Upon becoming a member of the board for an association in Las Vegas, you are expected to enforce and follow the guidelines set for the in the association’s governing documents (CC&R’s) and NRS 116. Not only are you expected to follow the law and enforce your governing documents, you also owe it to your community to help conserve our resources whenever and wherever possible … it is after all, a desert out there!
Water levels in Lake Mead have dropped an astonishing 100 feet since about January 2000.
We all know that board members and homeowners have a lot of responsibility in their day-to-day lives. Here are a few things that anyone can do in order to help conserve our precious source of water and other resources no matter how busy your schedule is.
Water Conservation:
- Check with the Southern Nevada Water Authority for your correct watering times and set your irrigation timers to the proper watering days/times for each season.
- For the most part, washing machines and dishwashers consume the most water inside your home. Set the water levels on your washing machine to match the size of the load you’re washing and try to avoid doing multiple small loads in order to maximize your conservation efforts.
- As with your washing machine, your dishwasher should be used when it is full. Partial loads are a waste of water and energy. Also remember to use the pre-rinse cycle rather than hand washing before you run the dishes through the dishwasher. Hand washing before washing in the dishwasher wastes about 15-18 gallons of water per load.
- Check all toilets and faucets for leaks and make the necessary repairs as soon as you possibly can. The average home in America wastes about 14 percent of all water used due to leaks.
Energy Conservation:
- Take advantage of rebates and offers for solar panels through NV Energy. NV Energy currently has great options for reducing energy costs with special thermostats and there are programs available for solar energy such as screens, panels and other devises.
- Warm weather is fast approaching! Take advantage of the beautiful weather by cooking outside on the grill, opening windows on cool nights (and days) rather than cranking the air conditioning on and when it starts to get a little too hot for open windows, adjust your thermostats accordingly, and when you’re not home – adjust the AC temps just a few degrees warmer to conserve a significant amount of energy.
Trash/Waste Conservation and Recycling: Make waste reduction a priority!
- Purchase recycled products, use cloth napkins and reusable bags, plates and containers instead of paper products.
- Repair or donate old or unwanted furniture and electronics to a local charity rather than tossing them.
- Purchase minimally packaged products or buy in bulk to reduce waste.
- Old cell phones, tablets, and other communication devices create millions of tons of toxic electronic trash and the chromium, lead and mercury are some of the toxic, and potentially cancer causing substances found in these devices. All of which may leak into the soil and water – potentially poisoning plants, animals and humans in some cases. In the US alone, about 126 MILLION mobile devices were improperly disposed of in 2007 … imagine how much those numbers have increased since then! Do your part by dropping your phone off at a participating retailer that will recycle and dispose of the devices properly such as Best Buy, Radio Shack and Apple.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact a member of the Shelter Management Group (SMG) team, we would be happy to help! Contact us at 702 – 818 – 4780 or info @ smghoa.com
Article Authored By: Jamie Collins, Supervising CAM, CMCA, AMS co-owner, Shelter Management Group (SMG)