Water: it needs fixing

Life saving - drinking water
Originally uploaded by Julien Harneis

San Bernardino just finished tunneling through 44 miles in order to create a new pipeline for IMPORTING water from northern California. Why? Why? does Southern California continue to do this?

There are other Options.

Orange County replenishes their own water table by recycling 80% of their water. Humboldt County has one of the largest treatment wetlands in the country.

The Inland Empire Utilities Agency in Chino has an educational treatment wetlands park.

And I'm sure there's more.

Our water can be reused over and over again. Considering our Southern California's constant water situation, importing more water does not NEED to be done nor does it make SENSE.

Treatment wetlands are a perfectly good way of naturally cleaning our water. It precipitates pollutants and remediates phosphorous and nitrogen.

Research and technology on recycling water is growing and becoming more and more efficient. In fact a LOT more efficient than importing water. Dr. Stephen Lyon is one of the most accomplished Wetland Treatment scientists and he's a LOCAL!

Can we push the people in charge to do the right thing? Make them stop importing water and make them RECYCLE it.

In the mean time we gotta do our own part.

One could set up their home to irrigate with gray water. Water from sinks, showers, washers and dishwashers.

Change irrigation habits. Instead of planting conventional lawns and turf. plant something else! Buffalo grass (Buchloe dactyloides) uses less water and so does Carex Pansa and Carex Texensis. all of which are perfectly good lawns that are either native or naturalized. Plant trees that use less water. There are such things as drought tolerant plants.

Change home habits. Use less water, we all know how. Low flow toilets with different amounts of water use for #1 or #2. fix leaks. make your showers quick.

come on.... importing more water? draining another river dry?

There are solutions.... why aren't we using them?