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We have water restrictions here in Colorado, and pretty much do every year. It would be a little less laughable if the metro cities didn't have two-mile parks full of grass that THEY have to water constantly. Oh but it's okay for them because they're government, I guess.
We have the usual shortages and the local governments answers to them going on, but a few of the cities are enforcing the local laws that state rainwater coming off the rooftops cannot be collected in your rain barrels and used for watering plants. Now that is overboard on control.
Florida here. We are always on some kind of restriction. I have replaced my grass lawn but I did turn it into a garden and don't have ALL drought tolerant plants. I have to use a lot of potted plants in the yard so that creates water usage. I tried some home grown efforts at micro sprinklers and haven't been too successful at that but working on it.
In florida, it is usually feast or famine in regards to water. The aquifer if really low though and developement continues unabated. I hope the glut of houses on the market stay that way and hopefully the developers will all go bankrupt. Of course that isn't going to happen because so much of the land is owned by old money who just go on with the groves or cattle until they develop it. They get government jobs and influence where the roads go, etc, etc. It's a mess.
Always amazes me how states with torrential rains can be short on water. Ancient civilizations knew how to capture water when it fell abundantly. Even backward India does that to capitalize on the monsoons.
Do you know if your state if experiencing a drought/water shortage?
I live in NM. We are having a drought that has been going on for so long and is so bad that it's beginning to affect our farmers. Farmers are giving up their cattle and not planting crops.
There is no end to the drought in sight. <snip>.
until it is gone.
@ Fran66, thanks for this thread as I have always been simultaneously fascinated and apprehensive for the future of the entire U.S. as well as the global village in regards to the increasing needs for water. I recall many years ago while still in school reading about the world's increasing needs for water and the possibility that we were going to use it all up. And here we are on the precipice of retreating shorelines and the impending threat of ecological and economic disaster.
Obviously the south, southwest, and western states have been dealing with water issues for far longer than the populations in the north, northeastern, northwestern and midwest states have. That is not to say that these areas have not given any thought to water management or had shortages but rather not to the degree that other areas in the U.S. have.
Living in Illinois, a relatively short distance from Lake Michigan allows us the luxury of being a water rich state. The Great Lakes are indeed the envy of the world as it accounts for approximately one fifth of the fresh water on the planet. That being said I think most would have a difficult time in believing these lakes could very well run dry...a frightening but very real scenario.
Again, thanks to all for their replies, a very sobering and interesting read.
Best regards, sincerely
HomeIsWhere...
Some interesting and insightful things I have come across on the subject of water.
The truth is that fresh water is very rapidly becoming one of the most valuable commodities in the world. All over the globe, big global corporations are gobbling up water rights as fast as they can.
Relax. The government will soon claim all water rights, and you knnow how wise and efficient they are about caring for natural resources and seeing to their fair distribution to the People.
Truth is some industries use VAST amounts of water. I don't have a list, but I've run across these incredible water amounts in my reading over the years. Like the estimates for turning oil shale into oil. Fracking involves water. I should google this, but I just know commerce is an insatiable demander of water resources. I sometimes wonder if low quality water could be what they are limited to. It strikes me as dumb the number of things we homeowners use potable water for. Our only source of water is treated water. If you have a rain barrel, you can get it from the sky which sounds pretty smart to me. Maybe every residence should have a dozen rain barrels on the property with a pump to move the water places where it is needed. That won't work in our desert states, but if you watch Weather Channel, you hear daily about downpours. So a good percentage of family residences could get free water from the sky.
I decided a while back that I don't like the lawn enough to water. The lawns in Las Vegas appeal to me because they mostly seem to be desert bushes on sand. Here you have a city full of gamblers and boozers, but their water use shows a level of intelligence most places could only hope for. We move gas and oil from regions of abundance to regions of shortage. I wonder if water could be handled that way. Depends on the willingness of the abundant regions, but maybe it could be sold like oil. Trade water for oil or some other resource?
Truth is some industries use VAST amounts of water. I don't have a list, but I've run across these incredible water amounts in my reading over the years. Like the estimates for turning oil shale into oil. Fracking involves water. I should google this, but I just know commerce is an insatiable demander of water resources. I sometimes wonder if low quality water could be what they are limited to. It strikes me as dumb the number of things we homeowners use potable water for. Our only source of water is treated water. If you have a rain barrel, you can get it from the sky which sounds pretty smart to me. Maybe every residence should have a dozen rain barrels on the property with a pump to move the water places where it is needed. That won't work in our desert states, but if you watch Weather Channel, you hear daily about downpours. So a good percentage of family residences could get free water from the sky.
True. A lot of them could be using some sort of onsite treatment and reuse. It doesn't need to get as clean as drinking water, just clean enough for their industrial process.
A good way to get really upset is to research exactly how much water is wasted in industry and agriculture.
True. A lot of them could be using some sort of onsite treatment and reuse. It doesn't need to get as clean as drinking water, just clean enough for their industrial process.
A good way to get really upset is to research exactly how much water is wasted in industry and agriculture.
Make something cheap enough for those who use it to survive, and the gluttons will use as much as they can.
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