Category Archives: Sustainability

Who Owns the Clouds?

storm-730653_640Scenario: you finally come to the awareness that collecting rainwater is a good way to conserve well or city water and a sustainable way to water your garden. So, you set up a barrel to capture rain for use in plant watering. Great idea – right? Wrong. If you live in Colorado, where someone else owns the clouds, you might just be an outlaw!

An excerpt from a New York Times article, A Thirsty Colorado Is Battling Over Who Owns Raindrops, states: “When Jason Story bought an old soy sauce barrel to collect the rain dripping from his downspout, he figured he had found an environmentally friendly way to water his garden’s beets and spinach. But under the quirks of Western water rules, where raindrops are claimed even as they tumble from the sky, he became a water outlaw.”

While water supply has always been limited in the Western US, it’s an even more precious commodity now, as marathon drought has plagued the region for years.

Sustainability has become a wide-reaching message, as individuals and businesses seek ways to conserve water – for without it, we couldn’t survive. However, in Colorado, collecting rain in a barrel, for your own use, is pretty much illegal due to ancient laws that create a system of water rights – meaning it’s not yours – you can’t have it – even if it falls from the clouds onto your own property, because someone else has already claimed it.

Some lawmakers saw this as an antiquated rule and, in the spring of 2015 attempted to make a change, allowing homeowners to collect rainwater on their own properties. But, some with their own personal and commercial interests, stepped in to squash it – one legislator categorized personal rainwater collection as “stealing”.

So far, the law, which could generate fines of up to $500 to an individual, has been largely unenforced. The question is, as rainwater collection becomes more popular in the mainstream, what will happen if more folks in Colorado choose to harvest rain?

11th Annual ARCSA Conference

beyondthegarden

ARCSA CONFERENCE | November 9-10, 2015
ARCSA/IA EXPO | November 11-12, 2015
Accredited Professional Workshop | November 12-13, 2015

The American Rainwater Catchment Systems Association  (ARCSA) continues to encourage the protection of our planet and our nation’s resources.

ARCSA will be co-hosting this year’s conference with the Irrigation Association. Exhibits, education seminars, and guest speakers will be on hand to answer your questions on rainwater collection practices.

The demand for drinking water will double in the next 40 years. To meet this demand, we need to conserve today. Rainwater collection is one alternative to conserve our water supplies. 50 – 70% of household water is used for non-potable demand. Irrigation, wash down, laundry and toilets can all use filtered rainwater rather than becoming runoff. Potable use can be achieved with proper filtration and disinfection.

Theodore Roosevelt said it best: “The nation behaves well if it treats the natural resources as assets which it must turn over to the next generation increased, and not impaired, in value”

Please join us this year for the national conference and the advancement of water conservation. For more information, and to register, please click here.

Californians Rise to Calls to Cut Water Use

watering-791312_640As reported in the Los Angeles Times, Californians  have risen to calls to cut water use and achieved an overall 29% reduction during May 2015, exceeding Gov. Brown’s mandate that use be cut by 25% statewide.

The state’s hard hitting push to educate residents of the dire need to change habits through sustainable landscaping, upgrading appliances and simply by taking shorter showers, has clearly had a positive effect.

The article reports: The savings are based on data submitted by the more than 400 urban water suppliers, which must meet or exceed specified savings beginning in June or face potential fines. Among those water suppliers that showed significant improvements in the latest round of reporting were the California Water Service-Bakersfield, with a 37% cut; Orange County’s Serrano Water District, with a 43% reduction; and Riverside County’s Lake Hemet Municipal Water District, with a 49% savings.”

Way to go Californians – keep up the good work! Your diligence will be absolutely necessary throughout the summer, but with a few more good months under your belts, continued education and outreach, and by maintaining sustainable living habits, you can make meaningful and long-lasting modifications.