This winter has provided us with a breather from the drought that has plagued the west since 2000. While this year’s precipitation might raise the levels of Lakes Powell and Meade, experts warn that it won’t end our water woes.
In fact, the large amount of snowpack this winter might create an opposite problem if it melts too quickly in the Spring, according to an article in The Tribune. It is nice to read that municipalities are planning ahead for sudden runoff by purchasing sandbags to protect us from potential flooding. Monitoring storm drains will also be important.
What I scratch my head about is how we went from being advised to only water three days a week to having two of the largest reservoirs in the country running dry. My wife and I toured Hoover Dam a year ago and were shocked when the tour guide mentioned the fact that the West was in a 22-year drought. Why hasn’t more been done to ameliorate the effects of the drought? Don’t we pay experts to monitor the water supply in the Colorado River? Watering lawns is a relatively small part of our water problem. Why weren’t more comprehensive measures started 15 years ago, when the drought had been going on for eight years?
Whatever time this winter’s precipitation has brought us must be used wisely to implement major changes in how we use water. It must be a national effort, and it must begin now, not in a few years. We already know what we can do. We just need leadership and organization to get it done and creative thinking to come up with new solutions. Maybe cisterns and dams to catch excess water and pipelines to re-distribute it will be part of the long-term solution.
At the national level, we need our elected representatives to end partisan bickering and solve problems as we elected them to do. Stop investigating the FBI and Department of Justice for doing their jobs. Stop listening to bizarre schemes to divide our country along partisan lines. Stop arguing over the debt ceiling and fix the problem expeditiously. We have water problems all over the country, from too little water in the West to too much in the East. We need national leadership in finding long-term solutions, not political posturing. And whatever assistance Congress devices must have safeguards to prevent the theft of tax-payer dollars as we have with Medicare and COVID-relief funds.
The depleted Colorado River waters seven states, so the federal government must facilitate a compromise as necessary. As our rivers ultimately end at the ocean, desalination must be part of the solution so we can reclaim that water. Yes, desalination is expensive, and the brine byproducts of the process must be disposed of in a responsible manner. But surely the system that built the Interstate Highway System and landed men on the moon can help solve our water woes.
Agriculture uses 80% of the water in Utah, so the state must assist farmers in changing their approach to watering. Maybe some of the state surplus we’ve been hearing about should be used for incentives to get farmers to implement 21st century watering techniques, like using sensors to adjust watering and switching to crops that aren’t so thirsty.
Local governments must change building codes to outlaw the installation of lawns. I like my lawn and have spent a lot of time and money keeping it green. Lawns are fine in England but make no sense in a desert. Local governments must provide incentives for homeowners to xeriscape their yards. Plus, water isn’t free and municipalities must start metering and charging for irrigation water. We appreciate a good thing when we must pay for it.
Low-flow shower heads and toilets help but are not sufficient. We must all be good water stewards and conserve in every way that we can.
It’s not just up to the government to solve the drought problem. They should lead, but we must each do our part and take water conservation seriously. Droughts have caused the end of civilizations in the past. Let’s not let it end ours.
David Op’t Hof
David W. Op’t Hof, Lehi, is a retired educator, writer and philsopher.
