Western States Megadrought intensifies - predictions for bad Fire Season and severe water shortages for Colorado (Denver: scorpion, living)

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by 2Q&Lrn&Hlp

I beg to differ. . . . Where I live . . . if a leak develops on the provider's side of our meter, it is entirely their responsibility. . . .
However, if the leak develops on our side of our meter, it is entirely our responsibility to notice, repair, & pay for. . . .


We ALL can check our water meters regularly AFTER turning all of our taps are OFF. If we then find the meter is running even though all the taps ARE OFF, we know there is a leak somewhere that needs to be located & repaired. If instead the meter has stopped, especially over time, it indicates no leak on our side of our meter. . . . Unless the meter itself is broken & is causing the false reading. I've read of that happening more than once.


One of many videos on Youtube that show how to discover whether we have a leak,
(there are some for detecting leaks in the house, or, underground) . . .
(be sure to read the comments under it, too) is this one:


How to Find Water Leaks
- Water Meter Hasn't Stopped Spinning

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cq8tqIkU_JA

Right. So the landlord should be routinely inspecting his water meter.

[pikabike]

We’ve had more than a month of monsoon-thunderstorm threat almost every day, with some actual rain sometimes. But it doesn’t make up for several consecutive years of little or no snow in winter and little rain in spring and summer. Worse yet, it never could make up for the dreadful Use It All Now way of managing water, which only exacerbates a natural phenomenon.

We (in the western USA) don’t save for a dry day, just as too many people don’t save for a financially rainy day.

[Mike from back east]

This weekend there's a flow of tropical moisture set to move up from Mexico and dump all over the southwest. Hope it happens.

[DOUBLE H]

Originally Posted by pikabike

We’ve had more than a month of monsoon-thunderstorm threat almost every day, with some actual rain sometimes. But it doesn’t make up for several consecutive years of little or no snow in winter and little rain in spring and summer. Worse yet, it never could make up for the dreadful Use It All Now way of managing water, which only exacerbates a natural phenomenon.

We (in the western USA) don’t save for a dry day, just as too many people don’t save for a financially rainy day.

Same thing here in western Mesa County. The Four Corners drought situation is as nasty as anything I've seen. I was through there a couple weeks ago visiting friends in Albuquerque, came down 141 and had lunch in Dove Creek.

Mesa County really catches it in spots but NOT the spots we need. The burn scar on the Pine gulch fire area got really soaked. I'm only nine air miles from there, Fruita and Loma/Mack damn dry. Glenwood Canyon has been catching it but only in spots. The Grand Mesa fortunately has seen some good storms but not enough. I'm only a quarter mile from the Colorado River, it's not a pretty sight.

And speaking of rivers, going up to the Yampa River near Steamboat the Division of Parks and Wildlife put in a fishing ban, about a half mile stretch near Stagecoach State Park near the dam due to critical low water flow (meaning not much snowpack over the winter). It goes from the dam itself to the park boundary.

Another long and hot summer. Mesa County is getting a cool down, temps near Fruita right now is 80 and will stay there through the weekend. but how about rain? I am watching GJ's aBC affiliate KJCT right now, a wall of water is covering the Grand Mesa near Delta. They are calling for rain and lots of it near the Grizzly Creek area tonight.

[parfleche]

Lots of rain in Mancos so far.Jackson lake is full and great fishing.Glad we live at the headwaters and not downstream.Lucky us I guess.

[Colorado Rambler]

Originally Posted by 2Q&Lrn&Hlp

I beg to differ. . . . Where I live . . . if a leak develops on the provider's side of our meter, it is entirely their responsibility. . . .
However, if the leak develops on our side of our meter, it is entirely our responsibility to notice, repair, & pay for. . . .


We ALL can check our water meters regularly AFTER turning all of our taps are OFF. If we then find the meter is running even though all the taps ARE OFF, we know there is a leak somewhere that needs to be located & repaired. If instead the meter has stopped, especially over time, it indicates no leak on our side of our meter. . . . Unless the meter itself is broken & is causing the false reading. I've read of that happening more than once.

Thank you for your helpful suggestions!

My case is somewhat unique in that I live on an irrigated alfalfa/hay farm in rural SW Colorado. The ranching family that owns this place have generously given me an entire water share (irrigation water, of course) all of my own. In exchange, I make sure that the fruit trees growing on the property are properly irrigated. There is an outside tap for "city" water, but I almost never use it except to keep the swamper going in the summer. This summer I never even hooked up the swamper since the monsoon came through for us with lots of RAIN (be still, my heart!) and cooler temps. So, I never had a reason to check on the water meter. However, since the amazing $36,000.00 water bill, I do check the city water meter to make sure that the repairs that the rancher made are still holding.

Other wise, I couldn't agree with you more and suburban renters would be wise to follow your advise.

[pikabike]

Originally Posted by DOUBLE H

Same thing here in western Mesa County. The Four Corners drought situation is as nasty as anything I've seen. I was through there a couple weeks ago visiting friends in Albuquerque, came down 141 and had lunch in Dove Creek.

Mesa County really catches it in spots but NOT the spots we need. The burn scar on the Pine gulch fire area got really soaked. I'm only nine air miles from there, Fruita and Loma/Mack damn dry. Glenwood Canyon has been catching it but only in spots. The Grand Mesa fortunately has seen some good storms but not enough. I'm only a quarter mile from the Colorado River, it's not a pretty sight.

And speaking of rivers, going up to the Yampa River near Steamboat the Division of Parks and Wildlife put in a fishing ban, about a half mile stretch near Stagecoach State Park near the dam due to critical low water flow (meaning not much snowpack over the winter). It goes from the dam itself to the park boundary.

Another long and hot summer. Mesa County is getting a cool down, temps near Fruita right now is 80 and will stay there through the weekend. but how about rain? I am watching GJ's aBC affiliate KJCT right now, a wall of water is covering the Grand Mesa near Delta. They are calling for rain and lots of it near the Grizzly Creek area tonight.

The rains are spotty here, too. Although we got some earlier this weekend, my husband biked past a section of road only two to three miles south of us and reported that their (dirt) driveways all had been washed out to the point of needing someone to scrape them. Neither we nor our neighbors had that happen...this time. We got it a few years ago.

Yet today in Towaoc (farther south still), the parking lot for the pow-wow grounds was so dry that a vehicle driving very slowly in it still raised a shocking amount of powdery dust.

[McGowdog]

Perins Peak, Simms and Christmas, all tiny, all 100 % contained.

What a fizzle this megadrought-Fire Season thread this turned out to be.

[Colorado Rambler]

Originally Posted by McGowdog

Perins Peak, Simms and Christmas, all tiny, all 100 % contained.

What a fizzle this megadrought-Fire Season thread this turned out to be.

Indeed. So far so good - at least as far as Colorado goes. However, we still prayed for rain at the Church service I attended this morning and when I drove over to City Market to pick up a few things, there were two - count 'em TWO - busloads of Hotshot crews from California preparing to hit the road. Wonder where?

You know McDog, don't be misled if we end up getting a break from the worst of it this wildfire season. Things are not so completely relentless - yet.

The other thing is that wildfire "season" is getting to the point where it lasts 10 - 12 months a year - some season. Remember the Marshall fire? You better! That sucker started on December 30, 2021 and was the most destructive fire in Colorado history. There's little doubt in my mind that we can expect more fires just like it coming to a town near you - maybe even your own town!

Wanna make a bet? I bet you $10 bucks that Pueblo West or some other enclave within 20 miles of the greater Pueblo metro area will experience at least one wildfire by or before December 30, 2025.

DM me if you dare!

[DOUBLE H]

Originally Posted by McGowdog

Perins Peak, Simms and Christmas, all tiny, all 100 % contained.

What a fizzle this megadrought-Fire Season thread this turned out to be.

It is in Mesa County as well, but that's ok. No fires needed. The last week has been just weird. My neighbor called me up several days ago and told me he was at Carlsbad Caverns sleeping in his car and so was 150 or more doing the same thing. Moab hit the jackpot on monsoon storms and flooded the hell out of downtown.

Right now Idaho has several fires going in the central part of the state.Yet little old Fruita gets a 10 minute storm here, a 15 minute storm there. Weird.