Gabi H2O

Britain consumes over 3 billion litres of bottled water a year. The bottled water industry in the UK is worth over a staggering £1.5 billion a year. The price of a bottle of water is typically 500 times more than the equivalent price of tap water.
Out of about 13bn plastic water bottles only about 3bn get recycled. IT TAKES ABOUT 400 YEARS FOR PLASTIC TO DECOMPOSE!
The total amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere every year from UK water industry alone is 350,000 tonnes. (National Hydration Council).
BUT IS BOTTLED WATER BETTER THAN TAP?
Independent Drinking Water Inspectorate  confirms that British tap water is of exceptional quality.
WWF’s freshwater specialist  Dr Conor Linstead “There is no reason why people should avoid drinking tap water. From a health point of view, there is no difference between tap water and bottled water”.
The WWF has stated that there are more standards regulating tap water than bottled water.
In 2012 a Chicago-based business sued Nestlé over claims that the five gallon jugs of Ice Mountain Water it purchased for its office dispensers were falsely advertised as containing natural spring water when in reality they were simply filled with regular tap water.
“The bottled water industry is very largely a scam, and a very expensive one at that, in terms of both money and extravagant carbon footprint” Professor Paul Younger Chairman of the Global Scientific Committee of the planet Earth Institute
Please use tap water: Good for your pocket. Good for the planet.
Give the money to your kids instead!

For more ways to save water visit www.gabih2o.com

Remember everybody oughta save water!

Utility bills are soaring. But what is the real cost of staying clean?

According to a recent study carried out by those lovely people at Unilever the average UK shower is eight minutes long and uses nearly as much energy and water as a bath.

Showering costs the average UK family £416 a year.

Young boys are the worst offenders for lengthy showers: They spend an average of 10 minutes drenching pubescent pores. Boys aged 12 years and under actually spend longer than anyone else in the shower, at around 10 minutes on average.

Women are miles better multi-taskers than men; even in the shower they brush their teeth, wash their hair and shave! Blokes just seem to soak n relax!
Not all results are surprising: teenage girls really do monopolise the bathroom. The average teenage girl takes nearly nine and a half minutes in the shower, costing her parents around £123 a year. Young girls aged 12 and under tend to take short showers of around six and a half minutes.
The study used an innovative Shower Sensor to monitor 2,600 showers taken by 100 families, over 10 days – totalling 1,000 days of research. The Sensors recorded when showers were being used and for how long. Throughout the study, participants also kept shower diaries to track that was showering and what they did.

The study provides a unique insight into the Brits bathroom habits

An eight-minute shower with an average water flow rate uses around 62 litres of hot water (compared to 80 litres for a bath) and costs around 30p. That’s a total of 90,000 litres per year for the average four-person family, at a collective cost of £416.

But a power shower could cost a family almost a £1000 a year!

The financial and environmental impact of taking an eight minute power shower is even greater: it can use up to 136 litres of hot water per shower, which is equivalent to nearly two baths, and costs around 63p per shower. That’s a total of nearly 200,000 litres of hot water per year for a typical family at an average cost of around £918. The findings bust the eco-myth that showers are always better for the environment than baths. In fact, the fastest flow shower recorded by the study, used as much water as a bath in just 4 minutes 42 seconds (17 litres per minute).

Another survey on shower habits carried out by Glamour Magazine polled 1000 ladies on peeing in the shower. A showerful 75% admitted to doing just this! It ain’t that gross…urine is sterile and non toxic. Or if you are a male try peeing in the garden. Male urine deters foxes. So boys, you could be preventing fox attacks, saving on those bills and reducing your carbon footprint just by a sprinkle in the flowerbeds! Urine also great fertilizer high in nutrients!

25% of the average UK family’s energy bill is spent heating water. So cutting down on shower time can trim the bills significantly.

So what can we do to stay clean, be green and save water?

Shower Shorter and Save Water. Take a short shower (5 mins or less is best) instead of a bath.
Pee in shower….could save up to 10,000 litres per year for a family of four. (Or in the garden if you are a boy).
Use a water efficient showerhead. Our showerhead is optimised to deliver 7.6 litres every minute with no loss in performance (compared to a non-water saving shower head) reducing water and energy consumption by up to 50%. Our showerhead can save a family up to £187* a year.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h04cza1lxGI

For a fantastic water and energy saving kit please visit http://www.gabih2o.com/products-page/bathroom/home-water-and-energy-saving-kit/
And please visit www.gabih2o.com to learn about more ways to save water and energy.

Remember everybody oughta save water!

What a crazy world we live in. Drought followed by deluge. Horses being passed off as cows. Arsenal losing consistently to teams of far lesser pedigree. Has it really gone so topsy turvy that the laws of nature seem to have turned upside down?

In this green and pleasant land can we be certain only of uncertainty?

Hang on, did I say green?

Our generation claims to be eco-friendly. We are the green generation. The generation who cares. We are anti-plastic bags. We are so into reducing our carbon footprint. Our local councils have an army of bin checkers whose job it is to make sure we are putting the right rubbish in the right box to be re-cycled. In some boroughs of Norf London you practically need a degree to understand the colour coding system for what goes into which bin.

However at the same time we are also the techno gadget generation. All the providers and feeders of our technoholism seem to have very wholesome names: Apple, Blackberry, Orange, Sky, Virgin, O2. Yet our reliance on these gadgets and apps, it can be argued, has not improved the quality of our lives at all. Our ability to communicate with each other at long distance is easy; but closer to home, the relationship wrecking consequences of our inability to turn off our gadgets, particularly our smart phones, are becoming more obvious every day. E-communication with those who are not with us has stopped us from communicating with those who are. Last week while passing a restaurant I noticed a table in the window with Mum, Dad and the kids. Mum and Dad were engrossed in their electronic devices and the kids were playing on an I-pad. We have become the generation who does not speak face to face but only though our increasingly complex technology. The time saving devices to enable distance communication seem to take up more and more of our time so as we spend less and less time communicating with those who we are actually with.

Maybe the drought to deluge is a wake-up call. A wake-up call not only to remind us about how we live now and how we treat our environment, but about how we take one another for granted. If we don’t look after those closest to us, we will suffer the emotional consequences. We need less e-communication with those from afar and more conversation with those who are closest to us.

So back to what is closest to the Camel’s hump… a long-term, sustainable approach to water using our moors, marshes and plants to store and clean rain water for when we need it, instead of allowing it to run straight into rivers and thus increase the risk of flooding.

Water is a natural resource, but like family and friends, if we do not nurture it, we will find suddenly, that we are in a relationship beyond repair.

So if we really are the green generation, maybe we should take better care not only of our environment but of one another too!

In other Gabi news….

Big shout out to Southern Water who have been shortlisted along with GabiH2O for a water industry achievement award http://www.waterindustryachievementawards.info/wiaa2013/finalists

And finally free Gabi gift for every purchase over £19.99

UK environmental leaders have warned that the risk of flooding and water shortage in 2013 has increased because the Government has been ‘too slow’ in taking action to improve water management. 16 leading environmental organisations have specified that a long-term, sustainable approach is needed which “works with our natural water systems” to avoid increasing water problems.
Authors of the ‘Blueprint for Water’ report, the group says that after two dry winters, it took Britain’s wettest ever summer to narrowly avert a serious drought. They warn that despite this summer’s flooding, another series of dry winters would put Britain right back under serious risk of drought.

“We need to use moors, marshes and plants to store and clean rain water, instead of allowing it to run straight into rivers and thus increase the risk of flooding”, the group said.

Chair of the Blueprint for Water coalition, Carrie Hume, said: “Lack of action to fix our broken water system is a false economy. We cannot continue to lurch between flooding and drought which is damaging for people, businesses and wildlife. The Government needs to start acting quickly if we are to give our most precious natural resource a sustainable future.”

Jacob Tompkins Managing director of Waterwise, one of the organisation members, said: “We want to see more leadership from the Government. We’re making progress but it’s more through NGO’s and water companies, and the general consensus is ‘let’s see more action’”.

We at GabiH2O are doing our bit by partnering with Nickelodeon we are ensuring a nationwide audience is being exposed to water saving messages.

To read more about our award winning partnership with Southern Water and United Utilities please visit this link.

Remember Everybody Oughta Save Water

In other Gabi News…

Gabi is delighted to welcome Kira Blake to the Gabi gang.

Kira has a degree with a double major in Business Marketing and International Business. She hails from Adelaide, Australia and is brimming with ideas as to how to get the water saving message out there.

Welcome to the Gabi gang Kira!

And we have moved. Gabi and the gang are now feverishly working away at Stirling House, Breasy Place, 9 Burroughs Gardens, London NW4 4AU Tel 020 8359 1127

Kids have you entered our fantastic GabiH2O competition? An amazing chance to win a fabulous day out for your class! Just visit…

http://www.firstnews.co.uk/bored/have-you-entered-our-fantastic-gabih2o-competition-yet-i16806

Power Bills to Soar Again screamed Headlines at us yesterday. Millions of us could be pushed into fuel poverty. Our pensioners may be faced with the dilemma of eating or heating. According to the Daily Mail the average family dual fuel bill could soar to a record high of £1,400 per annum. The Paper then went onto gleefully tell us that Ofgem is warning of 1970 type blackouts within the next three years such is the demand for energy….

What does saving water have to do with my energy bills?

Hang on GabiH2O is all about saving water the Camel hears you cry. So why is GabiH2O banging on about rising energy bills? What’s the relationship between energy bills and using water?

Well actually it’s very relevant. 25% of the average UK family’s energy bill is spent on heating hot water.

So simply put being a little bit more careful with the way we use water could translate into significant money savings just on our energy bills!

And there is the added benefit that by using less water we are helping to save the Planet.

5% of the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions are caused by residential homes heating water.

So the less water we heat the less CO2 we put into the environment.

So 2 good reasons to be a little bit more careful with the way we use water…

1. It saves money
2. It’s good for the environment (saves energy and reduces our carbon footprint).

Cutting Costs and Saving money

Here are 5 Ways to cut those bills and save water straight from the Camel’s mouth….

1. Shower Shorter and Save Water. Take a short shower (5 mins or less is best) instead of a bath.
2. Use a water efficient shower head. Our showerhead is optimised to deliver 7.6 litres every minute (standard showers use around 15 litres) reducing water and energy consumption by up to 60%.
3. Only boil the water you need for a cup of tea or coffee. 2/3 of us boil twice the water we need.
4. Full load your dish washer and washing machine. A fully loaded washing machine uses half the water that two half loads would.
5. Don’t overheat your home. Turning your thermostat down by a degree can save 6-8% on your heating bill.

For a fantastic water and energy saving kit please  visit http://www.gabih2o.com/products-page/bathroom/home-water-and-energy-saving-kit/

And please visit www.gabih2o.com to learn about more ways to save water and energy.

Remember Everybody oughta save water

The last few months have emphasised that, due to two of the driest winters on record and, despite the recent long periods of heavy rainfall, in the long term, water scarcity is going to be an on-going and increasing problem for the UK.

As Michael Norton, Chair of the Water Expert Panel of the Institute of Civil Engineers, put it.

“We are a populous nation facing a growing gap between what we can supply and what our water users need. Sadly it’s only when hose-pipe bans are inflicted on us that the public has any glimpse of this reality. We have a valuable opportunity while water is in the forefront of the nation’s minds to impress on the public the real value of this resource and we mustn’t squander it.”

To address this issue, GabiH2O recently announced its partnership with number one kids’ TV network, Nickelodeon UK and the launch, in mid May, of the UK’s first on-air animated character to teach children to be smarter about water.

So, Gabi the camel has come to life as a 3D animated character on Nickelodeon and Nicktoons in 60 and 30-second educational advertorials, featuring Gabi interacting in a live action spot with real kids and providing top tips on water conservation, against an original rap. Supporting the on-air activity is a fun, interactive and bespoke microsite, http://www.nick.co.uk/gabih20 to drive home the message to kids that saving water is vital. The microsite also includes water saving tips, video clips, fun downloads and lots of GabiH2O goodies for kids to win. To view the clip outside the UK please go to http://youtu.be/bhXlpI_YRyM

GabiH2O have since had a fantastic response to the ‘rappin camel’ and a brand new GabiH2O game on the microsite provides a fun way for kids to learn top tips to prevent water wastage.

Now GabiH2O are delighted that two water companies – United Utilities and Southern Water – have joined the GabiH2O and Nickelodeon campaign to lend their weight in getting the message out there to our kids.

Hosepipe bans across parts of England, flash flooding, water shortages, wildlife at risk. But whose fault is it? Can’t be ours, surely? The blame bandwagon: it’s always someone else’s fault. Whether it’s the water companies, the government, lack of investment, short-term gain over long-term planning – it’s always someone else who is to blame.

However the simple facts are that we all take water for granted. The current drought and announcement of hosepipe bans has just brought this home to us all. The UK now has a serious problem. Unbelievably, even with the recent heavy rain, London, per capita, has less water than the Sudan, Edinburgh has the same rainfall as Istanbul and Manchester gets only half the rainfall of Sydney. Each of us, on average, uses about 150 litres of water per day. We are used to treating water as a commodity that is infinite. Yet the truth is, unless we start to use our water more wisely, we face the prospect of continuing, long-term water shortages and hosepipe bans. Innovative eco-brand, GabiH2O, believe it’s time that we started to look at how we can all cut demand by reducing water wastage, and takes a uniquely innovative and fun approach to influencing the lifestyle changes needed to encourage reductions in water consumption. GabiH2O, believe that we need to change our attitudes to water. Instead of playing the blame game, we need to take personal responsibility.With this in mind, GabiH2O today announces a partnership with Nickelodeon UK involving the development and airing of the UK’s first on-air animated character to teach children to be smarter about water. With parts of the UK facing the worst drought in 36 years and hosepipe bans already in place, the timing could not be more appropriate.

GabiH2O founder, Avi Djanogly believes that this begins with educating children, hence GabiH2O’s original use of cartoon characters, centred around the main character, a Nubian camel called Gabi, to convey the key messages on water usage. Gabi and his gang of thirteen characters offer children tips on how to be smarter about water usage e.g. switching taps off when brushing their teeth, taking a five-minute shower or using leftover water to water plants.

Gabi the camel comes to life as a 3D animated character which launches today on Nickelodeon and Nicktoons in 60 and 30-second educational advertorials, featuring Gabi interacting in a live action spot with real kids and providing top tips on water conservation, against an original rap. Supporting the on-air activity will be an interactive and appealing experience on a bespoke microsite, http://www.nick.co.uk/gabih20 (which goes live on 11th May) to drive home the message that saving water is vital. A brand new Gabi game will provide a fun way for kids to learn top tips to prevent water wastage. The Gabi microsite will also include Gabi’s top ten water saving tips, video clips, fun downloads and lots of Gabi goodies for kids to win, including an activity book, Gabibag, singing toothbrush and Gabi trump cards. A clip of the GabiH2O advertorial on Nickelodeon can be viewed on the microsite from Monday 14th May.

Minister, Richard Benyon, said: “I’m really impressed by the engagement with children, and the use of water as a medium for learning. It’s an incredibly powerful tool. I want to make sure that across government we are supporting this kind of initiative.”

Avi Djanogly comments, “Teaching children not to take water for granted but to value what comes out of the tap is undoubtedly the key to a sustainable future and smarter use of water. We need to reach out to and engage with as many kids as possible, to get our message across. So how do we do this? The answer is that we explain the problem to kids on their level and we educate them about the problem. Once they understand, children are the best educators. Parents listen to their children. That’s why we believe in ‘Edutainment’, which is a great way to convey these messages to children in a fun and vibrant way and vicariously to reach their parents. By capturing their imaginations, we can change behaviour willingly and gradually, so we are very excited to be producing this ground-breaking educational advertorial with Nickelodeon.”

But GabiH2O is not just an awareness building brand. Their experts have also developed a whole range of water-saving devices – in particular, their new Slimline showerhead. “We wanted style combined with performance” says Avi Djanogly, founder of GabiH2O, “yet our showerhead also saves water! It is designed to deliver an optimum 7.6 litres every minute, as opposed to water wasters that deliver 12, 15 or even 25 litres.”

Every aspect of the Slimline showerhead has been created to enhance the water-saving experience. It has been designed to provide good shower performance and, ultimately, to save water and energy. Harnessing the energy in air and water, it creates high velocity water inside the head of the showerhead itself, forcing air to mix with water. Thus, less water is used but the flow is not diminished and you can still enjoy a fantastic shower experience.

To engage children’s interest further in the water-saving experience, GabiH2O have also developed a childrens’ water saving kit based around the cartoon character, Gabi the Camel (who better to teach the art of water saving?).

Avi Djanogly comments: “With the help of Waterwise, the leading authority in the UK on water efficiency focused on decreasing water consumption, we put together a kids’ water saving kit. This includes: a ‘stop the gush when you brush’ singing toothbrush; a folding watering can with five water saving tips and trump cards highlighting water wasters and savers, including energy tips. These are just some of the highlights in the kit, as well as the GabiH2O app, which is also great fun for kids. I believe that it’s time to make water saving fun and we want to get the message across that ‘everyone oughta save water’!”

Small changes in the way we use water can impact and benefit the world, our world. GabiH2O’s research shows that if we just cut our average use of water from 150 litres of water a day to 130 litres that will benefit the environment hugely. And it doesn’t have to be a huge sacrifice. If we just turn off the water when we brush our teeth, take a five minute shower or fill the dishwasher and washing machine to capacity, we will make major savings in water, energy and money.

Jacob Tompkins, MD of Waterwise, said: “The GabiH2O Slimline showerhead can reduce shower water use by about 30 litres per shower, saving the average household up to 60 litres per day. If a million households replaced their current showerhead with a GabiH2O showerhead, this would save 60 million litres per day. 60 million litres per day is enough to supply the population of Ashford, Tunbridge Wells, Bognor and Guildford with water”.

Nickelodeon VP, Commercial Director, Kiaran Saunders adds, “Working with GabiH2O has provided Nickelodeon with an opportunity to show what we can do when charged with creating custom content for a partner. The result is engaging animated content and online activities that are truly entertaining while conveying an important environmental message.”

For more information or to interview Avi Djanogly or Jacob Tompkins, please call Lydia Drukarz at Wavelength PR on: 07977 454180 or email: lydia@wavelengthpr.com.

Ends -

Notes for editors

• In addition to its edutainment activities, GabiH2O runs a schools programme, in partnership with water companies, where children participate in a specially designed Key Stage 2 lesson programme on how to be smarter about water.

• GabiH2O also offers consumers easy ways to reduce water consumption and at the same time, make significant savings on their annual energy and water bills. Their specially developed products include water and energy saving kits for the bathroom and kitchen, showerheads, tap aerators, shower timers and toilet cistern bags.

• GabiH2O products have been developed in consultation with Waterwise, the leading authority in the UK on water efficiency and focused on decreasing water consumption: http://www.waterwise.org.uk

• For more information on GabiH2O, please visit: http://www.gabiH2O.com

• Nickelodeon is the number one commercial kids’ TV network in the UK. Launched in 1993, it comprises seven dedicated award-winning entertainment channels for kids aged 2-12: Nickelodeon, Nickelodeon HD, Nick Replay, Nicktoons, Nicktoons Replay, Nick Jr., and Nick Jr. 2.

• The Nickelodeon network now reaches more than 10 million viewers a month and is available in 12.7 million cable and satellite homes.

• The company has built a diverse multi-platform business by putting kids first in everything it does and includes critically acclaimed and hugely popular television programming and production in the UK and around the world, plus consumer products, online, events, recreation and feature films.

• Nickelodeon is available on Sky 604, Virgin 712 and TalkTalk 315.

• http://www.nick.co.uk

This is how Waterwise explained it to GabiH2O….

Even if the rainy weather keeps up for the next weeks, the south and east of England will still be in drought. This might sound contradictory, but actually floods and droughts are two sides of the same issue.

Our climate is becoming more extreme, with long dry periods and sudden downpours. And when intense rain hits hard dry ground, it soaks up quickly or causes surface flooding, rather than replenishing water supplies.

After two dry winters in a row much of England is now in drought. However, April has been one of the wettest on record with much of the country experiencing heavy rainfall and localised flooding.

Unfortunately this rain – heavy as it is – won’t make much difference to the underlying drought conditions; it would take about 50 days of solid rain to make the soil wet enough to allow the water to percolate down and start refilling the underground rocks.

Most of the water supply in the south and east of England comes from wells sunk into chalk rocks. These rocks or aquifers are normally replenished over the winter so it is winter rain (from 1 October to 1 April), that is most valuable in terms of refilling the underground stores of water. Due to the lack of rain over the past two winters, the rocks in some areas are at their lowest level since records began.

Summer rain (1 April to 1 October) either evaporates or is used by plants – it very rarely penetrates into these substrata. Most rivers in the south and east are fed by water coming from the underground rocks so while this rain will help a bit it won’t restore flow to normal levels.

In the UK we use on average 150 litres of water a day. If everyone used less the impacts of the drought would be much less. So the rain will keep the surface – and you – wet, but it won’t stop the drought. On the upside, this rain will help water gardens, refill water butts and do a bit to top up reservoirs. So do your best to enjoy it while it lasts – but don’t let up on your water efficiency measures.

Water companies across southern and eastern England are to introduce hosepipe bans amid drought conditions.

Seven firms say they will impose water restrictions after two unusually dry winters left reservoirs, aquifers and rivers below normal levels.

Southern Water, South East Water, Thames Water, Anglian Water, Sutton and East Surrey, Veolia Central and Veolia South East are to enforce restrictions.

All seven companies said they will impose bans from 5 April.

The drought-affected areas are the south-east of England and East Anglia.

But the Environment Agency warns in a new report that the drought could spread as far north as East Yorkshire and as far west as the Hampshire-Wiltshire border, if the dry weather continues this spring.

In its report, the Environment Agency warns that drought conditions are expected to spread across more of England in coming weeks, unless strong rains arrive.

It will also warn of effects on agriculture that could raise prices of potatoes and other vegetables.

It says plans are in place to ensure that the Olympic Games will not be adversely affected, by using water from “sustainable supplies”.

“The Olympic Park and other Olympic venues have a high level of resilience to meet their needs even during a drought,” says the Agency.

It also added: “The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee pageant at the beginning of June will not be affected by the drought.”

Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman said the temporary restrictions would “help protect the public’s water supply in the areas most affected by the record low levels of rainfall we have experienced over the last 17 months”.

She said: “We can all help reduce the effects of drought by respecting these restrictions and being smarter about how we use water.

“Taking action now to reduce how much water we use will help us all in the future.”

News of the hosepipe bans has coincided with warm weather in much of the UK, although the drought conditions are a consequence of successive dry winters.

BBC Weather meteorologist Nick Miller said: “This prolonged spell of mild or very mild weather that we’ve seen since mid-February with temperatures rising as high as 19C isn’t helping the issue, nor of course is the current dry spell.

“The required sustained period of rainfall for the worse affected areas simply isn’t in the immediate forecast.”

A number of water companies in the southern half of England, covering about 20 million people, are understood to have contingency plans in place that could lead to bans on non-essential uses, perhaps before the end of March.

These could include bans on car-washing, watering gardens and filling swimming pools.

Meanwhile, the area formally in drought is expected to extend beyond south-eastern counties, with parts of Yorkshire likely to be named as officially in drought.

Counties that have received much less rainfall in recent months also include Shropshire and Somerset.

The National Farmers Union has warned of the impact on both arable and livestock farming, and is asking for restrictions on agricultural water use to be avoided wherever possible.

Farmers have reportedly planted 80% of the area they usually fill with crops, and are expecting lower than average yields.

But conservation groups point out that if farmers, householders or businesses take more water from rivers and lakes that are already poorly supplied, wildlife will feel the effects.

The Environment Agency is issuing a wide range of advice. It says:

• Farmers should look for ways to share water resources by setting up water abstractor groups and to take steps now to improve water efficiency
• Farmers should top up their storage reservoirs, to ensure there are better supplies for the summer months
• It has introduced a fast-track process for farmers to apply to take additional water when river flows are high.

Reservoirs such as Bewl Bridge in Kent are below half of their normal level for the time of year.

Heavy rains could yet stave off the worst of the impacts, but forecasters are predicting drier than average conditions for the next few months.

In the worst case, this could lead to emergency measures such as supplies being limited to public standpipes in the street being implemented, as was the case during the 1976 drought.

Tips to save water

• Take shorter showers
• Fix dripping taps
• Install a water saving device in your toilet
• Turn off taps while you brush your teeth

• Southern Water has applied for an emergency drought permit
• Water levels in the UK’s reservoirs, rivers and streams are dropping
• Britain faces worst drought for more than 30 years
• Households urged to take egg-timers into the shower and turn off tap while brushing teeth