Saving water for the future is our responsibility today

The Arizona Republic
Jan. 2, 2005 12:00 AM

It isn't easy to talk about the need to save water when storms cause creeks to spill their banks, fill reservoirs beyond capacity and the Salt River to flow through Phoenix for the first time in nearly seven years.

But don't let the weather fool you. Think of it as a real-life lesson about why water conservation is a timelier topic now than ever for Arizonans. The late-December storm didn't end the drought, nor will the next one. Arizona needs several years of above-normal conditions to recover. And most of that water running down the Salt River is lost.

This temporary abundance of water is really just another contradiction. We live in a desert, where droughts are common, yet we plant lush lawns and grow thirsty crops. Our population is growing in areas where our water supply is not. So we build dams and canals to import water in order to keep it cheap and fuel more growth.

Conservation should come naturally. Yet in most of Arizona, it doesn't. The urge to conserve seems to fade with the latest rain shower.

In the end, conserving water has little to do with drought or floods and everything to do with protecting a finite resource. It is not about making sacrifices. It's about eliminating waste. It's about saving our community's lifeblood for tomorrow.

Conserving water is something we do because we're responsible desert dwellers.


This article were taken from here!