Changes to water restrictions - you can even wash your car!

Wouldn’t it be nice if the community did some of this stuff of their own volition rather than having the govvermint having to regulate and then for every second man, wommin and dog having a red hot whinge that the measures are too Draconian or don’t go far enough or that the cistern size didn’t take account of the implementation of light rail through their bathrooms.

Unfortunately I’m renting and so can’t do much except put a brick in my tank and keep mentioning it to the landlord but surely they could offer some kind of incentive for homeowners to upgrade to a more water efficient toilet? Couldn’t they?

Yep, and you can: http://www.thinkwater.act.gov.au/tune-ups_rebates/ToiletSmart.shtml

The Government should start looking at some other household issues, like toilets… I pulled my cistern apart on the weekend to do some repairs and it uses 11 litres of water per flush!!! That is outta control, I reckon I could wash my whole car inside and out with about three or four flushes!!!

Unfortunately I’m renting and so can’t do much except put a brick in my tank and keep mentioning it to the landlord but surely they could offer some kind of incentive for homeowners to upgrade to a more water efficient toilet? Couldn’t they?

bd84 said :

It’s like congratulations Canberra, you’ve blown the water usage target to hell for the past 3 weeks, here we will let you go crazy for two weeks!

Does anyone want to have a game of try to predict how low the dam levels will get in the two weeks of watering madness?

I think we could do well enough to about 45 percent from the I think it was 50.7% I saw on the way home today.

This is what I was thinking while driving past one of those signs the other day. They’ve been consistently telling us we’re blowing our targets, oh and by the way, have two weeks to go absolutely wet and wild.

Bee-zarre.

caf said :

VY, I don’t think the commentor was being sarcastic. Though the fact you took it that way perhaps indicates a guilty conscience beating deep within? 😉

Correct, caf. No traces of irony or sarcasm intended on my part. If the rules allow you to wash your car, VY, I applaud your decision to do so on the grass. Apologies if any offence or anything else taken.

Thanks for your post RuffnReady. You’ve saved me having to type up a full response. Spot on!

monomania said :

Some of you have been indoctrinated by Actew and the government over the last 5 years. There may be scarcity of water in the Murrumbidgee but the water we will use over the fortnight won’t make any difference. As the water is there to use, we should be allowed to use it. Most people in the community are sensible about water use. The restrictions on outside water use have only played a part in reducing previous demand from 64GL down to 44GL. There is no way water levels will hit 45%. The only thing I will thank Actew and Stanhope for is an apology for getting us into this mess in the first place.

The more you post, the more I know you are a tool.

1/3 reduction in water consumption is a HUGE impact – water restrictions have actually made people think about water as a precious resource. Now, if only it was also priced properly people might really start to use the stuff rationally.

As the “this mess”, what mess exactly, and how is the govt responsible for it? Not enough rain is falling in the catchments, and people have been wasting water for decades – that’s how we got into this mess! EVERYONE is responsible for environmental problems because everyone is a consumer and a part of the environment.

Wake up.

One of my neighbours washes his car on the lawn every weekend, water restrictions don’t seem to apply to him – scum of the earth.

I am assuming that you know FOR SURE that your neighbor is not using tank or greay water for washing his car, before resorting to name calling and accusations?

The restrictions on outside water use have only played a part in reducing previous demand from 64GL down to 44GL

only..?? only reduced demand by a third. this isn’t significant?? water is there to use and we should be allowed to use it – without paying for it?? don’t we also need to think about if we actually need to use it?

the water is ‘there to use’ because restrictions have allowed it to be saved, because demand has been reduced – i’m glad we don’t make you treasurer…

Some of you have been indoctrinated by Actew and the government over the last 5 years. There may be scarcity of water in the Murrumbidgee but the water we will use over the fortnight won’t make any difference. As the water is there to use, we should be allowed to use it. Most people in the community are sensible about water use. The restrictions on outside water use have only played a part in reducing previous demand from 64GL down to 44GL. There is no way water levels will hit 45%. The only thing I will thank Actew and Stanhope for is an apology for getting us into this mess in the first place.

weren’t we allowed to wash windows? oooops.

This relaxation of restrictions and the special exemptions are a ploy to increase the use of water in order to justify recycling of waste water back in to the ACT drinking water supply. Whilst it is ACTEW promoting the water usage it is their partner in crime ActewAGL that will ultimately benefit from the increased energy/electricity consumption from the water recycling treatment plant.

Regardless, I believe that as a society, permanent water restrictions are not a bad thing.

One of my neighbours washes his car on the lawn every weekend, water restrictions don’t seem to apply to him – scum of the earth.

It’s like congratulations Canberra, you’ve blown the water usage target to hell for the past 3 weeks, here we will let you go crazy for two weeks!

Does anyone want to have a game of try to predict how low the dam levels will get in the two weeks of watering madness?

I think we could do well enough to about 45 percent from the I think it was 50.7% I saw on the way home today.

Excuse me, Thumper!!! EH’s do not skulk!!! They recline, repose, rest, even recuperate, but never skulk. And what on earth is it doing in the garage for many a year. You should be ashamed of yourself.

And now let the morons ruin it for all of us again. “it’s all just a little bit of history repeating”.

i can clean my teeth again. yay.

My house windows really need a wash

Ill be laughing next time it rains mud in canberra – not for expended water – but expended energy cleaning your car only for it to rain mud on it again.

Excellent – my relatively new car will get its much needed wash on the lawn, and the brides 15 year crapheap will get 2 years of accumlated quarter inch thick grime removed, all excess water dripping down on to the lawn with the precious water eventuallly being soaked up by my normally grey watered street trees.

And I can do it without a guilty conscience!

Not a guilty conscience at all. I do see your point about the sarcasm or not interpretation though. Fair call.

VY, I don’t think the commentor was being sarcastic. Though the fact you took it that way perhaps indicates a guilty conscience beating deep within? 😉

That’s the responsible thing to do.

The rules say what the rules say. People here bleat about sticking within the rules regardless of common courtesy or the effects on others*, so guess what – I’m going have 2 very shiny cars and a nice green lawn at the end of the month!

* for example see recent thread about driving in the right hand lane.

hmmm local myna family perhaps. Tnucs should be Stunc

astro – I got cues, romas, pumpkins, watermelons, beets, chillis and corn.

I keep em in a greenhouse cupboard thingy on the back paved area – just went from punnets to pots the other day – garden beds are prepped up but waiting a while.

Last year it took overnight for my tender juicy seedlings to be eaten by teh locak myna family – the tnucs.

Overheard said :

Please people, do not go nuts with these exemptions.

please oh no pah-leeeasssse

this is a totally vorpal thread, btw.

my god, danman and i have been startlingly aligned the last couple days – watering seedlings from a 2l bottle sums up my evenings of late! (though i go through a couple of bottles as i have zucchini, tomatoes, eggplant, chillies and beetroot, as well as keeping the less than 1m squared ‘cottage’ bed by the front door damp every other day…

snicker-snack!

I always thought it was Kalloo Kallay too, I think they spelt it that way in Footrot Flats. The Dog was nota great speller. There’s quite a few funny words added to the language from that pome.

My car has looked dusty and dirty (Not uber filthy or muddy) for nigh on 18 months.

Washing it will provide no satisfaction for me, I woul dmuch rather use the water for more useful things, like watering my seedlings from a 2L bottle.

One bottle a day does the lot, imagine how many times I could fill the bottle for a car wash worth of water.

JB it’s “Callooh! Callay!” not “Kalloo Kallay”:

“And, has thou slain the Jabberwock?
Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!’
He chortled in his joy”

from Jabberwocky, by Lewis Carroll in “Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There”, 1872.

I have two years of no car washing to make up for now, haha! Might have to take two weeks off work to celebrate by washing the car every day.

I’ll wash the balcony glass, that’s probably it (& I’ll be quite sparing with the water!).

VYBerlinaV8_the_one_they_all_copy said :

Sweet – both my cars will be getting washed on my front lawn (2 birds with 1 stone and all that).

That’s the responsible thing to do.

Please people, do not go nuts with these exemptions. And please don’t get used to them. They’re a privilege not some God-given right to start salivating about the days you used to hose down your pavement with a spray nozzle set to Force 10 from Navarone.

Sweet – both my cars will be getting washed on my front lawn (2 birds with 1 stone and all that).

Yay, watch water usage go through the roof!