Archive for the Policy & Politics Category
Leading the Way: Dallas’s Water Conservation Plan
In April 2020, the city of Dallas will roll out its Comprehensive Environment and Climate Action Plan. The plan will establish Dallas’s goals toward reducing emissions and conserving water in the face of climate change. Dallas believes the water conservation programs it has implemented are proving successful. Since 2001, with the adoption of restrictions on landscape and lawn irrigation, the average water use per person has been reduced by 30 percent and has enabled the city to offset a 10 percent increase in population. Additionally, the city initiated other programs that encourage the general population to be conservation minded, such […]
The Drought Contingency Plan: Is it Enough?
Since 2000, the Colorado River and its reservoirs have seen significant decreases as a result of extreme drought conditions. These conditions only exacerbate the ongoing challenge of supply and demand: the farms and cities of the Southwest region have water demands that outweigh the available water supply leaving the river in a state of imbalance. Last year, in recognition of the crisis, the Lower Basin Drought Contingency Plan (DCP) was signed, but according to Brian Richter, the plan is not enough. Richter, president of the nonprofit group Sustainable Waters and a former director and chief scientist for the Nature Conservancy’s […]
Water Wars on the East Coast
We often hear about water wars in the western part of the country, but recent events related to a lawsuit brought by the state of Florida against the state of Georgia highlights the issue’s relevance to other parts of the country. In 2013, Florida sued Georgia for its use of water coming from the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint river basin, alleging that Georgia’s high usage levels during a drought devastated the oyster industry in the Apalachicola Bay. The river basin is the primary source of drinking water for the metro Atlanta area (estimated at 70% of the population), and it also helps sustain […]
Who Will Be the “Next Flint”?
It has been three years since the lead contamination and consequent drinking water crisis occurred in Flint, Michigan. Given the extent of aging infrastructure throughout the country, the question is, who will be next? Both Newark, New Jersey and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania are currently facing similar circumstances. In 2016, the same year Flint was dealing with lead in drinking water, Newark was also facing accusations of lead-contaminated water, although the city reported the issue to be confined to buildings with aging infrastructure. Subsequently, they prohibited the use of water fountains in 30 schools, providing bottled water, instead. The following year, testing […]
Lake Mead approaching “Tier Zero”
The day many have dreaded for years occurred this month when projections indicated that Lake Mead’s level will reach the “Tier Zero” zone as of January 1, 2020; that’s the level at which mandatory cutbacks are activated by the federal Bureau of Reclamation. In May, the Lower Basin Drought Contingency Plan was signed by the states of California, Arizona and Nevada which requires that the states take less water when Lake Meade’s level reaches 1,100 feet above sea level. The plan also creates incentives for additional voluntary conservation of water to Lake Mead by the states. Additionally, Mexico, in a […]