Unlike energy, water is a tangible resource; we can control its usage relatively easily. This is a good thing, given that climate change, population growth, and other factors are forcing our rivers to run dry and our lakes and water-table levels to drop. When it comes to making a difference, the seemingly small steps that we take toward reducing our individual “water footprints” (collecting rainwater for plants, taking less-indulgent showers, even observing Meatless Mondays) become ever more important drops in what is ultimately a single global bucket.

We've got a whole host of ways for you to save the precious resource, including taking shorter showers and reducing junk mail.

Toxic materials like paint, oil, harsh cleansers, and medications can eventually make their way into bodies of water. Contact your local sanitation, public works, or environmental health department to find out about hazardous-waste collection days and sites.

If you have the option, use your machine’s eco water-saving mode. (While you’re at it, turn off the dryer setting to save energy.)

Simply scrape and let your dishwasher do the actual cleaning.

This goes for both the dishwasher and the washing machine.

An Energy Star washing machine can save up to 18 gallons of water per load.

Rather than grabbing a fresh towel every day, use the same one for a week. You can also extend the life span of your sheets by swapping out the pillowcases more often than the rest of the set. (They get the most germy, anyhow.)

Hosing down a vehicle in your driveway can use 60 gallons of water or more in just five minutes. Professional car washes that have been certified by the WaterSavers program use 40 gallons or less per car and return clean water to the environment.

Find a location near you.

Along with containing less water, concentrates require less packaging and less energy to produce, says Paul McRandle of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).

Conventional drain cleaners contain toxic chemicals, such as sodium hydroxide. Pour equal parts baking soda, white vinegar, and boiling water down the drain. Let sit for half an hour before rinsing.

Harmful bacteria from poop can wash into storm drains and pollute water supplies, leaving us less of the clean stuff to use.

Ford has committed to reducing 30 percent of its water usage per vehicle by 2015. The company also says that between 2000 and 2010 it reduced its total global water use by 62 percent (more than 10 billion gallons).

This fall, Method will bottle its green cleaning products in containers made out of plastic collected from the ocean.

An Oakland, California–based company called Fogbusters has developed a way to separate fat, oil, and grease from wastewater without using chemicals. Its clients already include such big names as Cargill and Cadbury.

Attaching an aerator to your existing faucet can save you up to 500 gallons a year. We particularly like the Neoperl 1.5 GPM Household Aerator Replacement Kit, which comes with four replacement aerators and a durable wrench for installation.

(homedepot.com for stores)

It’s not just about all that plastic that ends up in landfills. “Three liters of regular water go into making just one liter of bottled water,” says the NRDC’s McRandle.

Check out your water system’s Consumer Confidence Report, which will detail contaminants and violations of water-quality standards. (You can find it at epa.gov.) Private wells aren’t regulated by the Safe Drinking Water Act, so if you’ve got one of those, you’ll want to test it annually.

If your water report or lab test indicates any unsafe levels of minerals, pesticides, heavy metals, parasites, volatile organic compounds, or bacteria, install a filter. Find models that meet health and safety standards at nsf.org.

If your tap water is drinkable, this is a less wasteful way to get a cold drink than letting your faucet run until the temperature is to your liking.

Place your colander over a bowl in the sink when draining to save the starchy water. You can use it in the sauce or as a base for soup.

To cut down on the number of items to wash, use the same water glass all day.

Only want one cup of tea? Then heat exactly that amount of water.

That food sludge gets extracted at wastewater treatment plants and eventually winds up in a landfill. Plus, you’ll save on water and electricity.

Instead of cleaning your fruits and vegetables by rinsing them under a constantly running tap, swish them around in a bowl of water. You can then reuse that water for houseplants.

A taller lawn will shade plant roots and, as a result, hold soil moisture better than grass that’s been closely clipped. Keep your blades at least three inches tall in the growing season, and cut them shorter in the fall to promote fresh growth.

Put a rain barrel below your gutter downspout and you’ll capture a little more than half a gallon of water for every square foot of roof during a one-inch rainfall -- that means a 90-square-foot roof would completely fill a 55-gallon barrel! You can use that bounty to water your garden.

Water used on lawns and gardens accounts for up to 40 percent of total household use. Select species that are indigenous to your area, and they’ll have a much better chance of thriving with what Mother Nature provides.

No matter where you live, you should never water midday; you’ll lose too much to evaporation. If you live in a very hot and dry climate, water in the evening. If your home is in a moist area, do it in the morning to avoid mildew problems.

Natural options (compost, bonemeal, peat) add nutrients and promote healthy growth without exposing your plants to the toxic chemicals found in conventional fertilizers, which can seep into the ground and contaminate water supplies.

Yes, they’re beautiful, but annuals (such as petunias and impatiens) typically require more water than most perennials.

If you live in a dry climate, you’ll need a lot of sprinkler activity to maintain a huge grassy swath. Consider replacing it with gravel, which also reduces runoff.

Keep a two-inch layer over your flower bed to help your soil retain moisture.

Keep track of how much H2O your plants are getting with a rain gauge (from $25, gardeners.com) so that you don’t do double-duty with the hose.

Insert a trowel into your lawn. If there’s moisture two inches below the surface, it doesn’t need water.

Use a broom instead of a hose to clean your porch, driveway, or sidewalk.

Put a few drops of food coloring in your toilet tank and check the bowl after 15 minutes; if the color has seeped in -- without flushing -- you have a leak. Fixing it can save up to 1,000 gallons (about 200 flushes) a month. Often, what’s needed is a new flapper, or “valve seal,” which you can find in just about any hardware store.

You’re probably already careful about this when brushing your teeth, but what about while rubbing soap on your hands or scrubbing a dish? If you want to score some major points, start taking Navy-style showers: Wet your face and body, shut off the water as you shampoo and lather up, and then finish it all off with a quick rinse.

If the one you currently have fills a one-gallon bucket in less than 20 seconds or drips (wasting up to 90 gallons daily), consider an upgrade. An EPA WaterSense–labeled model could save more than 2,300 gallons annually and conserve enough electricity to power your television for a year.

Go a little MacGyver on your toilet. Place a plastic beverage bottle filled with sand (or some stones, to help weigh it down) inside your tank. It will displace some of the water, so you’ll use less per flush.

If you have one that is constantly running, you could be wasting up to a whopping 200 gallons (or 40 flushes) every day.

When shopping, consider only models that have been given the WaterSense label, which certifies that the toilet uses 20 percent less water.

By making it a new rule not to flush every time, a family of four could save 9 to 11 flushes -- that’s 45 to 55 gallons a day!

Collect that not-quite-warm-enough initial stream and use it later to fill your humidifier. (Just take the bucket out of the tub before you start sudsing up.)

Shaving just one minute off your typical time will save 2.5 gallons of water. Need help? Try the Water Pebble ($10, uncommongoods.com). Placed in your drain, it records your first shower as a benchmark and then takes a few seconds off each subsequent shower, by flashing green, yellow, and red lights to help you pace yourself.

Try to avoid personal care items that contain sodium laureth sulfate. “These become contaminated with trace amounts of 1,4-dioxane, a carcinogen that is also a groundwater contaminant,” says Stacy Malkan, a spokesperson for the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.

Find out how much water you really use -- both directly and indirectly -- with the Water Footprint Calculator, or download the Waterprint iPhone app (free, itunes .com). Then let your results motivate you to act.

“Food accounts for at least half of your water footprint,” says Kai Olson-Sawyer, a research and policy analyst at Grace Communications Foundation. “Eating less meat is the key to reducing it, because of all the water needed to raise the livestock.” Start by skipping red meat -- it takes 1,857 gallons of water to produce a single pound of beef. (Pork, chicken, and lamb require much less.)

Bags, cups, forks, and so on can make their way to the sea, contaminating ecosystems and harming marine life.

About 28 billion gallons of water are used to produce all of that unwanted paper. Sign up with dmachoice.org to take your address off direct-marketing lists.

Either purchase your duds secondhand or choose more durable items.

One of the biggest wardrobe waterhogs, each pair of jeans requires 2,900 gallons of water to produce. When possible, have yours mended by a local tailor or send them to denimtherapy.com.

“If a garment has a ‘Cotton Made in Africa’ label, the crops that went into producing it were grown using rainwater rather than irrigated water,” says the NRDC’s McRandle. A Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certification is also a plus; it means the wastewater was treated in a plant after processing.

Contribute your dollars or time to one of these results-driven organizations.

The Sierra Club has teams of Water Sentinels who are dedicated to promoting water quality, education, and citizen actions. Find one in your area.

The NRDC is raising awareness about stormwater and roof-runoff issues, and about how climate change will impact our water supply. Send letters to your representatives about pending legislation.

Wateraid America improves access to safe water, hygiene, and sanitation in the world’s poorest communities. Learn how you can help at wateraidamerica.org.