During my mission trip to Belize I noticed several instances of water conservation in progress. unlike my home in Virginia, USA, there is not widespread water pipes running to every location. In fact there was several places we traveled with no access to water provided by a government or private entity. We saw individuals carrying water from the creeks and rivers to their homes to cover their daily needs. You cannot even imagine the burden this can be if you have not lived it. I have never had to deal with water issues other than the occasional water outage due to frozen water pipes. Even then it is usually taken care of relatively quickly.
A method to catch run off from the rains and use to power the bathroom water needs for a small preschool.
In the picture above you can see a method of water recycling used at a pre-school to handle the need for toilet operation. The rain that falls is directed into a holding tank and then will eventually be used to allow the toilets to flush. This village is fifteen miles from the main road, which is Western Highway. I found this to be quite an ingenious way to take advantage of nature’s bounty. We could take a lesson from the people in Belize.
In the United States recycling is mainly a buzzword. we recycle only a small fraction of what we could. What we “waste” in a month would supply a village in Belize for at least four times as long. I saw this on my mission trip to this country in December. I knew this was true even before I set foot in the country, but seeing is different than knowing.
WHen you have limited resources you go about finding ways to conserve differently It is like having just a few dollars in your bank account. You will make the food in your pantry go farther instead of going out to dinner. I admire the creative ideas I saw on my trip. It should be an inspiration to all of us. If we really care about our resources we need to be better stewards and recycle everything we can.
Living in a desert definitely makes me think carefully about water usage. Not only can it be expensive, but we are all very aware that water is in short supply. I certainly don’t take it for granted!