Colorado and the West is running out of water . . . (Pueblo: crime, loans)

[Lupulin]

I seriously doubt Colorado will run out of water anytime soon. Maybe one day, but we’ll probably run out of oil first. And as for Colorado’s population explosion, I think that will be held in check by Colorado’s lack of jobs. I know of many people that would love to move here tomorrow but they can’t find jobs to make the move possible.

Sure, some years we have droughts and it does run a bit dry (and the media are right there stoking the panic), but overall I think we’ll be fine, and we’re not nearly as bad off as other states. Not to mention, many other states depend on the water that flows from Colorado, so if Colorado’s doing bad, other states will do bad as well.

Speaking of the media, ever notice how they instill fear either way? If we’re in a drought, they play up the lack of water and wildfire danger. If we have record snowpack (like last winter), they play up the possibility of flooding ... and to my amazement, earlier in 2008 they even said that the heavy snowfall provided moisture for certain grasses to grow more than normal, which in turn added more ground fuel for possible wildfires. It’s unbelievable. No matter what, they’ll spin it one way or another to capture that doom-and-gloom angle. RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!

Interesting factoid: There are only two states that generate water within their own borders and not from other states – Colorado and Hawaii.

If Colorado was truly in dire straights and running out of water, I’m sure restrictions would be in place. Or rates would go up, in the least. If it’s “so bad,” why aren’t water officials implementing one or the other? And I doubt we’ll go from “business as usual” as it is now to complete pandemonium and mass exodus from Colorado overnight. I imagine it will happen slowly, just as our water is not vanishing overnight.

By a HUGE margin, the biggest water waster of all is lawn watering. I dream of the day when we can all get rid of our lawns. I hate mowing, weeding, watering, etc. I have added some grass-less and plant-less rock gardens to minimize my yard’s size, but it’s expensive as hell and I can’t completely remove all the grass because I’m stuck with HOA covenants (just like MANY people across the state). The state gov needs to step in and eradicate all HOA covenants that say you must have grass or a certain percentage of grass.

Of course, our other option would be to collect, save or dam up all the water that flows from our mountains and keep it for ourselves instead of giving it away to some surrounding states and the overbloated cities of the Southwest, especially the ones in real deserts.

All that said, I guess I’ll do my part and try to cut back somewhat on my water usage. I’ll drink less water, flush less, take less (and shorter) showers, stop doing dishes, and I’ll abstain from washing my car. Doubt it’ll make even an infinitesimal dent, but it’s a start.

- Stinky

[Katiana]

I'm fine with agriculture, but ag needs to be practiced in a sustainable way as well. You don't go growing stuff in a desert that is native to a rainforest, etc.

[Shuffler]

There are many fallow fields around Boulder County growing weeds and rodent colonies, because the water is too expensive or the rights were sold off to other interests. It'll be interesting to see if things change and we get back to smaller, localized economies around the country and breathe some new life into ag.

People might wake up to the fact that water needs to be conserved to grow food instead of houses, and for when future oil supply disruptions make it impractical to move food great distances.

But it sounds like Pueblo is immune to all of this...

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by Shuffler

There are many fallow fields around Boulder County growing weeds and rodent colonies, because the water is too expensive or the rights were sold off to other interests. It'll be interesting to see if things change and we get back to smaller, localized economies around the country and breathe some new life into ag.

People might wake up to the fact that water needs to be conserved to grow food instead of houses, and for when future oil supply disruptions make it impractical to move food great distances.

But it sounds like Pueblo is immune to all of this...

Some of the fallow fields belong to farmers who retired. It's not all so cut and dried (no pun intended).

[Shuffler]

Originally Posted by Katiana

Some of the fallow fields belong to farmers who retired. It's not all so cut and dried (no pun intended).

And many with children who'd rather sell out than keep the family farm going...with not much incentive beyond a hard, honest day's work, I can't blame them. There was a poignant essay in the last issue of High Country News about this.

[Josseppie]

Originally Posted by Shuffler

There are many fallow fields around Boulder County growing weeds and rodent colonies, because the water is too expensive or the rights were sold off to other interests. It'll be interesting to see if things change and we get back to smaller, localized economies around the country and breathe some new life into ag.

People might wake up to the fact that water needs to be conserved to grow food instead of houses, and for when future oil supply disruptions make it impractical to move food great distances.

But it sounds like Pueblo is immune to all of this...

So far we have been, in fact Pueblo has so much water we lease our extra water and that is what keeps our rates low enough that I am able to use as much water as I do.

[McGowdog]

Originally Posted by Josseppie

and the board of water works is buying the majority rights to the Bessemer ditch which will gives us even more water.
... Seems high, but that's what the bill says.

Whom do you think "we" is and is the ink dry on those Water Rights documents just yet?

Your water bill should look somewhat like mine if you've got a sprinkler and a little plot of 1500 sq ft of Kentucky blue grass mixed with Rye;

JFMA... all very low usage

MJ... starting to ramp up a bit

JA... all very high

S... not so high, tapering off

OND... all very low usage.

What do you think about Xeriscaping and rocks from Demmlers or Donleys? All though the cost of rock (13 bucks to 27 bucks per ton) and fabric (about 8 cents per square foot and can be purchased in 2', 4', 6', 12' etc) is a lot upfront, you don't have to water it down the road.

I used to hate rock front yards, but I love it now. I like a bush or a tree here and there, but I don't like maintaining it, and any potential buyers down the road won't like it either.

Don't make me show you the pics of my hands after using a sod cutter to remove my once dead lawn, Josse. I'll do it, you know?

Originally Posted by tfox

...Denver Water has managed to steal enough western slope water to serve its customer base for, well... pretty much forever, considering that the population that Denver Water serves is stable .

I've got an old friend named Ted who was a big shot with Denver Water and he was a very spiritual guy. He would never ever work for a company for so long that stole anything. Politics is politics, but words are words.

Originally Posted by tfox

I know that the cities of Fort Collins, Loveland, Longmont, and Boulder are have quite a bit of water storage and are also stable in population -- that is, if someone doesn't try to "steal" their water to hand over to sprawl interests -- and in the case of Poudre River water, that's exactly what water boards are fighting to do as we speak.

Just the other day, I'd heard that Millikan (don't even know the town. Is it by Firestone or something?) is running out of water. Is that a well?

Originally Posted by tfox

As you know, Colorado Springs is wrangling with Pueblo over its share of Arkansas River water.

No. I would say Aurora is wrangling over Colorado Springs with its share of water. Pueblo, as Josse said, will always be set. You gotta pump water from the Res to get it to CoSprings efficiently. The Aurora water probably comes from way up in the head waters and into the South Platte, right? And, umm... I'm gonna throw in the addage; Money talks.

Originally Posted by tfox

What's going to happen, sadly, is ...There's no reason to carpet the property end-to-end in bluegrass anyway. These few simple steps could stretch our water supply a LONG way

True this. I'm sure you'll find echoings of this in Jazz and Vegas posts. We're not South Carolina where you can have that nice bluegrass or whatever grass from the porch to the road. Whatever you seed or sod, you gotta water and you'd better have a sprinkler system or a gardner. My 1500 sq ft is enough for me to take my shoes off and walk around on. The cats like to eat a bit for their digestion too, but with the wild critters we've had lately, they have an in-house version of that. Have you ever heard my cat Frank's piano skillz?

Originally Posted by Katiana

There is something to be said for sustainable agriculture, too. Why try to grow cotton, which takes a lot of water, in a desert?

Because there's certain things I like to be doing "in" tall cotton.

Originally Posted by jazzlover

Now, which plants do I think should have high priority on water? Stuff that makes things I can eat or wear--hay and alfalfa for cattle and sheep, grains that I can eat, vegetables and fruits, and fibers for clothing, etc. Not a bunch of BS Kentucky bluegrass.

ensconced

last 30 years, Cause and effect? You bet!

You forgot another vegetable group. Ones that can be smoked -er- 420 error!! braided into rope! Hemp! I think switch grass is up there in effeciency with sugar cane... more advanced corn glucose process that gets the sugar out more directly in the works... wonder what they could do with ditchweed hemp? nevermind. Topic for another sub forum.

Ensconced. Now there's a pretty big woid.

Last 30 years, Californicators CoTexans yadayadayada... We get it Jazz. Cosmic cancells out Jazz. Neener Neener.

Originally Posted by Katiana

Do you NEED to grow cotton in AZ? I don't see people running around naked because it's not being done any more.

Ummm... U of A? Girlz Gone Wild? ()()

Originally Posted by Josseppie

zeroscape is ugly and I would never get rid of my lawn for that, but then again I live in Pueblo and we have enough water so I do not have to worry about it.

We need to talk. I need to know how old you are. I suspect you're not on the downside of your 30s yet. Once the back of the ears start to dry, you'll start to like it.

Originally Posted by Josseppie

But being in Pueblo my bill is never over $300 a month.

Never over $300 a month. It costs about 200/month per horse these days. You and your lawn will go by the way of the dodo bird. This is what brings Jazz to our threads. You are the poster child of what he's talking about. Get ready for a shocker. I'm gonna show you what happens to a lawn when it get denied its water and what happens to your hands when the gloves can't endure the vibration of the machine you're using, a dreaded Sod Cutter;

If you have a weak stomach, scroll down a bit;

Finished product after I fixed it and before we went on trip to Redwoods:



My favorite Redwood, of which the fog coming off the Pacific coast waters; water bill: zip


The reason my basement almost flooded and I had to shut down sprinklers and one of the 10 reasons my lawn died:


Demolition begins:




The aftermath:


The fruits of our labor:


Now we have a lawn to water, weeds to pull, rabbits to chase off with (moth ballz and Hot Shot Pepper works the best), and my bill doesn't get over $40.00, sometimes $50 for July and August. You must have a water leak or mushrooms. My lawn is greener than green, buddy. All that vine weed is dead now and it's still the greenest thing in the neighborhood and I haven't watered it but here and there when it's a warm enough day to turn on the water, water it, drain it... about 4 times a month so far, and I only run each of 2 zones about 10 to 15 minutes tops. Any more than that and you're feeding the gutters.

Originally Posted by bullfish15

Shame on you for wasting 50,000 gallons of water a month. That is as stupid as filling up a shopping cart at the grocery store with steaks and throwing them into the ditch. Your lack of regard for natural resources is disturbing.

Shame on you.

I'm having a really hard time getting through to you Josse. This is why I sent you a harsh response to a post way back in the beginning. I wanted to spare you this, but... Even if you really did waste 300 per just for your lawn, it's just nothing to brag about. What happens if you lose your job and your family is financially strapped for about 5 months? Will your lawn become a priority? I doubt it. Let me tell you the other things besides lack of water that killed my lawn of 5 years;

Grub worms
Mole
rabbits, thousands of them
weeds... nasty vine weeds...
summer floods... believe it or not.
too high of a water pressure due to all the construction out here... at one time... I had to buy my own $75.00 regulator to put in line and limit the pressure to about 85 PSI... no one told me I had to or should do this. Look at my flooded basement pics sometime. This caused me to shut the sprinklers off and say... skrough the lawn...

[Josseppie]

My family has lived in the house since 1962, my grandparents had it built. over the years we have had our issues with grub worms, Bermuda grass etc. That is what fertilizer is for.

As far as the water rights, I know many people in the county who tell me that it looks like Pueblo will get majority shares in the Bessemer ditch, I hope so I DO NOT want Colorado Springs to get it, but your right nothing is 100% till its done so until then I will keep my fingers crossed. Hopefully we will know in 2009 and when we do I will post the Chieftain's article on this site.

As far as zeroscape if people want to use it then great, I just don't like it. Personal preference.

My point is I have had all those problems with lawn care, just some of the many issues when you have a lawn.

I am actually very proud of my yard, next summer I will take pictures of it and post them as well so everyone can see it.

[McGowdog]

You can do that. But I'll be more impressed with Vegas's Xeriscape pics.

[Josseppie]

Originally Posted by McGowdog

You can do that. But I'll be more impressed with Vegas's Xeriscape pics.

Fair enough, we all have our personal preferences.