Complete the excel table and write a 750 word essay about it. More detailed instructions are on the uploaded document.
Estimate your water footprint for one full day. Itemize each product you consume in a 24-hour period, and calculate the water used in making each product. The products listed in the attached table are examples of common products – you should add or subtract items from the associated Spreadsheet (downloadable from Blackboard/Assignments) to reflect your personal water use. Explain your calculations in a 750-word essay. Upload both the completed spreadsheet and essay to Blackboard by April 24, 2015, 5 p.m.
Using the Hoekstra book and online sources such as waterfootprint.org, you will find specific water footprint numbers for many products consumed/used in your daily life. For others, such as furniture or shoes, you will need to consider what the item is composed of. For a desk, you could find the water footprint for the estimated amount of wood in the desk. For sneakers, you could consider the water footprint of rubber and synthetic fabric.
Most of the items you consume are single use, and you will consume the entire product in one day. Other products, such as clothing and furniture, are reusable. You assign only a portion of the water footprint for these products to a single day, determined by the total days you will use the product. The columns in the table will walk you through this process.
Similarly, you will be able to find green/blue/grey water breakdowns for many products, but for other products you will need to think creatively. Consider where the product’s components are made – is that part of the world rich in rainfall (green water), or does it rely on irrigated water (blue water). Is the process used to make the product likely to add chemicals to runoff (grey water)?
In the essay that accompanies the table, explain your thought process and research for each of the items. Include your sources in a list of Works Cited. The 750-word limit includes your Works Cited.
Categories Sub-Categories Quantity Consumed (various units) Green Water (L) Blue Water (L) Grey Water (L) Total Water Footprint (L) Days of Use Percent of Total Use (1÷Days of Use) Adjusted Water Footprint (Total Water Footprint x % of Total Use) (L)
Beverages
Water 10 cups 1 1
Coffee 1 cup 1 1
Coca-Cola 2 cans 1 1
Tea 1 cup 1 1
Milk 1 cup 1 1
Food
Eggs 3 405 1 1
Tomato 2 26 1 1
Bread 1 80 1 1
Rice 1 bowl 140 1 1
Apple 2 140 1 1
Chicken 1 308 1 1
Nuts 1 cup 494 1 1
Beef 1 kg 93 4 3 2,000 1 1
Hygiene
Showers 2 302,000 1 1
Toilet 5 75,000 1 1
Sink 2 90,000 1 1
Deodorant 2 1 1
Cologne 1 1 1
5 1 1
Single -Use Products
Paper 5 1 1
Plastic 2 plastic cups 1 1
Matches 10 1 1
Cigarettes 10 1 1
Reusable Products
Shirt 2 300
Shoes 2 300
Car 1 200
Wood furniture 1 200
Computer 1 10
TV 1 200
Pants 1 300
Shorts 1 300
Gas for car 3 litres 1
Total N/A N/A N/A N/A