With the official start of summer just days away and drought conditions choking major portions of the West, it's a good time to take measures to make sure you're not unknowingly wasting water.

Severe to exceptional drought conditions are being experienced across Utah, Nevada, Arizona, northern New Mexico, southwestern Wyoming, southern and western Colorado, according to the National Weather Service. And it doesn't look like the conditions will let up this summer. In fact, much of the Rio Grande is dried up.

And just last week, the Associated Press reported that New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson declared a state of emergency stemming from the drought conditions."

"Despite recent rains, New Mexico continues down a path toward a long-term drought," Richardson said. "I want to be proactive by developing immediate, intermediate and long-term strategies to deal with the drought."

Regardless of whether you live in a drought-inflicted region, there are many ways your household can begin conserving water immediately.

The American Water Works Association says a dripping faucet can waste up to 2,000 gallons of water each year, and if your toilet leaks, you could be wasting up to 200 gallons each day.

In fact, the AWWA says if all U.S. households installed water-saving features, water use would decrease by 30 percent, saving an estimated 5.4 billion gallons per day. This would result in savings of $11.3 million per day - more than $4 billion per year.

In the home, it's easy to spot a culprit, whether it's a dripping tap, a toilet that's always running, or maybe even someone prone to taking 15-minute showers. But what about outside?

The AWWA says that on average, 50 to 70 percent of home water is used outdoors for watering lawns and gardens. The average household water use annually is 127,400 gallons; the average daily household water use is 350 gallons.

The Department of Utilities for the City of Sacramento in California says over-watering your garden can be harmful for your plants, depriving them of the oxygen they need to survive.

The utility company says one sign of over-watering is water running off your lawn or landscape. To avoid this, they recommend to try watering in stages, which allows water to absorb into the soil before adding more; maintaining your irrigation system, checking for leaks, and adjusting sprinkler heads to water target areas; and (if your irrigation system is automatic) setting timers for just the right amount of time.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says there are five key actions to saving water in and around the home: