BRIGADE ARTICLES

Peak Water:  Challenges and Opportunities

 “The bad news is that if the drought keeps up, within a few years we'll all be drinking reclaimed sewer water. The good news is that there won't be enough to go around.” -- Bill Miller, The Chicago Sun-Times, March 4, 1977

Well, the day has come.  Many of us in urban environments are already drinking reclaimed sewer water, and unfortunately there likely won’t be enough to go around (don’t forget sewer treatment plants use a lot of electricity).  We are in the midst of a disaster arguably greater than this planet has ever known.  It is hard to talk about an issue like water without getting into most of the other problems we face as a society simply because, like all living things, we are deeply linked … we are one.  Climate change (aka global warming), irresponsible development, industrial agriculture, over population, etc., all contribute to a quickly diminishing “pool” of available fresh water.  Below we will look at some of these problems and more importantly at some of the things we can do as visitors here on Mother Earth to reverse the problem.

"Whiskey is for drinking; water is for fighting over." -Mark Twain, 1884

The subject of water brings up intense emotion.  The very thought of water in all of its permutations touches us at the core.  This shouldn’t come as a surprise since we humans are almost three quarters water ourselves.  Water is something that we, at least in most of the United States, have historically taken for granted.  We turn the knob on the faucet and we expect it to be there.  We see a gentle river and expect to (safely) jump into it on a hot day.  Not only do we absolutely depend on it for our survival but so do the plants and animals that we rely on to complete our cycle of life.  What many of us don’t understand is just how close we are to utter catastrophe when it comes to our water supply.  We all know about “peak oil” and the implications of $7.00/gallon gasoline but the ramifications of an equally rapidly diminishing supply of safe drinkable water have the potential to be much further reaching.  Simply stated, we can live without oil but we can’t live without water.  The perceived threat to national security in the Middle East will swiftly move to a real threat within the borders of our own country.  “Water wars” have been going on for centuries especially here in the West (and now they are well underway in the Southeast in places like Georgia) and will likely much more intense in years to come.  In 2000, Fortune magazine pronounced that “Water promises to be to the 21st century what oil was to the 20th century; the precious commodity that determines the wealth of nations.”

Water Facts (source: Water Institute)

• A corn field of one acre gives off 4,000 gallons of water per day in evaporation.
• It takes about 6 gallons of water to grow a single serving of lettuce.
• More than 2,600 gallons is required to produce a single serving of steak.
• For you East Coasters … there are more than twice as many acres of lawn in the Chesapeake Bay watershed as there are freshwater wetlands.
• Bottled Water:  US Consumption in 1978 was 415 Million Gallons and in 2001 was 5.4 Billion Gallons … a rise of 1,300%, equaling about 43 Billion 16oz plastic bottles.

It really “boils” down to a simple matter of supply and demand (with a little collective unconsciousness and greed thrown in for good measure).  As far as supply goes it is important to remember that of all the water on the earth only 1% can be used for all of our many ‘needs’ like agriculture, manufacturing,  watering lawns, washing cars, flushing the toilet, bathing, and lest we forget drinking.   The following facts should hopefully offer a better understanding of the enormous amounts of (embedded) water that goes into the things we consume (and indirectly point to the potential for conservation/reduction).

The above facts point as much to demand as they do supply.  As the population of the planet grows and the label of “consumer” (note: Lynn Twist recently pointed out that it wasn’t long ago when we were referred to as citizens) is exported to nearly every corner of the planet, it becomes clear that we are in the wake of a tipping point.  A point in time when demand outweighs supply to such a great extent that wars will be waged (in the courts, on the battle field, and even within our neighborhoods).   In less than 200 years the demand for water has doubled every 20 years while the population has grown twice as fast.  Vast numbers of our global brothers and sisters don’t even have access to clean water, while even more lack proper sewage and sanitation. 

Rather than spend any more time discussing the problem (which could take months and is already very well documented if only our media and population in general would pay attention) let’s spend some time exploring some of the solutions and steps we as visitors on this planet can take to ensure future generations not only have water to survive but cleaner, more healthy water than we have today.

Conserve
Really consciousness is the key to conservation.  Listen to the water as it runs and constantly remind ourselves of its value as it runs down the drain.  We all find ourselves with the faucet running as we wash our dishes or brush our teeth.  Simply turn it off and forgive yourself when you forget.  A lot of people go as far as collecting the water in the shower as they wait for the water to warm up, using it to water plants and flush the toilet (side note: in many parts of the world, including Australia, the idea of using fresh drinking water to flush human waste down the toilet could not be more foreign … composting toilets are actually standard in million dollar homes).

Get Rid of Your Lawn
Americans spend more than $40 Billion on their lawns each year!  In addition to all the chemicals we put on our lawns just think of all the water that gets used just to keep it greener than your neighbors.  If you visit Portland and other progressive cities around the world you will find people replacing yards with edible gardens.  Also, drip irrigation is the best way to go if you want to conserve water in the garden.

Prevent Run-off
Water that runs off our property ends up in expensive, over extended, (and energy intensive) waste water treatment facilities –OR—in a local creek that is very likely suffering from erosion.  More and more people are employing technologies like pervious pavement and rain gardens which allows water into the ground (the cheapest place to store water). 

Sustainable Landscaping
As mentioned above, we lose an inordinate amount of water due to run-off, obviously due to the immense amount of concrete we are surrounded by.  But if you think about it most of our landscapes are as hard as a rock, and this contributes greatly to the run-off problem.  Build your soils so they are more capable of soaking up all that water.  Brock Dolman of the Water Institute cold only put it so simply and succinctly, “Sink it, slow it, spread it.”  Create the proper conditions for allowing the water to sink into the ground.  If you have a slope use things like swales to slow down the water by spreading it over a distance.  Sustainable landscaping also implies a complete lack of petroleum based pesticides and fertilizers which help ensure cleaner/safer water downstream.

Plant A Tree
And it may sound crazy but another suggestion is to plant trees!  Ever think about why that stream by your house always seems to be running despite the fact you haven’t seen rain for months?  More than likely it is a result of all those ‘fog brooms’ otherwise known as trees.  They have an amazing capacity to absorb moisture out of the air and sink it into the ground.  Trees are also great stabilizers of the soil which means less erosion resulting in cleaner waters for salmon and other wildlife.  

Buy Local – Better Yet, Grow Your Own
More water is used in the production of food, via the industrial agriculture complex, than domestic and industrial sectors combined … a lot more.  As oil prices continue to skyrocket the cost of transporting this food (on average the food on most plates in America travels over 1,300 miles) will increase as well.  You think food is expensive now! 

Get Involved
Some people are blessed to have influence and resources to reach millions with the intention of affecting change.  The rest of us are seemingly limited to our local community.  The reality is that the shift that needs to take place can only start with ourselves.  A great way to get involved is to first simply know what watershed you live in.  Know where your water comes from and where it goes after it leaves your house.  Find ways to expand your community’s collective consciousness around ‘peak water’ and most importantly lead by example.

More Advanced (albeit ancient) Techniques
 
Grey Water
Grey water is the by-product of washing your clothes, dishes, and/or bodies.  As long as you use biodegradable soap, this water can be diverted away from the sewer/septic system and to a series of natural filters outside the house.  Once this water is filtered it typically is channeled to a beautiful water garden or simply stored in the ground.   These systems are now being permitted by local building departments but such legalities hasn’t stopped many like the Grey Water Guerrillas (see links below).

Rainwater Catchment / Green Roofs
Rainwater catchment is catching on.  Water is diverted from roofs using the existing gutter system into large tanks either above or below grade.  This water is then used at dryer times of the year for watering plants in the garden.  Green roofs are another way of slowing the water as well as increasing biodiversity and heat gain in the community. 

Article Submitted by Carl Shuller from San Francisco, California