Written by Denise Deby.
On average, Canadians use between 200-400 litres of water a day for drinking and household use—but that’s really just the tip of the iceberg.
Stephen Leahy, an independent environmental journalist, has written Your Water Footprint: The Shocking Facts About How Much Water We Use to Make Everyday Products.
For example, it takes 140 litres of water to make a cup of coffee—including the water used to grow, process and ship the beans. Some 910 litres go into producing a smartphone, 2,500 litres to make a cotton shirt. One kilowatt hour of electricity (enough to surf the web for five hours) uses 180 litres of water.
The book also identifies ways for people to make choices that reduce water use and help avoid water shortages around the world.
Stephen Leahy will launch Your Water Footprint on Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2014 at 7 p.m. at Octopus Books’ Centretown location (251 Bank St.).
At the event, which coincides with Human Rights Day, Council of Canadians’ water campaigner Emma Lui will also talk about the human right to water and water issues in Canada.
You can find more on Stephen Leahy and his writing at http://stephenleahy.net/about/.
Green Living Ottawa 