The Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy is holding a lecture about how water moves through Schenley Park. While I won't be at this lecture, lots of good people will be, and it should be extremely interesting. The lecture is on April 27 - click here for more info.
Meanwhile, in northwestern Vermont and northeastern New York State, Lake Champlain has risen above flood stage. A storm is going to bring more rain, and perhaps worse, wind that will whip up the lake and cause more erosion and flooding, especially on south-facing shorelines (of which there are not very many). The next week looks to be rainy so the lake will probably remain above flood stage for a while.
Stories about the ways water moves through natural and human-constructed landscapes... what we can learn from it and how we can use old and new ideas to understand, appreciate, and sustainably use this resource.
Tucson does not have it's mind in the "gutters." We have several washes that rush through and leave nothing for the groundwater level. What to do??
ReplyDeletemy email is guntner@email.arizona.edu
ReplyDeleteYeah, most areas have a lot of room for improvement in how we view water, especially cities in the US Southwest. Flash floods and dry washes are a part of the natural terrain of much of Arizona, but from briefly looking at some sources it seems like the Santa Cruz River once had water all year, but doesn't anymore due to groundwater pumping, watershed degradation, etc. It sounds like Tucson has done some good work with water conservation but looking at aerial photos I definitely see some lawns... it takes a lot of water to keep those alive in the desert... and I doubt only reclaimed water is being used.
ReplyDeleteTucson gets more rain than most deserts, and it does seem that it would be a great candidate for rainwater cisterns. You could probably collect enough water from your rooftop to keep drought-tolerant landscaping alive most of the year. And, some of the washes are definitely channelized which leads to water washing away rather than soaking in. I'm sure there are lots of ways you could get involved, and of course you know the area much more than I do.
http://www.epa.gov/region9/water/watershed/santacruz.html