Deseret News, A call to conserve water

Deseret News, Wednesday, March 06, 2002

A call to conserve water

Drought would hit farmers hard, official warns

By Donna Kemp Spangler
Deseret News staff writer

   The drought stifling the state will hit Utah farmers the hardest, especially those who rely on spring runoff to water crops.
   There may be enough water to expect one cutting of alfalfa, maybe two. But grain growers will be very lucky to get through a harvest this year. And those growing corn late in the year may be devastated.
   "Agriculture will have the biggest impact," Larry Anderson, director of Utah Division of Water Resources, said of the state's water shortage.
   Anderson, speaking Tuesday at a press conference at the Capitol, said there will be water this year — just not much. And that prompted Rep. Carl Saunders, R-Ogden, to call for early water conservation.
   "We are in an emergency situation," said Saunders. "Starting now we have to have important conservation measures in place so we don't wait until the middle of the summer when it's too late."
   For the fourth year in a row, snowpack in the Wasatch Mountains is below normal levels. And meteorologists are predicting it won't get better by April 1, when state water managers start to get nervous about the water supply.
   Add to that a dry spring, and Anderson said, "We really are looking at severe drought conditions."
   Making matters worse is the dry ground, which could soak up a significant amount of this year's runoff. That means Utah's reservoirs -- vital for irrigation and drinking water supplies in the summer -- will remain low.
   The farther south, the worse the drought, water managers said.
   One way to cut down on water use is to stop overwatering lawns, Anderson said.
   About half of water consumption along the Wasatch Front goes to outside watering, mainly on lawns and landscaping. Northern Utah cities already prohibit outside watering between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. And last year, Gov. Mike Leavitt asked that everyone do their part and not water lawns during the hottest part of the day.
   Utahns apparently listened. The result was a 17 percent reduction in water use.
   "Last year what helped was an informed public," said Mark Eubank, chief meteorologist for KSL Television. "It saved water."
   The next three months are crucial, Eubank said. Utah needs rain. Lots of rain. And there's only a 16 percent chance of that, he added.
   "I think what we should do is hope for the best and plan for the worst," Eubank said.
   For the most part, conservation efforts have been voluntary, mostly a result of public awareness campaigns that scold people for wasting water.
   Conservationists have long argued the need to revamp the current water pricing system of paying for water through taxes because it insulates water users from the true cost of their consumption.
   Water conservation is built into Salt Lake City's water rates, where water costs an average 50 percent more per gallon during the summer than during the winter. The increased price of summer water has encouraged residents to use less.
   It seems to work, Anderson said. Still, lawmakers are reluctant to change the system, leaving it up to municipalities to pass ordinances that outline water conservation measures.
   Saunders' suggestion: Pray for rain.
   "I don't think it will hurt to petition the good Lord in these matters," he said.

E-MAIL: donna@desnews.com