Water Protecting and conserving the Earth's water supply is absolutely vital for our survival. Our water is truly on of God's gifts, but it is rapidly depleting as we continue to exhaust supplies and contaminate groundwater resources. Over sixty percent of all water used in the U.S. comes from groundwater supplies. Contamination occurs when man-made products such as gasoline, oil, road salts, and chemicals seep into the groundwater and cause it to become unsafe and unfit for human use. Some major sources for these contaminants include storage tanks, septic systems, hazardous waste sites, landfills, and widespread use of road salts and chemicals. And, bottled water, which is often not any safer or cleaner than tap water and can deplete local aquifers, takes substantial amounts of energy to make the bottles and ship. Faith Resources Water Stewards: A Toolkit for Congregational Care of Local Watersheds. Stewards of the Bay: A Toolkit for Congregations in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. Troubled Waters. A United Church of Christ documentary on water's sacredness and what people of faith are doing to protect this life source. Sacred Oceans and Seas resource (sign up for the network and download the resource) Waters for Life: Enough for All NCC Earth Day resource Church World Service's Water Resources (Drinking rain in the occupied West Bank; Thirsty Souls and Parched Lands; Water for all in Africa; Twice as Thirsty: Women; Children and Water; Worship with the World: Water; I Thirst: World Day for Water 2006) Click here to hear Vatican Radio on World Water Day 2006. People of Faith Take Action Click here to learn about the NCC's water regional training events that were held across the country. What We Can Do We can take action to help curb the contamination of our waters. Adopt pollution prevention and conservation practices to protect water supplies. Manufacturers can use fewer toxic raw materials and consumers can switch to phosphate-free detergents and other less hazardous household products. Become more aware of your actions when handling chemicals such as oil and gasoline as to avoid spills and risks of runoff and contamination. By simply reducing the amount of water used on a daily basis, you can help our water supply last longer. Here are some helpful hints to reduce the amount of water you use: 1. Turn faucets off while brushing your teeth or washing dishes. 2. Check indoor and outdoor faucets and all plumbing for leaks or drips. 3. Adjust nozzles and shower heads to conserve water. Help protect our waters on the local or community level. Learn more about potential sources of contamination in your community and take action to reduce and/or regulate these sources. Use filtered water instead of bottled water. Learn More To find out more about the plight of our waters, check out some of these sites and organizations listed below. Presbyterian Church USA Bottled Water Resource U.S. Environmental Protection Agency The Groundwater Foundation American Water Works Association The Soil and Water Conservation Society water and faith water and faith water and faith water and faith water and faith water and faith water and faith