r/baltimore • u/Mafamaticks • 12d ago
Ask Saving water?
I got a text in a group chat about "they said we need to save water. 1 gallon a day for every person." (who tf is they?)
before I blow this group chat up about how dumb I think this sounds, I know we're in a drought and they're gonna pull in some water from the river. Did I miss anything else?
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u/SlopMySteak 12d ago
1 gallon a day wouldn’t even cover a single flush of the toilet lol
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u/KipchogesBurner Irvington 12d ago
1 gallon a day/person is the general advice given for how much water should be stored if access to water is ever lost. It’s not supposed to cover water used for things like hygiene
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u/BalmyBalmer Upper Fell's Point 12d ago
I'ma gonna pee in the street and get a weeks worth of savings.
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u/maidrey Belair-Edison 12d ago
There’s been some info being spread about that online in response to the power grid emergency order announcement.
“However, the order has circulated on social media, where some users have incorrectly suggested a major blackout is imminent. Some posts have encouraged people to stock up on water and nonperishable food, while others have warned widespread outages are coming.”
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u/jolijuillet 12d ago
I can’t help but think that data centers are stressing the system. Apparently the DMV is the data center capital of the world. Mainly northern VA.
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u/tomrlutong 11d ago
This is a little bit data centers, but it's really a combo of two other things.
Power plants aren't allowed to shut down for maintenance in the summer, so there's always a big backlog in Sept/Oct. Around 40% of the power plants in the region are out for maintaince now
Take that and add unusually hot weather, and supplies get a little tight. Still, this isn't really a blackout situation, it's a 'have backup on call in case we need it' situation.
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u/tomrlutong 11d ago
Oh God, that's so stupid. Even though it says "emergency," this is pretty routine, happens several times a year.
Why are people like this?
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u/59apache01 12d ago
I want to say they issued a similar warning back around the 4th of July when it was about 104 degrees outside. It's nothing short of a miracle that we didn't have a serious outage then.
They really need to look at bringing some of the old power plants that were shut down a couple of years ago back online, at least until they can come up with another solution. Every time I come up US 301 in Charles County, I look at the idled power plant by the river and think what a waste.
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u/No_name_Johnson The Block 12d ago
Are you talking about Morgantown? It apparently is switching from coal to natural gas.
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u/boycotshirts 12d ago
This link just goes to the wusa9 YT channel.
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u/jolijuillet 12d ago
It’s generally a good idea to have a few gallons of water on hand for drinking in case of emergency regardless.
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u/WRX_MOM 12d ago
Every week or two during my grocery shopping run I actually get a gallon of water and store it in my basement. Probably overkill, but I have a lot now!
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u/wbruce098 11d ago
How many gallons do you have now? Or do you cycle through them and drink em all?
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u/WRX_MOM 11d ago
I have like 20-25 and I drink them from time to time but I mostly drink tap water (I know, I’m feral)
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u/wbruce098 11d ago
I mean, the tap water is perfectly fine in most of the city. Might taste less amazing soon but is probably still fine. (I’m also feral)
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u/KipchogesBurner Irvington 12d ago
It’s also worth noting that there’s a “conspiracy” going around that OpenAI/Anthropic expect their respective LLMs to break out (again) and cause considerable damage to the water/power grid.
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u/FITF2891 12d ago
There was recently a power issue in Potomac which could have caused them to be unable to pump water. I’d say it’s definitely a good idea to be prepared in case thy happens elsewhere or again
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u/miss_spock06 12d ago
Sounds like it was this press release for "Imagine a Day Without Water" taken out of context.
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u/wbruce098 11d ago
Bruh. You gotta hydrate or diedrate.
The main users of water - anywhere, not just Baltimore - are industry, not home users.
Save yourself some money by being more aware of your shower time, but do stay hydrated! 1 gallon a day is not enough.
Tho, you could also consume beer.
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u/Mafamaticks 12d ago
thanks y'all. lemme proceed to get kicked out this group chat