Which is more important to you: your water resources or your healthcare?
At first glance that might seem a silly question. After all, you’re going to say that your healthcare is more important than water, right? Who wouldn’t say that?
As it turns out, a LOT of people wouldn’t say that!
An Interesting Survey…
An interesting survey was conducted by researchers from the University of Florida’s Center for Public Issues Education in Agriculture and Natural Resources (PIE Center, for short).
The purpose of the survey was to discover the importance that Floridians attached to a number of different issues.
Several of the topics revolved around water issues. Water, and particularly the shortage of it, has been a growing concern in recent years. And historical, ongoing droughts such as the one suffered by California are frequently the topics of news stories in the media.
So it’s no surprise that researchers were asking people about their opinions concerning a number of water-related topics. And it’s no surprise that people had some rather strong and interesting opinions.
But the answer to one question was really quite surprising.
Your Water or Your Health
The survey respondents were asked to rate the importance of several issues. Two of the issues were:
- The importance of health care availability and quality
- The importance of water availability and quality
Of course, more people rated healthcare as the more important issue. Obviously, right?
Maybe not as obvious as you might think.
Because as it turned out, 81.5% of Floridians rated healthcare as either highly or extremely important. But 81.4% rated water as either highly or extremely important.
Only a tenth of a percentage point difference! It’s really a rather astounding result.
But what does it mean?
The Water Crisis Is Critical
The survey results indicate that lots of people are aware of the growing global crisis of water shortages we face. And it shows that many people are becoming quite concerned about the issue.
As a faculty member at UF noted, “We’ve long known how significant water is to the state of Florida, and it’s great to see the public recognizes the importance of it as well.”
With just the slimmest percentage of people rating healthcare issues more important than water issues (at least in Florida), it has become quite clear: The message about the growing water crisis has been received and noted!
Concern Inspires Action
The survey results also indicated that people’s concerns about water are translating into action. Many of the state’s residents are actively trying to reduce their water consumption — water-efficient toilets, low-flow showerheads, etc.
And, of course, smart irrigation systems such as TLC’s Hydrawise and K-Rain help to play a big role in the growing movement to conserve water. If you’d like to learn more about the water-saving potential of our smart WiFi controllers, just get in touch. Call now at 410-721-2342 for your FREE estimate!