HomeMy WebLinkAbout100426 email - Water securityALERT: BE CAUTIOUS This email originated outside the organization. Do not open attachments or click on links if you are not expecting them.
The issue of water security for our North Coast is something I believe we should be aggressively proactive about and should be built into our Counties’ Comprehensive
Plan Updates. We can’t keep hoping that next year’s snow pack will be better. Today, a 100% snow pack is only half of what it was 20 years ago, and when have we even had a 100% snow
pack lately? Climate change is real, our main water supply for half the year - mainly the snow pack - is diminishing; the traditional 2 months of drought is now 5 months and growing;
our populations are expanding, especially in the Sequim area where fields of new homes are appearing.
Have our PUD’s, City Councils, Tribal councils and County Commissioners researched the amount of water needed for a growing population, irrigation for farming and ranching, and the effect
of diminished water supply? Do the numbers add up? Port Angeles almost always declares water restrictions this time of year. This is a policy that should only be a temporary solution,
not a long term fix. What happens with too many years of a 30% snow pack?
The Sequim area has started relying on aquifers, which is fine as long as they are being recharged. But the current history of communities in Arizona, Colorado and California that have
relied on aquifers does not look good. They are drying up, and in some places the ground is collapsing making farming no longer possible. We need to rethink the reliability of this
kind of source.
But what does that leave us with rainfall, river flow, and ground water diminishing?
Desalination is actually our best option. With an abundance of salt water in front of us we have plenty of water but the technology is expensive, requires energy to run, and the first
plants in the US had problems with destroying adjacent marine life. New technology is overcoming these problems and our counties need to work together to research the feasibility of
implementing a plant that will service the whole North Coast from Marrowstone Island to Neah Bay.
We can’t just sit here and dehydrate. It’s our job to make sure the upcoming generations have water. I suggest that the PUD commissioners, City councilors, Tribal councilors, and County
commissioners of Jefferson and Clallam Counties get together and get some knowledgeable industry and research experts to tell us what we can expect from our current water sources; research
current desalination technology and energy sources; and get creative about finances. This should have been in the planning stages years ago.