There's a drought going on in a good part of the US. There's no telling if this is one of those short-lived varieties or if we are entering a new "dustbowl". However long this one may last, one thing is certain, this drought concerns us all.
On Friday, Tom Vilsack, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture determined 42 counties in Iowa are now natural disaster areas, due to drought. The state of Indiana has been on a water warning since the 3rd week of July. Perhaps as many as half of the counties in the whole of the lower 48 states are suffering from a lack of rainfall this summer.
I know, this is getting awfully "environmental" for a blog on frugal living. But here's the tie-in. Environmental issues frequently overlap with frugal living. A drought means that our wallets will feel the pinch.
What does this mean to you, the consumer? Food prices will surely rise. The most severe devastation has occurred in the nation's corn belt. Corn is a primary feed for animals raised for food. Meat, dairy and egg prices are expected to rise. A lot of snack foods contain corn. (Ouch! My all-time favorite snack of popcorn may be in short supply around here!) And then there's the use of corn oil in so many products. Even if you personally don't use corn oil, your oil of choice will increase in price, as more consumers turn to alternate oils.
Soy is also a crop raised in our countries mid-section. Less seems to be heard in the news about the affect of the drought on soy products. But make no mistake, soy and all related products, including margarine and many processed foods, will see a jump in pricing this fall. And while the drought itself is happening in the US, this is a global concern, as the US supplies much of the world with food.
We can also expect to see a small increase in fuel prices, as vegetation-based fuels have taken up a bigger share of the market in recent years. However, I personally feel that most of our price at the pump increases are and will continue to be due to other influences.
As someone watching their budget, what do we do? First of all, if it was my community putting out a water-use advisory, I'd oblige them and do my share to cut back on water consumption. This would help local farmers continue with irrigation of their crops. There is some corn being grown right now that is irrigated and doing okay.
Second, if I'm going to continue with my current grocery budget, I'll need to be an even more savvy shopper. I'll be checking the discount section of the packaged deli, for markdowns on bacon and sausage, checking for markdowns in the general meat department, and shopping for mark downs in the dairy aisle. When I find a good deal, I'll be even more inclined to stock up, and stock up big. (Have I mentioned that last Thanksgiving I bought 4 turkeys? I'll buy 4 again this year, too.) I'll buy family packs of meat and divide them at home myself. I'll be using a bit more homemade rice milk in my cooking, in place of some of the dairy milk. I'll continue to modify my recipes to use more beans and grains for protein, and less meat.
Third, I'll continue to use my car efficiently, batching my errands, making mostly right-hand turns, using the car that gets the better fuel economy, etc. But as I said earlier, I'm not convinced that the biggest impact on gas prices will be the corn and soy shortage.
Now, back to that original question of how far would you be willing to go to cut back on your water consumption?
I once heard of a couple living in north central California about 15 years ago, during one of California's many droughts. They had a well for water, which was running dry. They trucked in drinking water. But trucking in water for washing and watering purposes was unaffordable. To save their precious well water, they washed, bathed and watered creatively.
When they washed dishes, they had two dish pans with water, one soapy, one for rinse. Nothing new, many of us have done that. After using the soapy water, they carried it to the laundry room, to wash their clothing, waiting two or three days until there was enough water to run a load. The rinse water would then be reused as the wash water for the next batch of dirty dishes. It would be taken to the stove to be heated, and soap added for washing. A new pan of rinse water would be poured. After this batch of dishes, the wash water went to the laundry, and the rinse water became the next batch's wash water, and continued this way. They only used 1 pan of water per load of dishes this way.
To bathe, they limited bathing to twice per week. The wife put the plug in the tub and took a quick shower in the cold, and trying to heat up, water. Her husband followed her, but bathed in her shower water that was standing in the tub. After the husband, the dog was brought in and he was bathed in the husband's and wife's water. The water was then scooped out and carried to the garden for watering. No water was wasted in their house.
We've been using city or well water for so long, we take for granted the availability of water. There was a time when people hauled their water from streams, or collected rain in barrels. Water was used sparingly because it was so difficult to haul or hard to come by. We've been spoiled.
But the tide is beginning to turn. Many of us are using rain barrels once again. We have two in use in our garden. I've been using mine all summer to water our pots on the deck and vegetable garden. They've just now run dry, in thanks to a wet summer here.
Low flush toilets are the norm now. In some countries waterless toilets are catching on. I'd like to see an easy to install timer for showers on the market. One that would automatically turn the shower off after 15 minutes. I have two teenage daughters who do like their long, long showers. (In their defense they both have super long, super thick hair, which requires a lot of time in the shower to get thoroughly rinsed.)
And I haven't heard of anyone letting the water run while brushing their teeth since I was a child. Yes, many of us are much more conscious of this precious supply of good water.
The overlap between being green and being frugal is felt when trying to save money at the grocery store, on the utility bill, and the gas budget. By using resources carefully, we should be able to mostly mitigate the effects of the price increases that the general public will feel, simply by taking more care in our everyday decisions.
What are your thoughts?
