From the Editor
Never Too Late for Conservation
By Mark Fausz
Jul 16, 2008 - 3:14:38 PM

So, I was helping my grandson dig for earthworms. We plunged little garden shovels into the topsoil on the edge of the garden where the wire grass edges into our strawberry patch. No, we weren’t going fishing. Robby just wanted to find some worms. “I like worms,” he says, “They don’t bite because they don’t have teeth. They lick you.” He’s three.

We didn’t find a single worm in the spot where we can usually find a specimen or two of the squirmy little creatures. No matter, he wasn’t upset, he was on to riding his tricycle quick enough.

I found it curious that the topsoil was very dry as deep as three inches. We had to dig quite a bit before we encountered damp dirt that might bear a creepy crawler. And according to our little rain gauge, we had had almost three inches of rain during the week. The rain that had ruined many an Independence Day party and continued sporadically through the early part of the week had evaporated or been absorbed by our wire grass by Saturday.

Although Chesterfield is currently not considered to be in a drought situation, almost 46 percent (49 percent last week) of Virginia is experiencing drought conditions. One year ago the entire state was experiencing a drought and we were on mandatory water restrictions. Southern Dinwiddie, only about 15 miles south of the Chesterfield/Dinnwiddie line, is dealing with drought.

Forecasts indicate that temperatures will be above normal over the next 30 days and precipitation is expected to be normal according to National Drought Mitigation Center. After last year’s rainfall deficit and drought, will the drought affecting most of the southeast grow back into Chesterfield? I’m no meteorologist, but predictions of normal rainfall and higher than normal heat equals less moisture in the soil. Less overall moisture could mean a diminishing water supply for our reservoirs.

How can we mitigate the impact of future droughts? What can we do to conserve water now so that the water we consider most important – our drinking water – is not jeopardized each year as the climate changes?
Chesterfield’s Cooperative Extensive is plugged into the situation. The Cooperative Extension offered three seminars on constructing a rain barrel, two on Saturday and one this week, and all were full before the Village News knew about them. Whether looking to save money on a water bill, or just being interested in conservation, the water barrel idea has caught on.

Where I grew up, most folk’s water came from cisterns. We had what was essentially a large concrete box that was built in under our garage where rain water from the roof could be stored. I grew up drinking cistern water. Collecting rain water from your rooftop conserves water and saves you dollars on watering your lawn and garden.

Some would say, “There’s plenty of water, my sprinkler system still works every morning.” But even though there’s water for us now, what does the future hold, with more demand being added everyday?

During a recent forum on drought and water conservation, Governor Kaine said that statistics state that 30 percent of summer water consumption is used for lawn watering. A later speaker pointed out that many people from other parts of the world find this statistic astonishing.  His main message was to give the audience the charge of promoting wise management, since there will likely be water shortages in the near future.

So maybe you may want to connect your downspouts to a rain barrel or even one of those 500 gallon farmer’s storage tanks they have at Agri Supply and connect your watering operation to your private water supply. Of course there still need has to be some rain to fill it up.

One thing for sure: the Cooperative Extension has it right. Get people started down the right path to conservation before it becomes critical.

Just as with many other initiatives, it’s never too late to start. Just because we have made mistakes in suburban design in the past doesn’t mean we can’t begin to reconnect neighborhoods now. Because we depend on our personal vehicles to get to work, school or shopping, it doesn’t mean we should give up and not pursue public transportation. Our policy of not requiring sidewalks along every road we’ve built to date doesn’t mean we shouldn’t begin to require sidewalks on every street built in every development built starting today.

It’s never too late to make changes or begin a new way of doing things. Now is the time to think about the future, and if we don’t change things now because they have always been a certain way, then the issues or problems we have now will be inherited by our children and grandchildren.

Whether it’s conserving water through rain-barrel water collection; embracing public transportation to save fuel;  providing neighborhood pedestrian connections allowing students to walk to school and get off the buses (saving fuel), or embracing the idea of trail systems that promote connectivity and healthy lifestyles, it’s never too late to get started.
mfausz@villagepublishing.com | 751-0421

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