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Comment by bbosh | Hacker News Reader

I'm surprised the figures for the United States vs United Kingdom are are so far apart (550 vs 150). These leads me to think much of the usage is water lost during transmission, or used in farming/industry rather than in the home.

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Farming sounds very plausible:

http://www.onegreenplanet.org/news/californias-drought-whos-...

and something I never thought about: ".. humans drink less than one gallon of water per day, but a cow can drink up to 23 gallons of water a day."

Think about the sheer acreage in the USA compared to England and how much of the land is used for crops or livestock.

>> ".. humans drink less than one gallon of water per day, but a cow can drink up to 23 gallons of water a day."

They do weigh a bit more though. :) It probably ends up being ~2x-3x a human's water consumption by weight.

Most other countries use washing machines with much less capacity and water ue (side loaders vs. top loaders), have different toilet flushing systems with smaller loads, and generally put a much higher premium on drinking water. If you compare the US to the UK, also take into account the very different climate. Due to the relatively tame and wet weather, there is almost no irrigation in the UK. Case in point: There is no place like Vegas, in the middle of the desert, with golf courses and fountains all over the place.

Rasing meat for human consumption requires a TON of water (and land)

It might also have something to do with climate. People in a warm southern US climate probably drink more water than people living in a more mild climate (UK).

Have a look at the center of the US on a satellite map and you'll see where most of our water is used.

For example, https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ll=37.811411,-98.98613&sp...

(A bit east of Dodge City, KS. The circles are irrigated fields.)

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