RE: groundwater declining

["Shahab Mesbah" <meteor2@moscow.com>]

Dear Greg,

I agree with almost all of what you say! The fact is that the wells in the
area are dropping fast. The city well will not run out soon but the private
(out of town) wells are far shallower and will be running out soon indeed.

As you mention Moscow has not done well to conserve the problem is mainly
our culture. Lets face it... there are individuals that conserve in this
country but we, as a population, are very much into consuming everything. We
cause all kinds of damage to our environment because we refuse to
acknowledge the fact that our consumption level is not sustainable. We
continue to consume the majority of the resources in our world yet we are
but a fraction of the population.

Your brother in arms,

Shahab...



-----Original Message-----
From: Greg Brown [mailto:gregb@alaskapacific.edu]
Sent: Thursday, February 08, 2001 2:20 PM
To: vision2020@moscow.com
Subject: Re: groundwater declining

Sherrie Metlen wrote:

> In the Moscow-Pullman Daily News, Ted McDonough mentioned in his article
>
> a need to do a study about using wastewater for irrigation to help
> reduce the amount of groundwater used. He said that the Palouse Basin
> Aquifer Committee recently warned that water conservation measures
> undertaken by area governments have failed to slow the rate of decline
> in area underground aquifers.

   If you examine the data, you will see that the universities
have been acting responsibly.  The problem lies with the
communities of Pullman and Moscow.  The greatest
irresponsibility award goes to Moscow (its elected
officials) in particular.

   Years ago, the 4 entities entered into an agreement to
conserve and limit water use on the Palouse.  The Moscow
City Council has ignored the agreement, continuing to approve
virtually every single development thrown its way. Apparently,
intergenerational theft is an acceptable practice for
local politicians.

   No...you probably won't see the water run out in your
lifetime.  There is more a shortage of responsible behavior
than water.

--
Greg Brown (gregb@alaskapacific.edu)
Associate Professor, Environmental Science Dept.
Alaska Pacific University
Anchorage, AK  99508
(907) 564-8267  FAX: (907) 562-4276