This week, I began the Living Green Workshop, a six-week class developed and taught by a non-profit based in Santa Monica, CA called Sustainable Works. Though I write for Green Options and am active in the green community here, I figured I would still learn something. Boy howdy, did I!

The first class: water. An astounding 70% of Southern California’s water is transported in from other areas, mostly Northern California. Even more mind-blowing is that according to the Santa Monica Environmental Programs Division, one-third of the total energy consumed in California is used to move water around the state. So saving water also saves energy…I love the compounding effect of conservation!

The class also answered a question that had been floating around in my mind for years: if we use water, which is then treated and released back into the ecosystem, how can we not have enough? Doesn’t water evaporate from the ocean, then fall again as rain and snow? The answer makes perfect sense: yes, but with global warming (or "global weirding" as Paul Hawken calls it) water no longer falls when and where we need it. Instead of snowing in the mountains during the winter, it might rain in areas that used to be more arid. Case in point: Texas had record rainfall this summer. We are used to water "on demand," assuming that it will be where we need it, when we need it. That’s no longer an assumption that we can make.

So, most importantly, what should we do to save water? The top three tips:

1. Find and fix leaks: If knowing that a leaky toilet can waste 200 gallons of water per day doesn’t move you to fix that "running" toilet, think of the savings on your water bill.
2. Install low flow devices: The new generation of low flow shower heads won’t leave you with flat hair, a la Jerry Seinfeld. From aerators to low flow toilets, the improved versions are so good that you won’t notice a difference.
3. Eat less beef and other water-consuming foods: The facts here were a surprise to me. Here’s how much water it takes to produce a pound of different foods:

• Potatoes: 24 gallons
• Apples: 49 gallons
• Chicken: 815 gallons
• Pork: 1,630 gallons
• Beef: 5,214 gallons

Yes, you read that right: it takes 5,214 gallons of water to produce just one pound of beef. That’s the same amount of water used in six months’ worth of showers! Of course, cows don’t drink an inordinate amount of water; it just takes a lot of water to grow the corn that they eat.

In learning this, if you jump to the conclusion that we all need to become vegans to conserve water, first, take a breath. You don’t have to go all or nothing – consider going meatless for one day a week. Heck, even one meal can make a difference.

And that’s the overriding message from Sustainable Works: consider making small changes, and see what works for you and your family. Now that’s something that we can all do.

Photo credit: Texas Tech University, CASNR Water Center