Water Rights and Water Usage Reflection

A.) Should a single person or entity have rights to own water that flows beneath common ground?

No, I personally do not think that any had the RIGHT to own a nature resource such as water. People are trying to own everything the "God" made, such as oil, coal, and land.....enough is enough, let the water be. I must say though that what some companies are doing to try to make the water better for drinking is nice and if people to to pay for the service of making the water better then that is something different. I think that they need to make it clear, that they are not buying the water, they are buying the service!

B.) List your daily water usage: (03/05/2010)

1 load of dishes in the dish washer ( 4.5 gal on water saver cycle)
2 loads of laundry in HE Front loading washer (5.6 gals each)
2 showers (20 gal of water each) gallons per minute
3-4 toilet flushes (2 gal)
2 Teeth brushing (1 gal)
1 Hands/face washing (1 gal)
1 Glass of water 8 oz. per glass (1/16th of a gallon)
1 cooking water (3/8 gal)
4-6 wand washings (2 gal)
1 scrub in before surgery at work (2 gal)
1 dogs water (1/2 gal)
1 mopping water (1 gal)
1 ice maker (1/2 gal)

Total: roughly 61 gallons of water a day!!!! WOW! I am sure I left out some too.

I do take a few steps to cut down on my water use, but I am sure I could be doing a lot more.
One step I take is washing my face in the shower instead of washing it post shower in the sink. I bought a water efficient clothes washer to cut down on my water usage. I did not for cost purposes, but it helps the environment also. I put a 2 liter bottle in my toilet tank to try to cut down on water flushes.

Field Trip #3-Matanza Pass

Matanzas Pass March 14, 2010.

After waiting in a long line of traffic for about 45 minutes, my family and I made it to Matanzas Pass Preserve, my husband, myself and our three kids. The kids picked the first trail to head off on. The picked the Calusa Loop. The oldest two wanted to go off and show Mommy, Daddy, and little brother the way, as if they been there before. They noticed the recycled boards that were used as a path. Way far up in the tree my youngest saw a bird's nest. He remembered once when my husband found baby birds outside without a mother and we nursed them every two hours. Unfortunately, they passed within a week. He was happy to know that this bird's nest was safe with probably a bird mommy.

As the walk went on Izaiah (9) my oldest showed us what plants he knew and how he learned about them. We then spotted animal tracks, we thought they were raccoon tracks. What do you think they were? As we went on, the kids found a nice little bench to take a rest. They were hearing bird noises and teasing each other that a bird was going to eat their ears. Noah (4) tried to flick his sister's ear like it was a bird getting it. We also say the prettiest purple pink flowers on our walk. Wonder what they are?

Our walk reminded me of how my neighborhood looked growing up. I grew up in North Fort Myers, Florida off Slater Road in farm country. My whole neighborhood was covered by trees like out on our walk today. The ground was covered in leaves. I remember my mom raking the leaves every weekend making a path to our house, and having to put them in the wheel barrel and haul them to the mulch pile. It brought back so man memories. My kids and husband could not believe that I did not have paved roads growing up except the main road.

We had been out there for a while and the kids thought we got lost so they tried to read the sign to figure out where w
e were at. Finally we made it back to the car and the kids took a break.
They took off their shoes and let the wind between their toes. My daughter Jayde (7) did not like the mud between her toes....aww the feeling of nature!

Reflection of your Choice

Do you ever think about how much product packaging goes into children's toys?

Also, once we (parents) purchase the toys we usually wrap them in more paper to that the kids unwrap them. Then we just throw the paper away. I was looking back to about 2 years ago when my son was turning two and unwrapping his birthday gifts. Wow, I saw the paper we used to wrap them all. I also noticed the packaging that was used to protect the items. Now, a high percentage of people celebrate holidays in which presents are wrapped. Can you imagine how much garbage we create on a daily basis just based on wrapped gifts alone??? Wow, imagine Christmas! The boxes, the paper, the plastic!!!! My head is spinning. I am just as guilty as the nest person. What do you think each of us could do to change this habit? I do not want my kids to miss out on the fun that come with holidays...so what do we do? Recycle more? Not wrap things? Hummm this is a hard one.

Food Intake/Packaging

A.) List each item of food and drink and how much of it that you consume, including water. Indicate whether it is purchased, pre-made (i.e., from the cafeteria, McDonalds, Subway, etc.) or whether you “put it together” yourself. USING THE INTERNET OR OTHER SOURCE, ESTIMATE YOUR TOTAL CALORIC INTAKE FOR THE DAY. Indicate which source you used. Reflect on this amount. Where does your food come from? How much energy and water was used to produce your food? Are your food choices sustainable?

3/6/2010
breakfast
2 “Monster” energy drinks = 20 calories each
¼ lb. of medium cheddar cheese cut into cubes = 535 calories
1 whole apple (green) = 57 calories

lunch
1 philly cheese sandwich = 410 calories = mayo 40 calories
a. mayonnaise
1 ice tea = 88 calories
French fries = 291 calories

dinner
1 bottle of Gatorade = 58 calories
1 cup cake = 121 calories

Total calorie intake: 1640 calories

http://www.thecaloriecounter.com/

B.) List all portable items you purchase or otherwise handle each day, and the packaging they came in. This will take some imagination. For example, you handle textbooks each day – they came to you in a bag with advertising cards; you get your mail, some useful, some junk – count the useful vs. junk; you listen to your MP3 player, you call on your cell phone – did you get it in a box, or in a clear plastic package with cardboard/Styrofoam insert? Did your lunch come in a Styrene or Styrofoam box? Or wrapped in paper that was then put in a bag? Reflect on your list. How much energy and water went into producing this packaging? Is it sustainable? Do you make sustainable choices when shopping for your products?

4 3-ring binders: plastic/metal rings
1 lap top: came in a box with plastic wrap, bubble wrap, paper advertisements, a few CDs
1 PC mouse: came in a plastic wrap with paper inserts
2-3 bottle drinks: plastic with plastic or paper liner around it
several patient charts/files: metal prongs, paper, came wrapped in plastic wrap in a box
several sheets of paper: came wrapped in paper
3-4 ink cartridges: came in a box, wrapped in plastic, and paper inserts
1-2 ink pens: came in a box with plastic wrap
hair products: come in aluminum container and plastic container
5-8 make-up products: all individually wrapped and housed in a plastic container and came in a paper box
toothpaste: plastic/foil wrap, came in a paper box sometimes wrapped in plastic
toothbrush: plastic/came in plastic
deodorant: plastic container wrapped in plastic
body soap: plastic container/bottle
milk: plastic container
meat: styrofoam container wrapped in plastic wrap
rice/noodles: plastic bag or paper box
veggies: aluminum can with paper on outside

butter: platic bin
TV remote: plastic
dishwasher detergent: comes in box wit individual wrapped bags of soap
laundry soap: plastic container
laundry softener: plastic container
bleach: plastic container
dog food: paper bag with paper inserts or coupons
shoes: comes in a paper box sometimes with paper inside or plastic
clothes: comes on a plastic hanger/tags paper

I am sure I left out a few daily items but, this round it up. I think lots of energy went into making all these products and most of them are disposable and we just throw them away. What we all should be doing is recycling the items. Most things now a days can be recycled. I am not doing that very often, but as I see how many thing I buy are plastic and paper I need to be recycling more often!! I think that one thing I noticed right away is that I buy a few items that are individually wrapped for convenience, but how hard it is to use a bottle of dish washer soap and just pour it into the little cup? I really buy a different product. I do try to by green wise stuff when I so shopping now.