It's easy to grow disillusioned in the face of so many grim statistics and pessimistic forecasts about the ramifications of the West's relationship with its water supply. But, as with so many of our challenges, the biggest barrier, according to international water expert Peter Gleick, is the need to overcome antiquated — in this case, 20th-century — water conservation thinking. As Gleick has written and lectured about frequently, the philosophy of water managers during the last century was, "Whatever we need, we'll build it." During those decades of unbridled industrial expansion, there ... Read More
A Victory for the ‘Water Underground’
October 13, 2009 • By • 1 Comment
Plagued by drought and homeowner recalcitrance, California building officials last summer relaxed the rules for greywater use, allowing residents to hook up their washing machines to garden hoses without a permit ... because they were doing it anyway. On Aug. 4, the California Building Standards Commission effectively caught up with an eco-revolution that began here 20 years ago during the last drought. In 1989, the County of Santa Barbara became the first agency in the United States to change its building codes and legalize the use of household greywater — the slightly dirty wastewater ... Read More
I’ll Have a Glass of What You Had Yesterday
April 25, 2008 • By • 1 Comment
Water is used over and over again. Karl Linden, an engineering professor at the University of Colorado, would like the public to understand how trace elements of the more than 3 billion prescriptions Americans fill every year can be found in the nation's drinking water. "The water in the Mississippi is used, reused, treated and served as drinking water many times before it reaches the delta at New Orleans," Linden said. Water from wastewater treatment facilities is poured back into rivers; effluent from agricultural operations feeds streams; manure used to fertilize fields may find ... Read More
