Water conservation...it's about time

This recent Associated Press article really reiterates the need to conserve as much water as we can. Lakes and reservoirs are shrinking, snow pack is decreasing, and desalination is extremely expensive. If states and even countries start asking for water from each other, who knows what kinds of messes that will land us in. However, there are things we can do to help. Start by checking out 100+ ways to help conserve water in your own home.

Bold steps may be in order to keep U.S. taps flowing

By Brian Skoloff
The Associated Press

10/27/2007

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Pumps move salt water into filtration tanks at an Apollo Beach, Fla., desalination plant. Florida leads the nation in water reuse, but the drought still has a devastating effect in the state. An epic drought in Georgia threatens the water supply for millions. Florida doesn't have nearly enough water for its expected population boom. The Great Lakes are shrinking. Upstate New York's reservoirs have dropped to record lows. And in the West, the Sierra Nevada snowpack is melting faster each year.
Across America, the picture is critically clear: The nation's freshwater supplies can no longer quench its thirst.
The government projects that at least 36 states will face water shortages within five years because of a combination of rising temperatures, drought, population growth, urban sprawl, waste and excess.
''Is it a crisis? If we don't do some decent water planning, it could be,'' said Jack Hoffbuhr, executive director of the Denver-based American Water Works Association.
Water managers will need to take bold steps to maintain water supplies, including conservation, recycling, desalination and stricter controls on development.
''The last century was the century of water engineering,'' said Barry Nelson, a senior policy analyst with the Natural Resources Defense Council. ''The next century is going to have to be the century of water efficiency.''
The price tag for ensuring a reliable water supply could be staggering. Experts estimate that just upgrading pipes to handle new supplies could cost the nation $300 billion over 30 years.
It's not just America's problem - it's global.
Australia is in the midst of a 30-year dry spell, and population growth in urban centers of sub-Saharan Africa is straining resources. Asia has 60 percent of the world's population, but only about 30 percent of its fresh water.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a United Nations network of scientists, said this year that by 2050 up to 2 billion people worldwide could be facing major water shortages.
The U.S. used more than 148 trillion gallons of water in 2000, the latest figures available from the U.S. Geological Survey. That includes residential, commercial, agriculture, manufacturing and every other use - almost 500,000 gallons per person.
Coastal states like Florida and California face a water crisis not only from increased demand, but also from rising temperatures that are causing glaciers to melt and sea levels to rise. Higher temperatures mean more water lost to evaporation. And rising seas could push salt water into underground sources of fresh water.
Florida represents perhaps the nation's greatest water irony. A hundred years ago, the state's biggest problem was it had too much water. But decades of dikes, dams and water diversions have turned swamps into cities.
Florida leads the nation in water reuse by reclaiming about 240 billion gallons annually, but it is not nearly enough.
Floridians use about 2.4 trillion gallons of water a year. The state projects that by 2025, the population will have increased 34 percent from about 18 million to more than 24 million people, pushing annual demand for water to nearly 3.3 trillion gallons.
Californians use nearly 23 trillion gallons of water a year, much of it coming from Sierra Nevada snowmelt. But climate change is producing less snowpack and causing it to melt prematurely.
Experts also say the Colorado River, which provides fresh water to seven Western states, will probably provide less water in coming years as global warming shrinks its flow.
California, like many other states, is pushing conservation as the cheapest alternative, looking to increase its supply of treated wastewater for irrigation and studying desalination, which the state hopes could eventually provide 20 percent of its fresh water.
''The need to reduce water waste and inefficiency is greater now than ever before,'' said Benjamin Grumbles, assistant administrator for water at the Environmental Protection Agency. ''Water efficiency is the wave of the future.''