this country I also feel sure that
there is some money out there somewhere that would be available to fund such an operation for a small city that
is trying to be as green as possible.
This may sound a little far fetched to some but stop jog your memories about desalinization plants that have been
around for years that convert salt water to fresh. That has been working for years. One can pinch , conserve or
what ever and not have a percent of an effect on the benefits of reprocessing. Think green recycle.”
“I agree that conserving water is a good idea.”
“I am not willing to conserve water on Tybee to allow more highly dense and thoughtlessly developed condos,
duplexes and triplexes.”
“That has been the carrot and stick reasoning behind water conservation in the last 5 to 7 years.”
“The cost of water alone forces people to conserve water”
“I personally look at my bill every month and try to find ways of avoiding increases on the bill.”
“Funny how International Paper takes over 4M Gallons out a week and no one has stopped them. They have a
"license" to do it. Why is no one stopping them. Make them use river water ! It's brown paper - it doesn't matter
what kind of water they use. Oooh, may cause rust .That's their problem. I am getting tired of these double
standards that seem so prevalent here in Georgia”
“Water bills: it rarely seems to correspond to our own usage, And there are months when we are away, but still
have to pay a minimum for no usage. That does not encourage conservation, since there is no correlation
between usage and payment. “
“Require city workers to inspect the city's plant watering systems daily to insure they are not wasting water and
start fining businesses and residents who use their sprinkler systems when it is raining.”
“Encourage the establishment of a minimum water usage car wash which uses recycled water on the island and
ban car washing to individuals at their homes.”
“Have the city build cisterns to capture water for use in city buildings and encourage the use of cisterns in new
home and condo construction and by existing hotel and home owners by offering tax credits in addition to
reducing the cost of water for minimum users.”
“Install grey water systems for watering all city foliage and encourage homeowners and business to install similar
systems.”
“Stipulate in building codes that low flow toilets, shower heads, faucets, etc. are mandatory in new construction
and when replacing any of these.”
“Make it mandatory for the city to notify residents or absentee owners when their water meter reading is 15%
higher than its regular average to ensure that water leaks are found and eliminated quickly.”
“Provide brochures to all property owners showing the kinds of grass, plants, etc. which can be grown on the
island using the least amount of water and encourage garden clubs and the Tybee Beautification Assn. to
present plaques or other forms of recognition to residents who create water saving yards and gardens.”
“ When the city changed to a monthly from a bi-monthly billing system it increased the cost to minimum users by
100 percent, without ever indicating the price was going up.
This was accomplished by charging the same amount for minimum users each month that they previously paid
every two months. This not only upset minimum users but encouraged them to use more water since their cost
was doubled despite the fact that they were using no more water.”
“Consider abandoning the Beach Bums Parade since it wastes a large amount of precious water and reflects
badly on Tybee when the city and country are urging conservation. Another option would be to require
participants and spectators in the parade to use only salt water or beer. “
“Make it mandatory to water plants and lawns only before 9 a.m. and after 7 p.m. during the summer and adjust
the hours accordingly for winter watering.”
“Xeriscaping, NO sprinkler systems, period. Excruciating high fines for sprinkler systems that run when it rains.”
“First our city government needs to change out their toilets to low flow then they will be able to convenience the
citizens to follow suit”
"Have 1 or 2 non-potable water stations so visitors can rinse off before going home."
“Tybee ought to offer at wholesale rates on the devices for outdoor faucets so that dripping during freezing
weather is not required. Tybee ought to offer at wholesale rates other water saving devices such as low-flow
toilets and shower heads. That way it is a win-win situation.”
“Why are water bills so late, if you have a high usage month by the time you get the bill you forget why. If you
have a leak, it’s two months before you know it. Keeping bills current would help everyone have a up to date
record of usage.”
“Proceed with SCAD plans for using rainwater in public restrooms, xeriscape our yards, use native plants, do
away with lush lawns, collect rainwater for watering and washing cars...”
“The Master Plan, developed 4-5 years ago, clearly states that we are exceeding our carrying capacity for water.
Since the most recent Hilton Head saltwater intrusion folks are finally acknowledging that it's not if but when for
Tybee to lose its first well. So, while on the one hand, Tybee is beginning consider alternatives to the aquifer, on
the other hand they continue to create greater density by granting variances, subdividing lots, etc. There's no
clear recognition that we are in danger and certainly no logical path to providing an adequate water supply in the
future.
“Fines for residents who run sprinkler systems on unauthorized days.”
“There are several designs that implement shower water to be used for flushing the toilet! They are widely
available on the web and Paul Wolff has copies of schematics that he has offered to share. I think Tybee could
save a significant amount of water if homeowners, and vacation rental owners, were to implement this type of
system for flushing their toilets. It is not expensive to make the retrofits and would be beneficial not only to the
homeowner but the community! Further, The Vacation Rental Business is the most lucrative business on Tybee
Island! There should be a way, or a requirement, for the Vacation Rental industry to have a system like this in
place! Likewise, I see no reason why the hotel/motel industry should not be required to have such systems. It is
only my opinion, but folks who rent their places to vacationers and tourists, do not use this particular residence as
their primary residence. Therefore, they are pocketing money from the rental of this residence,
in our community, which, in turn depletes our natural resource, thereby reducing the amount of water
available for use by actual residents. OR, in the alternative, places used primarily as vacation rentals, B & B's,
hotel/motels should be charged for EVERY drop of water DURING SEASON, without benefit of the 2000 gallon
buffer. “
Places used primarily as vacation rentals, the B & B's, and hotel/motels should be required to either:
1. Retro fit their toilets to flush with shower water; or
2. Pay the buffered bill in off season, and pay for each and every drop IN SEASON!
Water is our most precious resource! AND all the water that we will ever have is already here on Earth! We must
protect and conserve it at all costs!”
“I also feel that Tybee would benefit immensely from the appointment of a Water Marshall, either via the
Community Resource Group or an official position with the city! This position would pay for itself, should a
volunteer not step up. The person could be responsible for making sure watering guidelines are followed, like
sprinklers watering driveways, watering on the improper day, etc. This person could also provide administrative
assistance for the retrofits, maybe visit and talk with folks who live in residences that seem to be consuming too
much water, and provide help with leaking faucets, pipes and toilets! “
“I don't understand my water bill because, it has doubled since we went to once a month billing, even though I
conserve water as much as possible, & still I have to pay a minimum, whether or not I use that much water.
Ideas for Encouraging Visitors to Conserve Water
“Signage and auto shut-off devices on outdoor showers, etc. Cottage rental agencies and hotels cold provide the
kind of bathroom cards used by major hotel chains to encourage patrons to conserve water. “
“ Increase the cost of water for those using the most of it like hotels and those operating swimming pools, while
decreasing the cost to those using the minimum amount to encourage conservation.”
“This is a wasteful world we live in.... About the only way you are going to get a tourist to conserve water is to
install faucets that have to be held on to wash off beach sand. They don’t care and think that every one whom
lives here is benefiting from what they paid to come/ stay here.”
“The only other way to keep them from wasting water is to put in a coin operated faucet. How many of them do
think would put in a quarter? “
“It is difficult to get visitors to conserve anything. Since they pay to be here, they feel entitled to live with careless
abandon. “
“Visitors are different from residents; when we rented our house, we felt that renters had little regard for
resources. They cranked the AC, etc. Maybe there could be a third world conservation compact they would sign.
How about billboards with data as you enter the island? “
“Incentives for utilizing conservation techniques determined by the city“
“All restaurants, uniformly, must charge .25 for a glass/cup of water. Guess that's not positive, but it will send a
message. “
“Education - I have sample brochures that will help and have helped me in my rentals.”
“I do encourage all my guests to reuse towels whenever possible to help me conserve water and lower my energy
costs.”
“Every rental be it motel or house should have in plain sight, a card explaining just how dear every drop of water
is and to respectfully use it wisely. Refrigerator magnets large enough to notice would be the easiest”
“Information, education, and enforcement...let them know that the gravy train has stopped, that they won't get to
come to Tybee if we can't afford water, and that the issue affects them as much as it does locals.”
“I think we should mandate that hotel, motels, and time shares install x percentage of their toilets per year. I think
the town should order hundreds of them at cost and offer them to residents and businesses and sell them at a
price that covers the administration cost, but is still a great deal for purchase price.”
“Need graphics such as the hurricane towers showing flood categories. Who has the creativity?”
“I don't think most people understand what 'Water First' means when they come on the island and the sign is too
small!”
Signage
| The following are ideas shared with us on our recent survey. To download all the survey results click here. |
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| Links to Resources for Saving Water Links and Resources for Water Conservation Information Water – Use It Wisely http://www.wateruseitwisely.com/links-and-resources/index.php Water Conservation: 25 ways to conserve water in the home and yard http://eartheasy.com/live_water_saving.htm Water footprint and virtual water http://www.waterfootprint.org/?page=files/home Water Tracker Sheets http://wateruseitwisely.com/_downloads/home-water-audit-english.doc |