Everyone who lives here agrees: San Francisco has one of the finest climates on Earth. The dry Mediterranean summers and cool wet winters allow those who live in the Bay Area to grow a great diversity of plants, ranging from the tropics to the desert and beyond. Furthermore, due to summer fog and long growing season, horticulturalists and gardeners can push the typical growing conditions of many plants, brightening up our sidewalk gardens and parks with beauty of every kind.
Although xeriscaping has become very popular in California and the desert Southwest, there are alternative ways to maintain a lush, verdant and almost tropical garden without abusing your water bill. With a small investment, a bit of space and the right design, constructing a laundry to landscape greywater system can save a serious amount water in the long run.
What is a laundry to landscape greywater system? In short, it is a decentralized water purification and irrigation system. Rather than pump (and pay for) the slightly dirty laundry water to be treated by the SF Public Utility Commission and eventually have it pushed out into the Bay or Pacific Ocean, a greywater system utilizes laundry water to irrigate a garden. Although there are notable caveats to mind, such as drainage, appropriate plants, trees, shrubs and soaps, the SF PUC has released a go-to manual for homeowners and professionals seeking to install such a system.
California was gifted this winter with plentiful snow and rain. However, the 3 prior years of drought should not be forgotten. Simple, low-tech water-saving techniques that reduce costs to customers and keep water stored in Hetch Hetchy need to be continuously implemented if San Francisco wants to become more resilient to climate change.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
