Related Video

Waites, one of the photojournalists in my group, found this video today. I thought that you might be interested in seeing it.

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/tech/2007/10/15/philips.ga.drought.mussels.wsb

Yellow? Let it mellow. Brown? Flush it down.

So, this week's title might be a little graphic for some of you, but I thought it rather appropriate considering all the water conservation tips around everywhere. That little saying makes conserving water by flushing your toilet less a bit more memorable, don't you think?

We have already undergone many water restrictions, but there are more being considered. This AJC article states that most water bans or restrictions have really never worked to limit water use in the home. In fact, domestic water use is the last thing to go during a drought period. Much to my surprise, the types of water restrictions that we are considering haven't even been considered in places in the country where it rains much less than it rains here.

Arid areas of the U.S. have learned how to conserve water and create reservoirs for particularly dry times. We don't usually have rainfall problems here, so this part of the country hasn't considered these types of things. Normally, that would be alright, but since we don't have these precautions in place, serious drought times are much more likely to elevate and become more of a problem more quickly.

Another important issue that had not even occurred to me before is how much our drought is also affecting other areas that rely on our lakes and reservoirs to provide them with water as well. Alabama and Florida are concerned about our drought situation, too. We need to conserve our water by not sending as much downstream to Florida, but sending less water down there is detrimental to Florida's water. I'm from the panhandle area, so this really matters to me. I have family that live down there still, and I have been to Apalachicola many times (sited in the previously linked article). I never thought during all my time down there that a drought situation up here in Georgia would have a negative affect on Florida's water quality, endangered species and shellfish.

We need to remember that we are not only fending for our own water supply but protecting a water supply that is counted on by citizens in other states.

This Is Getting Serious . . .

I have to admit that as I've written about the water shortage/drought situation, I haven't really considered what will happen if the drought continues and there is no relief. I do try to conserve when I can, and thoughts of the drought plague me every time I use water, but I still haven't drastically changed my water use habits. For some people, I don't think that anything will change until they don't have water anymore.

There is now a link to water conservation tips on the UGA homepage. The page was updated a few days ago, but I just saw that the link was placed on the homepage today. I have also heard a few of my friends saying that they have heard that if the drought continues, school will be closed for a week. Have any of you heard this? The student population makes up about a third of Athens-Clarke County's residents, so if we cut down on our water usage on campus by not being there, it might have a large impact on the local water levels. I haven't been able to find any concrete evidence that would indicate that this is true, and I'm wondering where my friends heard this, but it's certainly worth considering. Thoughts?

I have also seen a good bit of information on using grey water in my recent searches for updates. I know that we were talking about using grey water systems for irrigating outside, but apparently that is prohibited by the EPA. Using grey water to irrigate outside violates plumbing and health codes. It can be used, however, for things like filling toilets.

Websites including Georgia DNR, ACC public utilities, and EPD all have a large collection of water saving tips. As I mentioned earlier, even the UGA website now has a link with water conservation tips. Obviously, we can all do things to conserve water, but at this point, no matter how much water we conserve, we are still enduring a level 4 drought. What will happen if this continues?

Working on answers . . . .

Water Problems -- Part 3

As most of you heard in class this week, I actually saw a water patrol truck driving around in a residential area near the coliseum this past week. Last I heard, if you are caught violating the water ban, you are warned, then fined $1,000, and then might have your water service cut off. Apparently, this water shortage stuff is pretty serious as you might have gathered from my previous entries. There is nothing that can be done to end the water drought, but it can be managed, and according to an article in the AJC, we're doing a better job managing it this time than during previous serious droughts. (This article was also particularly interesting to me because two of the authors were my soils and hydrology professors during my ag days.)

Another interesting point that this article brings out, and one that I want to further explore, is the fact that droughts not only affect water supply but also water quality. The article also quotes, "The solution to pollution is dilution." You've probably heard that phrase before. When there is less water in our streams, rivers, basins, reservoirs, etc. there is less water to dilute impure substances.

One of the controversial parts of this issue is that we pretty much know that we are going to deal with a drought situation during this time of the year. The difference is how severe the particular drought is and what we've learned from previous years that we can apply to the current drought situation. I think that water conservation should be stressed more throughout the year when we are not in a drought and perhaps our droughts could be much milder (thought we have actually been in some state of drought for the past year or so). Jay Bookman, a writer for the AJC, thinks that we have been seriously under prepared for a situation that we knew was coming. Now though, there's no way to ignore it.

As I've read how the drought situation has worsened and people are becoming more concerned, citizens and leaders alike, my awareness of how much water I use has certainly been heightened. I have to wonder though how serious this situation is to me since it really hasn't affected my daily life yet. I still have access to water when I want it and where I want it. I have seen some effects of the water shortage around, but nothing has specifically inconvenienced me yet. Is that what it will take for me to really realize the severity of the situation? Is that what it would take for others to realize that? Is there something else I can do personally to help? I feel pretty helpless really when I think about it. Sometimes I feel like the little things I can do to save water really won't make that big of a difference, but if everyone else always thinks like me, we might have a problem.

Lingering Water Problems

Last week I wrote about the water bans and the water shortage that we now have in Athens. For some reason this week though, it was even more in my face. I actually saw effects of the current water situation here rather than just reading about them. For example, Thursday night I was walking around on north campus and went over to Herty Field (where my favorite fountain is located). Much to my surprise, there was a large gate surrounding the fountain and it was bone dry. Signs on the fence said that fountains on campus were not currently functioning in order to conserve water. Even though I had written about the water ban and the drought situation, this is the first time that it had personally affected me. I know that not being able to enjoy a functioning fountain is much less important than having water in my home for instance, but it really hit home for me. Another article that I stumbled across seemed to convey the severity of the situation much more blatantly than ones I had previously read. Businesses, for example, who rely on outside water to function, such as car washes, will not be allowed to continue business unless they can prove that they are cutting their water use by 20%. Also, because of this emergency, water conservation will become more of an issue in the future here in Athens, even during non-drought periods.

As I thought about all of these changes that have occurred because of the water shortage here, even more questions arose in my mind. Water is so available to me. I'm accustomed to it being there all the time whenever I need it. The only reason I thought about this convenience was because it could possibly be gone soon. This made me wonder if everyone in Athens has this privilege like I do. My privileges are in danger because of a water shortage but if there was no water shortage, would everyone in Athens enjoy clean water whenever they need it? Where does the water come from? Does it all come from the same place? Are there poorer areas in Athens who have dirtier water? Is there anything the residents can do about it if that's true? Where does that water from industrial areas go?

Those are just some of the questions that this water shortage has me thinking about. Some answers as a result of investigation to come soon, I hope!

Water Issues

Our area of the country has been dealing with a serious lack of waterfall. Water bans are rampant and our water resources are running dangerously low. According to a story in the Athens Banner-Herald, the local reservoir only has enough water in it to last about 50 days and rivers are running too low to replenish it. This is one of the worst droughts we have faced in 100 years, and it looks like there is not much hope around the corner.

Citizens of Athens-Clarke County and surrounding counties are not permitted to use any outdoor water with no exceptions. A violation of the ban in Athens could cost you $1,000 or even loss of your water services. Businesses that rely on water supply for their livelihood such as car washes will be allowed to continue business as usual at this point.

This level 4 water ban might be an inconvenience, but the importance of the water supply that could be needed for public health and safety issues takes precedence.

For some tips on how you can conserve water, visit this page.

The stuff we breathe . . .

Athens is a rich center for environmental research and study. The University alone provides an environment that affects tens of thousands of people every day. Outside of that, there are over 60,000 Clarke County residents who create and live in a multitude of their own environments.

One of the most seemingly troublesome environmental issues in Athens is air quality. Air quality is affected by many things including car exhaust, particle pollution and even presence (or lack thereof) of trees, shrubs and other greenery. Organizations such as Clean Air Athens are working to improve the local air quality through both short and long term goals.

A recent article published in the Savannah Morning News discusses an EPA proposal to further lower the ozone limit levels nationwide. If this occurs, Georgia cities such as Atlanta, Augusta and our very own Athens could be faced with requirements much more difficult to meet than current standards. If our cities were unable to meet said requirements, other changes such as a switch to a less harmful (but more expensive) type of gasoline might take place. The implications of such a change are not set in stone but could pose some economic problems in the future.