Opinion: Why a proposed secondary water metering mandate wouldn’t work

Ormond Development crews set up secondary water meters in a subdivision in Woods Cross for the Weber Basin Water Conservancy District on Thursday, Nov. 7, 2019.

Steve Griffin, Deseret Information

In the case of irrigation water conservation, a one-size-fits-all water metering mandate, as set out in HB242, doesn’t make sense for small water districts that present each pressurized irrigation and culinary water.

In lots of of those districts, irrigation water truly performs a essential function in replenishing the aquifer that their culinary wells draw from. As well as, the mandate doesn’t issue within the opposed results that it has on the individuals who have paid to construct and preserve the irrigation water programs over the previous 50 years, on city “warmth islands” and on vegetation that reduces carbon dioxide ranges.

Engineering research have proven that in water districts the place a lot of the soil consists of sand and gravel as a lot as 40% of aquifer recharge is because of irrigation water. So, water managers should stability the necessity for conservation with the necessity to preserve the culinary aquifer. Sadly, the Legislature’s proposed mandate doesn’t acknowledge this.

As well as, nearly all of the smaller, “reasonably priced” properties within the district I reside in have been constructed within the Nineteen Fifties and ’60s. They've totally landscaped yards with mature timber, shrubs, fruit timber and backyard plots that contribute to the bodily well being and psychological well-being of seniors who hold lively by working of their yards.

Through the COVID-19 lockdowns when faculties and public parks have been closed, these yards supplied secure areas for neighborhood youngsters to socialize. As well as, in my space these irrigated yards mitigate the city “warmth island” impact whereas the timber and different vegetation take in carbon dioxide. However the mandate ignores all of this.

If the small district offering my irrigation water is required to put in water meters, it might be pressured to cost extra for irrigation water than for culinary water, for the reason that price to put in and preserve meters on getting older galvanized traces in totally landscaped backyards might be within the vary of $2,000 every. Even with grant cash protecting 50% to 70% of the set up price, irrigation water charges must enhance considerably — and that doesn’t embody the price of sustaining and studying the meters. And beneath the mandate, the one factor the meters will do is encourage individuals to voluntarily use much less water since individuals is not going to be charged based mostly on water used.

Given this, some individuals could resort to utilizing culinary water for irrigation functions slightly than putting in meters. Ought to that happen it could significantly stress the culinary aquifers and will ultimately lead to a system collapse.

One other issue to contemplate is that in some areas the place irrigation water consumption has dropped by 30%, properties are sinking because the water desk drops and the bottom subsides beneath them. It's not recognized if the water desk is falling attributable to water conservation, the drought, a mixture of the 2 or another unknown issue(s). Nevertheless, there have been no comparable issues throughout previous droughts.

Moreover, most of the state’s water districts have getting older, leaky irrigation and culinary water pipes and so it makes extra sense to make use of the cash required to put in the mandated meters to cope with these points. Sadly, they will’t afford to do each.

Lastly, there are way more frugal, much less authoritarian methods to attain water conservation and, much more importantly, to stability irrigation water utilization with the well being of culinary aquifers. For instance, one district sharply lowered utilization by spending lower than $2,000 to mail out postcards asking its prospects to scale back irrigation water consumption.

That district might proceed to mail postcards for the following 2,000 years for the price of putting in water meters that wouldn’t give any higher outcomes. As well as, xeriscaping of present properties, massive tons being transformed into excessive density housing that don’t use irrigation water and different initiatives will proceed to scale back irrigation water consumption.

In sum, identical to federal mandates, state mandates are expensive, they regularly impression these least capable of pay they usually override elected representatives who're charged with balancing using irrigation water with the preservation of culinary aquifers. It’s necessary to do not forget that Utah isn't Washington, D.C., and mandates usually are not the Utah method.

As one legislator not too long ago stated, “Doing one thing for the sake of doing one thing isn't a ok justification for a authorities mandate.”

Ronald Mortensen, Ph.D., is a retired overseas service officer and a resident of Bountiful.