Waterfall
So much rain, 2 inches in one afternoon , falling as we catch up in the gauge. There are meetings in the Capital about drought and when to make the declaration.
I can hear the sump pumps running to move the street runoff away from the house and to the French drains down the side yard. I check the floor drains before I head for bed. So much rain is falling.
The skylights reflect not a gentle lullaby rather it is a full tap dance driving across this stage and one downspout is gurgling from too much input.
I think about putting the new filter into the drinking water spigot and am glad I put that expense before sweets and the spring holidays.
When I was growing, my water came from artesian wells. It was sweet and smooth and I loved to hold it on my tongue on a hot day. The Brewery down the road reminded us that “It’s the Water” on every bottle and can. There is still one well in the middle of downtown and always there are folks there filling up pails and buckets to take it home.
Our water now is full of chlorine and pumped from miles away. Since chlorine is so problematic for my body, I have bought a fancy filter system for drinking water. Several of my neighbors have bought distilling tanks. Chlorine is a full spectrum killer and very hard on our bodies – now we have to take probiotics to replace what we have lost.
What was naturally here is now overwhelmed by too many people and garbage.
When I took my children on field trips out on the bay, we learned about how street runoff, laundry soaps and shampoos are destroying the water habitats of Puget Sound. How our male seagulls lay non-viable eggs . We need to worry about high tides, landslides and the septic systems of all the housing along the beaches and banks of our precious water supply.
I now read that Arizona may only have 5 more years of drinkable water because of the golf courses. I will need to study that further. The same story talked about the farm lands of California may only have another 15 to 20 years of clean water.
Have you seen the documentary Flow; for the love of water?
The water that we do have is being increasingly attacked and assaulted by wasteful usage. It is the little things that make a difference. Such as using too much detergent for our laundry or small loads, using toxic soap in the dishwasher and too much, using shampoo that conflicts with the natural environment and then using too much of a good thing. Bleach is not the only antiseptic for cleaning up and disinfecting.
Yes! Magazine Spring 2010 issue has an interesting article about how our not very “green” birth control methods are making male fish produce eggs and that of course makes me think about all the medications that are flushed out of our systems. I wonder how we teach eco- responsible sexuality.
We have used 10 cubic feet of water less in February 2010. We made a choice to do this. We cut out 4 loads of laundry, took very short and efficient showers, rinsed the dishes in one basin of water before putting in the dishwasher – which we loaded with extreme care, and we used environmentally safe products which do not suds. One other effort we made was to be extremely conscious about our water usage – such as not letting it run while washing our face or brushing teeth.
We have bottled water in our emergency kit and for flushing toilets because of earthquake possibilities, but we do not use bottle water in between. There is no regulation on bottled water and it does not have to be from anywhere to claim it is so – the Perrier water, I had last came from Michigan!
Around the world, 3 companies are buying up all the water rights. Did you know that?
Clean water and clean air are basic human needs. How do you care for your water supply? How do you teach others to use water? I believe this is an area where one can have profound influence locally. When was your last field trip to check things out?
Related reading:
Flow for Love of Water
Relocalization
Ecotopia
