Commentary: A Drought We Cannot Ignore

In Matthew Young’s blog post, “Doing What it Takes to Pretend You’re Not in Texas,” Young brings light to the current drought in Texas that is worsening over time, and people are the main problem. His take on water conservation has reminded me of the vast majority of people who actually are not aware of how they are wasting water and even more importantly, how they can save water.

I do not believe that water restrictions alone are enough to conserve a sufficient amount of water for the upcoming years, however, but that the citizens of this state must also be willing to comply and do more conserving on their own part.

Certain methods of saving water at home include: keeping the shower time to five minutes or under – which could save up to 1,000 gallons per month, watering the lawns once every three days in the summer and once every five days in the winter, inspecting the landscape irrigation system regularly for leaks or broken sprinkler heads, teaching children to turn off the faucet after each use, and many more simple methods inside and outside of the house. There are numerous resources available for informing the public about preservation methods as well.

The epitome of water conservation is to use our water wisely and care for it properly, and it is crucial so for the future generations to be ensured of a sufficient amount of clean water and reduced use of electricity for waste water services. With a finite resource of water available – seven percent of the whole Earth’s saltwater is not available for drinking, and only one percent is available for drinking water – people, wildlife, and nature are at risk of endangerment, as water is essential for food and sustaining life. Not only that, water helps us in our daily activities, such as cooking and cleaning.

I appreciate Young’s post because this topic should be brought up for the public’s attention; the water drought is having a more prevailing effect on our lives and should not be stored in the back of our minds with lesser priority. I agree with Young that water is only becoming more of a scarce resource, increasing its importance in our lives that we need to do our best to preserve. Not only should we conserve water, but we should protect it from pollution and waste, for the importance of nourishing all life dependent of water.

People cannot continue to disregard this upcoming disaster, and many are oblivious of even the impact that the minute changes in their water usage can have on water conservation. If we encourage more citizens to follow these procedures, a whole lot of people doing them will add up in the long-run, but it takes the first step of changing our lifestyle. Each of us depends on water for life, so the responsibility of conserving water should not rest only on the government, but should be a job for the everyday person.