Last weekend, I took my supervisor from the USFS at Mt. Charleston up to Hamblin Peak overlooking Lake Mead. The lake looks really sad, the water line receded below any level since it was first filled. I hear stories about people in California who are penalized for watering their lawns, about people who bought homes on golf courses that are now going feral, and about the blight as Californians conserve for the first time possibly ever in the face of western drought. Everyone can do something to use water wisely, and the more we do the more we'll be able to enjoy what comes from wise water use for years to come.
I worked very hard to save water at my own property. Disappointed though I may be that since there was technically no grass I couldn't get a rebate for removing it, I put in a great deal of effort to design, plant, and nurture a yard that requires little water. Honestly, I water on days they forbid it, but I only water a tiny amount periodically through the day using drip lines, so my yard doesn't look wet or damp. Before summer, I need to find and install some shade over the back yard to block out sun on the garden beds in the back, but the yard was designed to take a minimum of water while still providing a maximum return in edible plants and decorative flowers. A mating pair of humming birds have claimed my yard as part of their sovereign territory, and I watch the male drive other birds out from time to time. In all, the entire yard raised my water bill a paltry $4/month. Done well, you can be water smart and still have a lush abode.
I work very hard to curb waste where I can. I give credit to the LVVWD authority for their quick response to water waste issues. Over the past six months or so, I submitted four reports about water waste that I noticed in my trips to the store or while exercising in the neighborhood. Each one was ablated SAME DAY. Odds are they will have to replace a lot of junctions, lines, and meters in the neighborhood north of mine since that's where the leaks arise, but they fixed the problems and repaved the streets while I was at work, and I think that's spectacular response. At work, I keep wash basins for glassware so I can get them soaking before I clean things, but I don't know what else I can do to save water on a college campus.
I work very hard to educate people about water in the desert. Two weekends ago, I hiked to Liberty Bell Arch on Lake Mead. On the way back, we encountered some hikers who had ZERO water with them. Two summers ago, an adult seasoned hiker died very near this particular trail, and although it was in summer as opposed to January, it's just a very good habit. Despite our best efforts, these two seasoned citizens confidently pressed forward without taking any of our extras. Up on Mt. Charleston this summer, I gave away all of my extra water one day to a latino family of five that was already dehydrated, suggested they turn around right there, and then left disappointed as they pressed on anyway. Back in graduate school, we tried to persuade the farmers that watering alfalfa at 11AM in the summer was a huge waste since 30-50% of the water never even hit the ground.
Despite the arid nature of this area and the warnings, we pay less for water than we should. My brother on the UT-ID border pays far more than I do, and he's in a lush agricultural region (well, lush by western U.S. standards). We don't have to work as hard either to get it. I've seen the old pipelines from back when they built the dam, and I don't have to climb down to the river's edge to get a drink. It's probably why this city was tiny until the 1960s because there wasn't a lot of water here. What I don't understand is why so many people congregate today in places the water supply cannot support and why everyone thinks they deserve a lawn. Grass loses so much to transpiration! Why does Nevada have and need so many golf courses? Only an idiot plants one of those in the desert. Los Angeles takes most of our water storage because they own the water in the lake, and so it behooves us to use water well. It's absolutely essential to life, to chemistry, and to happiness. Without the Waters of Life, our wanderings in the desert lead only to unhappiness and ruin.
Our choices have consequences. Sometimes, there is someone on the trail to give us water and rescue us. Sometimes, the price we have to pay to fix things is greater than we can bear. Sometimes, we don't do enough to save, but if there is some savings, it might be enough to prime the pump in our lives and tap into other opportunities. Finally, and perhaps most critically, in the deserts of mortal living, we must be water smart and turn to the source of Living Waters if we want to find our way. Caught up in the din and distractions of life, tempted by shortcuts to happiness and prosperity, we inevitably end up somewhere lost, forlorn, forgotten, feeble, and faced with the responsibility to look for what really matters in life. They say that a penny saved is a penny earned, but in the desert, water is the commodity that makes a man rich. Come unto Him and have eternal life. He who has eternal life is rich. May our wanderings in the desert help us realize the only choice of consequence is to be water smart.
No comments:
Post a Comment