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Show Page 16 THE OGDEN VALLEY NEWS Volume IV, Issue II May 1, 2001 New Program Developed to Assist in Water Conservation Utah residents are no doubt tired of hearing the numbers of how dry their climate is. They can probably recite in their sleep that their state is the second driest in the nation. And there’s a good chance that they’re more than vaguely aware that they pay the second cheapest water rates in the mountain west. But Broken heads can send precious water in unintended directions. Often it ends up running down a street. honestly, as normal homeowners, will that stop them from wanting a green lawn? Probably not. And wanting a nice looking yard to compliment a nice looking home isn’t necessarily a bad thing. draw more heavily from wells, which in turn, lowers the water table. State water managers consider our current water situation serious, but not unworkable, especially if water users take some action. In Utah, a “water user” may be municipal, industrial, residential or agricultural. In general, agricultural users use non-treated water for farms. Municipal, industrial and residential users, on the other hand, use the drinkable, “urban” water on commercial and residential landscapes, parks, golf courses and institutional landscapes. In the urban setting, some places use nontreated water for landscape purposes, while in other communities without secondary waters systems, landscape water comes from the potable water supply. A third of urban water use is for indoor use, while most of the remaining two-thirds ends up on grass. But, much of this water ends up running down street gutters and storm drains because the sprinklers many people use are inefficient and wasteful. All of us have seen arching curtains of water irrigating asphalt or cement. With water at a pre- Urban and Storm Water Runoff—A Community Concern Compiled by Shanna Francis Ogden Valley News Staff Pineview Reservoir is on the state of Utah’s 303d list of impaired waters. The reservoir is only partially supporting its beneficial uses. A report by the state shows problems with levels of total phosphorus, dissolved oxygen, and temperature (unnaturally warm). Very little of the land around this reservoir is fertilized, so from where, and from what does the phosphorus problem stem? Many problems contribute to the non-wellness of Pineview. Without changes to the way Ogden Valley is developing (planning and zoning requirements), and the way the land is managed by home and property owners, Storm water runoff in the Patio Springs Subdivision causing erosion along roadway. Rolled gutters or better road and subdivision design could direct water into natural detention basins. Heavy stormwater runoff from development in the Wolf Creek area in Eden picks up sediment and pollutants and heads toward an open irrigation ditch below. The erosion also compromises the stability of the road, which has had to be repaired several times. the health of Pineview—only one of many indices of the environmental health of our Valley—will only continue to decline as rising population levels increase the pressures to our natural resources. An important tool a community can implement to maintain or improve its water quality, not only for their own use, Stormwater in Patio Springs sidetracks an ineffective collection drain designed to capture runoff. An example of how over watering, and a mild slope can waste water. What should be of some concern is mium, officials are put in an awkward that people like Utah so much that near- position. The government isn’t in the ly two and a half million of them will be business of telling people how to use the living along the Wasatch Front by 2020. water they pay for, but it is obliged to In addition, much of the state’s surface offer suggestions about water conservawater that can be captured in reservoirs, tion. And that’s where an innovative already has been, and environmental water conservation program from the concerns may slow new projects from Bureau of Reclamation and the Utah being sited by either the state or federal State University Extension comes in. “Landscape Irrigation Simplified,” government. Finally, exceptionally dry or LIS is a technique for teaching a more years, like what the state experienced efficient method of applying water to last year have been happening more frePROGRAM cont. on page 17 quently than normal, causing people to RUN-OFF cont. on page 17 OVER 50 YEARS OF COMBINED REAL ESTATE EXPERIENCE IN THE OGDEN VALLEY Paul Judd Idaho/Utah Broker Sales Master Multi-Million $ Producer 745-5667 It pays to use the best for your Upper Valley Real Estate needs Nichole Kester Realtor 745-0290 Jan Retallick Condo Specialist 745-3996 Richard Manley Realtor 745-4224 Visit our Eden Office at 5402 East 2200 North Sometimes, part of a poor water use problem is simply the improper placement of landscaping features. Visit Paul’s Website: pauljudd.net |