Where is the water?

Posted By: Lib and Con
Posted on: Jun. 30, 2007 at 10:42 AM

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After being in Arizona for 35 years and listening and observing the development and watching the wasteful practices of so many people I have come to the conclusion we are going to have a serious problem in Arizona with water. Why people have to have luxurious golf courses and swimming pools in their back yard and their own private lakes in a desert is beyond me.

The San Pedro River is going to run dry two weeks sooner than usual. There is no rain in the immediate forecast. The monsoon is going to be very late and there is no El Nino to produce above average rainfall. I believe we are headed for a crisis. When it comes all the non believers and the ones who think Salt River has aquifers full to supply water for years and years are going to be hit in the head full force with reality.

According to some of our experts we are 75 per cent over capacity in development for a water supply to be maintained. The big reservoir up North by Prescott(excuse me for not being exactly, meticulously specific), is supplying water to the Valley and is only half full. Salt River said they will monitor it. Monitoring it does not solve anything when groundwater pumping is increasing.

I have practiced conserving water for years. Why can’t people be practical? I do not run water repeatedly. When I take a shower I run the water in a five gallon bucket till it is almost warm. I then use that water to for our pets. I put shampoo in my hair, let it set, and then lather it and rinse and in the meantime wet myself thoroughly. I shut the water off then lather with body wash and then rinsing. Do people realize how many gallons of water they can save by doing those simple things? Or would they rather use 50 gallons to take a shower with no better results. I have seen people turn their hose on in their yards and let the water run, run, run. Sprinklers are the worst evaporation and loss of water there is also.

I find people’s attitudes on the use of water in Arizona repugnant and in complete denial of what we may be up against in the future. If a prolonged drought occurs you couldn’t give your property away. I can’t wait to be ridiculed for this article and what I perceive to be realistic ways to save water and there are many more that people can do. Of course this could be beneath people to do these things. After all, the standard attitude is, “I’m paying for it I’ll use what I want”. “I pay big bucks in taxes why shouldn’t I have my own lake and golf courses”?

Getting people united to conserve water would be a real challenge just like getting people to do less driving to reduce our dependence on foreign oil would be. Give me hope someone. Or is there any?

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AZ Moderate

Jun. 30, 2007 at 10:50:05 AM

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Lib and Con, you have hit the nail on the head when you spotlight the wasteful use of water on golf courses and swimming pools.

Lakes however are another matter. I can attest to the wonderful use of water in lakes, because I live on one.

Come to think of it, community pools are ok to. Our HOA has one, and it is a good use of water.

Now golf courses really need to be curtailed! I don't play golf and we could save gallons of water it those that do learned to play in the cactus and sand.

I might change my mind if I take up golf ...

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	Cancelled Account Jun. 30, 2007 at 11:03:47 AM
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Lib and Con

Jun. 30, 2007 at 11:10:00 AM

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You know Az. Moderate, I will have to retract that statement totally about the lakes as I completely, erroneously disregarded all the wildlife that are supported by having a lake in a park or home division. There is nothing more worthwhile than seeing wildlife flourish. Like the one on 8th Ave. and Dobson with all the ducks and birds and rabbits and so forth.

Geez, there goes that Alzheimer's gene again.

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AZ Moderate

Jun. 30, 2007 at 11:15:28 AM

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Huzzah! Huzzah, Lib and Con.

Good idea to run the water in a bucket to warm the shower water. I will implement that idea.

I shower in my swimming suit in the side yard from May through October. The runoff water is used directly by lawn and the tree that I hang the shower head in. Now I know not everyone can do that, and that the majority of those that could won’t. Crazy idea, isn’t it? Until you think about it, that is.

And I enjoy it much more than being cooped up in the shower stall. Really, you should try it if you are able to.

My drip system irrigation has been off, except for the trees and plants, for two years. We have over fifty percent desert lawn, but do have some grass for the dawgs. I water by laying the hose on the ground and moving it around continuously when I am working outside. The lawn gets much less water than it did when I had the drip system on autopilot, but it has survived in good shape. I am surprised, but it tells me that I was watering it too much before I turned the drips off.

On occasion parts of the lawn get bleached out for lack of water. I just give that a little extra shot of water and in a few days it is back again. I think most of us water way tooooo much. In the winter the dew seems to be sufficient to keep the grass green. I don’t even water manually from October through April.

On the north coast in states like Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin and so on, the cities and municipalities often have watering bans during the summer months because of “drought”. You would think that the substantial number of immigrants from up thar would be attuned to water conservation. It is strange for these people when they come here and see the fountains, lakes, golf courses, flooded lawns and so on in the desert. It does spawn the illusion that this is a different world and they don’t have to be concerned about water. And it propagates the illusion that is all too real here. The idea of an effective watering ban doesn’t seem to have registered here at all.

“I believe we are headed for a crisis. When it comes all the non believers and the ones who think Salt River has aquifers full to supply water for years and years are going to be hit in the head full force with reality.”

and

“I find people’s attitudes on the use of water in Arizona repugnant and in complete denial of what we may be up against in the future. If a prolonged drought occurs you couldn’t give your property away.”

Lib and Con, I couldn’t agree with you more. I am sure you do understand that my previous comment was tongue in cheek. By all means let us pursue this subject – it is of critical importance to our survival as a community here in AZ.

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AZ Moderate

Jun. 30, 2007 at 11:38:00 AM

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I sent this article's URL to friends, neighbors and relatives with the recommendation that they read it.

It is a stage center issue in my consciousness, as some of them know already. I think Lib and Con deserves credit for outlining the issue succinctly and hope this will get some attention.

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	Cancelled Account Jun. 30, 2007 at 01:34:53 PM
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Lib and Con

Jun. 30, 2007 at 02:08:47 PM

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Thanks for the kind comments AZ. MOD. I am glad there is someone taking this seriously also. I am always looking for ways to save water.

Remember that comment from Frank Koch, Mayor of New York, about saving water?

"If it's yellow it's mellow, If it's brown flush it down". I don't know about that one!

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postman

Jun. 30, 2007 at 05:41:18 PM

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I believe most of the water used on golf courses is treated sewage. Plus most have some kind of water retention areas that are used to pump runoff water back through the sprinkler systems to water the course. I don't golf but at one time worked as part of a golf matinence crew(before I went potal.)

Also they are a refuge for many types of wildlife ie coyotes, rabbits etc. Also, the area around the course is usually some degrees cooler so that should appeal to those who worship at the alter of the global warming kooks. (boy am I gonna hear it now)

I'll check back after I wash my car and hose off the carport.

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Lib and Con

Jun. 30, 2007 at 06:01:22 PM

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That may be all well and good postman but we can't continue to justify the development of Arizona and the horrendous amount of water in doing so. There is something unsettling about seeing nine thousand sprinklers going at the same time on a golf course that uses more water(no matter what the original source), than anything else. It all goes back to too much water being used in the first place. Everything can be justified but the red flags are everywhere, every day right now.

It is assumed by many people that if the water is recycled that, in spite of the fact thousands of gallons were used by flushing comodes after every pee, after every piece of toilet paper put in there, after all the water going down the sinks unnecessarily that that water, when treated, is not part of the math anymore.

It is still the original, wasteful use of water that comes from excessive groundwater pumping and too many homes being built no matter where it goes afterwards.

I would dare say that the golf courses have a much less animal friendly quotient for justification for wildlife than a subdivision lake where wildlife is heavily maintained and avidly visited by many people. I have never seen anyone feed a bird while playing golf.

I am simply saying, that when you get back from washing your car and hosing off your carport that there are simple actions in everyday use of water that could save lots of water and minimize, or at least counter some of the water crisis we are having somewhat by sheer numbers of people, or will have if it continues on it's present course. Then it will be too hard to reverse. I don't know why people's habits of waste are so firmly entrenched that they can't see the value of using less water. It wouldn't hurt no one to practice it.

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AZ Moderate

Jul. 1, 2007 at 03:43:31 PM

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There are two or three major dimensions to this stark threat, depending on how you slice and dice it:

1. Going forth and subduing the Earth: Humans over history have a habit of pushing the envelope of their environment, and beyond. We can look at the “winning of the West” in our own recent history. Or clear cutting vast forests. But that is not unique to European spawned settlement in the new world. It seems to be emerging that the native peoples, such as the Mayans, and the Hohokam right here in our own habitat, got caught and disappeared or radically suffered when Mother Nature changed the mix even just a little bit. It’s not nice to fool Mother Nature, as the margarine commercial used to state.

2. Go forth and be fruitful: That is interpreted as license to multiply like rabbits. It’s fun, so do it – damn the ramifications. 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, … 6,000,000,000 and counting. And there is plenty more where that came from. In the seventies I belonged to Zero Population Growth (ZPG), an organization that advocated leveling this process off and stabilizing Mother Earth’s population at a sustainable level of, oh say, 3,000,000,000 or so. But traditions and blind lemming like behavior was lauded and encouraged by the Growth is Good for the Economy crowd. Unfortunately unexamined tradition in a changing world and the almighty buck have prevailed and we are moving ever closer to the cliff.

3. Finite resource: Water is just one, and perhaps the most immediate in our particular locality, but the infinitesimal envelope of our survival as a species is pretty much fixed. “They’re” not making any more of that. It is not growing at an exponential rate as is the human population. It is not even growing at a steady arithmetical rate of 1, 2, 3, … It is plain as day that at some point our lemming behavior is going to punch through that envelope of our survival, the Earth’s ability to support the most rapacious species that we the “raptor/lemmings” are aware of.

Go forth and ponder our fate, oh yea of sublime ignorance and blind self indulgence. We arrogantly think of ourselves as having mastered Mother Nature, but she has indulged that stupidity long enough. The bill is coming over the horizon. When, not if, it arrives is the only question. And we are all going to pay that bill.

But don’t get me started…

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