I am delighted to see Angelinos taking water conservation seriously since so much of their water comes from diverting water from the deserts in Arizona, where I live.  We take water conservation seriously here.  The landscaping around my house is mostly rocks and sand (which means I never have to mow grass!), and the plants are mostly cactus and palm trees which seldom need watering.  For those plants which we do water, we have a rainwater collection system.  But the biggest thing we do for water conservation is stick to a vegetarian diet, since raising livestock consumes great quantities of water. 

I have mixed feelings about desalinization using current technology, but the objection that this will upset the salinity level in the sea seems poorly thought out.  Remember, all the fresh water in the world comes from natural desalinization which uses solar power, and the increment human civilization would need to supplement natural sources should be insignificant compared to this.  My main objection to current technology of desalinization is that it would demand energy from current sources which also demand fresh water.  Current solar power technology is too expensive to desalinate water on the scale needed to provide much of the water for a city the size of Los Angeles, but new technology should soon be able to make it affordable.  I just hope that Angelinos can come to appreciate my dismay at the current situation where a city on the shores of the world's largest body of water is taking much of its water from a desert, and thus will come to support sustainable desalinization of sea water for their needs. 

I have already stated that I am against desalinization, but I had to add that I agree with Valerie's comment that it requires nearly no effort at conservation on our part. Adding that as an option would simply allow people to use as much water as they want (as so many do now) without worrying about consequences, so I don't think that it would simply supplement the water we are now using, I think it would become a major source.

Also, I can't remember which documentary I saw this in, but I think it was Blue Gold: World Water Wars, but there was a piece about an area in a third world country that was using a natural and old technique to collect water, I think both from the ground and rain water, and it their collection 'ponds' were destroyed by the arm or government or something because they were told they didn't have the right to use that land, or license, or something. I wish I could remember it better, bu the point is that they had a natural way to collect water in an area where fresh water was hard to come by, and all it required was labor on the part of the villagers, and it was taken from them. I'll have to watch the documentary again.  I would suggest everyone see it, as I recall that it was very good.

Hi Alicia!

One way we tend to waste water is the time we spend waiting for the water in the shower to go from cold to hot after first turning it on

Well one idea that's always been pretty nifty is to either hang a bucket from the nozzle or place it on the shower floor and then turn on the water. The cold water we don't used fills up the bucket. And then that water can be used to water plants or feed pets.

I'm not sure if anyone's already posted this idea, but I think it's a pretty easy and simple way to conserve water! :)

Jen!! That is an amazing idea... I always just accepted that I had to wait for the water to warm up before using it, but I will definitely use a bucket now to save some water here and there! Thanks :)

We use Jen's technique at our house, but the water goes to flush the toilets. 

As a apartment living container gardner (I so love my fresh, organic (by my hand) herbs and veggies!), I am investing in at least one rain barrel!  I live just south of Nashville, Tennessee, where at least a couple of times per week during the summer, pop-up thunderstorms form during the late afternoon, and provide a steady gift of free water.  While I thank Mother Earth for doing some of my watering during the summer, I will no longer take more from her during the cooler months. 

Another refreshing way to save water is to use a sustainable bucket while waiting for a small stream of quick shower water to warm up.  As long as the bucket is properly cleaned and maintained while not in use, the shower water can be added to anything that needs moisture, as all water travels through the same pipes, regardless of the faucet it arrives from.

I have not read everyone's ideas, but here are a few that I have seen/thought of.

attach a rain barrel to the downspouts from your rain gutters. Then install a ball valve and soak hose to water your garden.

place a quart (or appropriate sized) jug of water in the tank of your toilet to displace water volume. This fills up the tank faster with less water.

replace leaky plugs in your tub or toilet tank.

(Energy use) This seems old school, but if the weather is nice and you have the space, line dry your clothes.then if needed,use an air/tumble cycle in your dryer to fluff.

look for water efficient appliances,faucets, shower heads.

Hope this helps someone.

I save the water from boiling pasta and vegetables to reuse to boil more pasta or vegetables or to hydrate "sponge" foods like oatmeal, rice, and quinoa. If you dump the boiling liquid down the drain, you're wasting water and free vegetable broth!

Here's a picture of my water-saving broth jar with some spong foods:

http://www.cookforgood.com/blog/2011/7/28/week-2-day-6-easiest-day-w-hummus-pasta-and-chocolate-puddin.html