We waste about half our food in America, and that wasted food accounts for about 2 percent of annual energy consumption in the U.S. Now comes news that the water used to produce the food we throw away is about 1.5 times the amount of water we use in our homes!

That study, conducted by the Waste & Resources Action Programme and WWF — is actually for U.K. homes. But “the problem is unlikely to be restricted to the UK,” according to New Scientist. Titled “The Water and Carbon Footprint of Household Food and Drink Waste in the UK,” the study shows the huge impact of the food we throw away:

Our research has found that the water footprint of avoidable food waste is 6,200 million cubic metres per year representing nearly 6% of all our water requirements. In per capita terms, this is 243 litres per person per day, approximately one and a half times the daily average household water use in the UK. A quarter of this water footprint represents water used to grow and process food here in the UK, i.e. water from the UK‟s rivers, lakes and aquifers.

This week happens to be World Water Week — a time when people are hopefully fixing leaks and adopting water-wise habits. Want to try a World Water Week resolution? Try to reduce your food use for the rest of the year. My best food waste reducing tip is this: Get a smaller fridge. It sounds counterintuitive, but it works!

Earlier:
>> Film review: Blue Gold — Who owns your water?
>> Film review: FLOW — Make clean water a human right

Photo by Nick Saltmarsh

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Take a 10-minute work break for a good cause — World Water Day — and watch a moving animated video, “The Incident at Tower 37.” (via Treehugger)

Written and directed by Chris Perry and produced within the collaborative animation curriculum at Hampshire College where Chris is an associate professor, “The Incident at Tower 37″ tells the story of a battle over water — between a corporation that dries up a waterbody and the ecosystem that’s being destroyed.

Although that description makes the film sound like a David and Goliath story, the actual film is much more human — or perhaps fishy — in scale. In “The Incident at Tower 37,” the battle happens between one human — presumably a very small cog in a gigantic corporate wheel with many many more water towers — and a few tiny fish affected by the water siphoned off by the tower.

The two sides fight — and leaves one side dead. And unlike most such battles in real life, the fish win — though the result is hardly a happy victory. Here’s how Chris Perry puts it in an interview with TakePart:

The ending is truly a Pyrrhic victory for the lead fish. He achieves his original goal, but not without great loss. I do think there is a seed of hope at the end: even despite the tragedy, the fish knows humans are capable of seeing them as the intelligent creatures they are.

Enjoy the film. And happy World Water Day, everyone.

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Next week’s a good week to eat out — and enjoy a glass of tap water in celebration of World Water Day. That’s because UNICEF’s Tap Project‘s teamed up with restaurants across the country to allow diners an easy way of helping to address the world water crisis. From March 20 to March 26 at participating restaurants, a glass of good old H2O will cost you a buck — with the money going to projects that make clean water available to those who don’t yet have it.

I love how this UNICEF project not only draws attention to the world water crisis, but also encourages people to opt against bottled and for tap water — and appreciate the privilege of having access to clean water all the time, practically for free. The money you give this year will go specifically go to projects in Togo, the Central African Republic and Vietnam.

Find participating restaurants near you on the UNICEF Tap Project site. In the L.A. area, I especially recommend Hugo’s Restaurant and Magnolia, both dining spots that support sustainable,local food. Eat locally, act globally.

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It’s only fitting: The week before World Water Day is Fix A Leak Week! Promoted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the third annual Fix a Leak Week happens March 14 through 20.

Believe it or not, Fix A Leak Week actually has a mascot loo — at least in Arizona, where the Arizona Municipal Water Users Association’s teamed up with the EPA’s WaterSense program to push Fix A Leak Week with a 4-mile race on March 19, during which runners will not be allowed to drink water so that the state can conserve the precious resource. Just kidding! The race — dubbed “We’re For Water” — will simply get people “in shape for finding and fixing leaks” like the mascot loo in the promo video above.

I’m actually visiting Arizona this week — but will sadly be leaving before the race and fair. Whether or not you’re in Arizona, this is the week for fun green experiments — like dropping a bit of food coloring into your toilet tank to see if the hues seep out into the bowl pre-flush. That experiment could pay off with a lot of money saved. According to the EPA, “Easily corrected household leaks can increase homeowners’ water bills by 12 percent.” Follow the agency’s tips for discovering and fixing leaks — and save on your water bill in the months to come.

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Some environmentalists are motivated by news of world water woes; others are more moved by the scary numbers on their water utility bill. Both types can put their energy to good use on World Water Day 2011 on March 22. This year, the theme for the day’s “Water for Cities” — which means you can participate in solving the world’s water issues simply by taking efforts to save water in your city home.

Celebrated annually since 1993, World Water Day’s organized by the UN Water group, which will hold its main event in Cape Town this year. But the day can be celebrated everywhere at events are happening around the world. Find a green-and-blue get-together near you on the UN’s official World Water Day 2011 website.

In L.A. the celebrations are happening early. An all-day World Water Day event’s happening at the Natural History Museum as part of its monthly Sustainable Sunday series this weekend. For the cost of regular admission to the museum, you get to enjoy a free greywater workshop from noon to 4 pm, film screenings of FLOW at 11 am and 1 pm, a community art project, and more. It all happens at the Natural History Museum, 900 Exposition Blvd, Los Angeles, from on Sun., March 13, from 9:30 am – 3:30 pm.

You can celebrate the day online too. Surfrider Foundation, for example, is focusing on saving water with a World Water Day photo challenge. Simply upload a photo of yourself holding up a sign with your water-saving tip to Surfrider’s Flickr Group. If your photo’s selected as one of Surfrider’s favorites, you’ll get a pair of Levi’s Water Less jeans.

Surfrider’s also put together a list of 15 water-saving tips. Most green LA girl readers will have implemented many of them, but perhaps World Water Day can be your chance to start working on the more challenging tips — like replanting your lawn or yard with climate adapted plants. What will you be doing on World Water Day?

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