Are you wasting less water than your neighbors? This survey lets you know

By Virginia K. Smith | March 25, 2015 - 2:59PM

For anyone in need of another metric with which to keep up with the Joneses—or just curious about their own environmental impact—you can now start feeling smug (or quietly ashamed) about your water usage habits. In response to nationwide droughts, ProPublica is teaming up with CUNY Graduate School of Journalism for a two-year project tracking Americans' water use, and they want your data. If you participate in their survey, they say, "We'll tell you how you stack up to your neighbors."

To start, you'll need your most recent water bill, which should include info on gallons used, the length of your billing cycle, the amount charged, and the method by which it's measured. You'll also need to specify which company you use and how many people are in your household. If you wait a month to fill it out so you can skew your results by skipping showers and neglecting to wash your dishes, well, that's up to you.

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