Low-Flush Toilets
by Alex Wilson
At a 1980 workshop, energy guru
Amory Lovins suggested that our
energy problems were relatively easy
to solve. Far more difficult, he said,
would be coming to grips with
impending water shortages. Indeed,
water consumption and price trends
in this country are alarming. Since
the 1950s, water consumption has
doubled. Since 1972, water prices
have increased 400 percent.
Heavy water use is putting a big
demand on existing reservoirs and
water supplies throughout the
country. In the arid Southwest,
problems are evident. But even in our
own backyard, concerns are
increasing about water supplies,
especially during drought years.
Toilets are our largest water users.
In most households, toilet flushing
accounts for 40 percent of water use.
Most toilets in