Managing Public Water Systems - cause for concern

Back to Tap is excited about a recent documentary on public water resources. The 90 minute PBS documentary"Liquid Assets" investigates public water infrastructure across the United States and finds major problems with how the entire system is managed. The film is parter of a larger effort to change attitudes towards public water systems and how they are administered. People are slowly realising how precious water systems are - modern city living would quickly revert to Hobbes' "nasty, brutish and short" description of the human condition.

Showing how various cities in the US suffer from degraded and ill-maintained water infrastructure, "Liquid Assets" raises important questions about how we use and dispose of water.

After watching the trailer, we started wondering about water infrastructure here in London, much of which is also creaking, and was installed far earlier than anything in the United States.

Let's hope that the folks at Thames Water have also watched "Liquid Assets" and that the water delivery and management problems facing our 19th century system do not affect our drinking water. It is not that long ago (1854) that London was suffering significant cholera outbreaks.

If we are to ensure that our water system remains in healthy condition, people must speak up and demand regular maintenance of what is an essential public good. Let's not wait for the bottled water companies to turn off all the taps and take over our water infrastructure. Raise your voice and demand the quality we need to go Back to Tap!

New Energy Projects in Africa: leading the way with innovation

Back to Tap has been busy working on a number of new initiatives - looking for ways to affordable water filtration technology to new markets like Africa, where innovation and ideas are blossoming.

In particular, we were excited by all the talk of renewable energy at this year's Africa Utility Week in South Africa. If even a fraction of the projects discussed during the week are acted upon, Africa's use of renewable energy with soon put Europe and the UK to shame. Here's hoping that Africa leads the way in adopting mostly renewable energy and other sustainable technologies in the future.

Living in a Water World: how we use it & abuse it

Here is a little pre-weekend reminder of just how valuable and vital water is from friends over at FastCompany.com. While here in the UK water waste may be a little less extreme, the graphic below illustrates well the unsustainable use of water in many parts of the world. The fact that this waste continues is not due to a lack of options - rainwater harvesting, greywater recycling, waterless toilets, composting toilets and water filtration and re-use systems are all readily available to many - and the real problem lies in people's attitudes towards water.

At Back to Tap, we want to encourage people to consider how and why they use water the way they do. Is purchasing bottled water healthy and environmentally sound way to behave? What other options exist are available that will allow us to move away from wasteful behaviour?

Next week, we will be looking at a number of exciting innovations for water conservation from Lelongwe to London.

Have a great weekend and enjoy your tap water!

Diagram from: http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/154/water-world.html

Can the World Keep Up with Growing Demand for Water?

A little food for thought when we turn on the taps in the morning from our friends at visualizing.org. Back to Tap particularly enjoyed the runner up showing the projected increase in urban water consumption to 2030.

From: http://www.visualizing.org/visualizations/urban-water-needs-can-we-keep

The team used sponges and water to create a powerful visual display of just how much water thirsty humans will be drinking in coming years. Their findings provide one more reason to stop using wasteful water bottling and to think more seriously about how we manage all of the world's natural resources, including water.

Urban water needs: Can we keep up? from hal watts on Vimeo.

UNICEF Works to Provide Clean Water in Libya

UNICEF has just set up a new transit station on the Libyan border and one of their major challenges is providing clean drinking water to the growing population. Here at Back to Tap, we have been considering work on a low cost filter for just such situations.

Back to Tap hopes that everyone fleeing the war in Libya and surrounding areas will find a safe refuge in neighbouring countries, and that freshwater will continue to flow for all.

Plastic Bags Sail the Seas: time for a ban or two

Back to Tap is happy to be following the trials and tribulations of the 5 Gyres Team as they set out to quantify the Pacific Garbage Patch - formed of plastic bottles and other plastic waste.

Like our friends over at the Plastiki, the 5 Gyres sailing team is seeking to explore the problem of plastic waste in our seas, but they are taking a more scientific approach. Increasing the knowledge base and general public awareness of the plastic pollution will hopefully drive political change.

Already, there have been successful attempts to ban plastic bags in cities and towns in the UK and now the EU has even proposed a national ban on the polluting plastic bag. It seems that slowly but surely, the world is waking up to plastic's destructive impact on our ecosystems.

Why the Tippy Tap Is Good for Your Health

Linked with today's post about hygiene and water quality in the Congo and elsewhere, we thought we should this great film about the Tippy Tap. While not everyone loves the Tippy Tap it a simple innovation that will hopefully inspire new ideas and approaches to water technology, low-cost sewerage and other areas in the future.

With the majority of the world's population under pressure to access clean water, it is time to think more seriously about how we use and manage water resources.

Moshe Safdie and Design for Humanity

At Back to Tap, we like to imagine that all architects and designers genuinely care about the world around them and how people interact with the buildings and objects they create. If people are going to go to the trouble of designing and building homes, offices and entire cities, it is important that they consider the people who inhabit these spaces.

The way we interact with water is particularly important. The way water enters our homes - the pipes and taps we use, and the way it leaves, and is filtered and returns to its source, has a huge impact on the environment, our health and well-being.

This symbiotic relationship between design, architecture, the environment and our health has frequently been ignored. We hope that in the future, more thinkers like Mosh Safdie will drive changes in the water and the built environment impact on our daily lives and the environment. We would love to read about any other inspiring designs.

The Majestic Plastic Bag

A great reminder that the vast majority of all plastic that we use ends up in our oceans. Has anyone else spotted a majestic plastic bag migrating to the sea recently?

Plastiki Redux - What can we learn from their journey?

As part of our ongoing engagement with the Plastiki team, Back to Tap recently caught up with David de Rothschilde in Australia. After completing the Plastiki voyage almost a year ago, it remains to be seen where he will be sailing next?

On our minds have been on the next step in the Plastiki team's voyage. After celebrating the one year anniversary of the voyage on March 20th, they are moving on to explore adventure, community and social change with a new online network at www.myoo.com. Check back next week to see what Back to Tap is up to on the Myoo network.

David de Rothschild Sails the Seas on the Plastiki

Plastics and Contamination in our Oceans - 5 More Reasons to Go Back to Tap!

New research suggests that fish are consuming and being affected by plastic waste in the Pacific Ocean. Plastic waste from industry and consumer products accumulates and washes into the sea. As Captain Charles Moore, the founder of Agalita explains, all the plastic waste that is generated in inland areas inevitably makes it down rivers to the sea. The long-term build up of plastic waste in our Oceans mean that there are now major plastic gyres in all five of the world's oceans.

The pollution in these oceans are five more reasons to stop using bottled water and go Back to Tap!

One more reason to ban the bottle and go Back to Tap!

Plastic waste and electroscrap damage the health of thousands of people, animals and plants around the world.

For the Greener Good: Life After Plastic from National Building Museum on Vimeo.

10 Ways to Use Less Plastic

How do we change behaviour to be more sustainable? Of course there are many inspiring examples of how to reduce our collective carbon footprints, yet when it comes to creating change at the individual level, it can be very difficult to really get things done. In this post, we've tried to help you move away from plastics by breaking things down so that you can choose individual steps towards reducing plastic use:

(1) Stop buying and using bottled water - Plastic bottles are a major source of marine debris and are piling up around the world. Make your own filtered tap water and carry it in a stainless steel drinking flask, or simply drink straight from a filtered tap.

(2) Say "no" to plastic grocery bags - Plastic bags are a leading source of ocean garbage. Purchase and bring your own reusable bags when buying groceries.

(3) Say "no" to plastic snack bags, baggies and sandwich bags - Cloth napkins, wax paper or reusable sandwich bags and boxes can be used in place of their plastic equivalents.

4) Avoid Products that use Plastic to Begin With - Plastic is convenient but most of the cheaper grades (the clear stuff) find its way into our food, often leaving a film on anything that is wrapped in it and which we then eat. Microwaving anything in plastic cooks plastic residues right into the food, vaporizing other chemicals that contaminate the food and air.

5) Recycle or Reuse Materials - Plastic can be recycled and you will find that when you start recycling you at least save money on trash bags. Many containers can be washed out and reused (though they should be sterilized with apple cider vinegar). Note that only the higher grade plastics can be reused.

6) Choose Products with Biodegradable Plastic - Now many plastic cups along with packaging peanuts and other supplies are available in a biodegradable form. Companies like Ecosafe and Natur-Tec are providing real solutions to the plastic problem.

7) Repair, Sell or Upgrade Gadgets Many people run out and buy the latest new cell phone or iPod more often than needed, discarding their old phones in the rubbish where they not only add to plastic landfill but also leak out various other contaminants like Mercury. Meanwhile older components, while larger, are often superior as they tend to be constructed of much more solid materials. By repairing your items you can keep things in top shape much longer. Tackle small problems when they arise. Take the time to fix things. Buy used products when possible and sell your items online or at the local rummage sale when they are no longer needed. Prefer products that offer replacement parts.

8) Recycle Computer Parts - If you must discard items like monitors or printers, at least take them to an electronics recycler. The claim that most plastics can be recycled has been proven false, but for some plastics, the option is there. So recycle where possible while proactively cutting out plastic from your life.

(9) Experiment with New Materials & Innovative Products - From bamboo to glass and stainless steel, there are many options to help you make the move away from plastic.

(10) Convert those around you to plastic free living!

Use Less Plastic from TakePart on Vimeo.

The Pacific Ocean Gyre

If anyone has found themselves drifting in the middle of Pacific recently, they may have found themselves in a sea of plastic waste. As our friends over at the Plastiki know so well, plastic waste poses a major threat the health of aquatic ecosystems from the mid-Pacific to local beaches.

Here at Back to Tap, we are hoping that people will stop using bottled water and put an end to one major source of plastic waste. This will hopefully lead a shrinking of the Pacific Ocean plastic gyre:

Watching the Price of Liquid Gold

As we continue to think of new ways to manage water, and to discuss whether or not bottled water makes sense, we thought that you might be interested in a recent BBC series on "The Foods That Make Billions."

Things like cornflakes and bottled water that people would never have considered paying for are now some of the biggest money spinners for persuasive food companies. As was laid out so cleal

Culture, Nature & the Future

How will we adapt to the future without plastic? Are people ready to accept that we must change patterns of consumption in order to protect the environment and repair the damage that has already been done.

In this TED Talk, cultural historian and ethnographer Wade Davis describes the interlinking webs of belief and ritual which link humanity - it is through connecting with these universal values and humanism that attitudes towards the Earth and its resources can hopefully be changed.

Enjoy the talk and we hope you will get in touch with Back to Tap to start a discussion on some of his points.

Changing Energy Use - The Way Forward To 2050

Over the weekend Back to Tap read the recently released The Energy Report. 100% Renewable Energy by 2050 launched by WWF, AMO and Ecofys. Amidst so much negative press around climate change, the report is an encouraging plan for the future. Back to Tap was happy to read that solar, wind, hydro and other renewable could conceivably replace fossil fuels within forty years.

This change would mean better water quality – water borne pollution from natural gas drilling and fossil fuel extraction is polluting water from Nigeria to Nebraska, and as we transition away from fossil fuels, it will mean the end of highly polluting industry.