Water?

[mateo]

K, I know that we're in a drought, and everyone's freaking out about he water levels, but I've got to be honest. The lakes I've seen have had more water in them than I've seen in years, except for willard and lost creek. We had a wetter than normal winter, and a fairly cool spring. I'm thinking that we're entering a wet cycle and things are going to get better. how about you?

If we'd had much more snow this winter, or rain this spring, we probably would have had flooding in the foothills, which no rich people want to see.

I think people need to chill and let nature have it's way with us, i mean take it's course.
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[fishmagnet]

Well the biggest problem is that the heat wave we had in early March evaporated away much of the snow we had so we still ended up below normal. We need to be way above normal to catch up. We are due for the weather to get wetter but no one knows when. Let's hope it's this year!

FM
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[addicted2fishin]

Although Dec. and Jan. seemed fairly cold and wet, it really dried up after that. Especially in March (as was already mentioned).

The late spring was also fairly cool, but the damage was already done by the heat in March.

If you look at the totals, we are actually below normal for precipitation this year. It's too late to recover for the year since there really won't be more snowpack (though the storm yesterday defied that). However, if we get a good rain through every week or two, hopefully it will cut down on the watering needed so the reservoir levels can be maintained a bit.

The reason the water levels seem fairly high still is because they haven't really released much of the water yet. As it gets warmer, that water will be needed and you will see the levels drop dramatically.

If everyone will do their part and be sensible with their water usage, we should be ok.

Though I do have a gripe with the SL County Canal people! My dad has a water share and the canal runs right behind his backyard. They tried to tell everyone that they couldn't water until after 6 or 7 PM. Don't they realize that the canals don't stop running during daylight hours? If people don't use that water during the daylight hours, it just runs up into the great salt lake and is evaporated (wasted). Realistically they should have people using that water around the clock.
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[PBH]

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Don't they realize that the canals don't stop running during daylight hours? If people don't use that water during the daylight hours, it just runs up into the great salt lake and is evaporated (wasted). Realistically they should have people using that water around the clock. [/reply]


which is exactly why many of the reservoirs will dry up again this year. Farmers will continue to water and flood their fields even during a week long rainstorm. Why? Because that is their water that is running down the canal, and they will be damned to let the next guy down use their water! Why can't the alfalfa farmers conserve water, as well as the rest of us home users? We have restrictions on times of day we can water, yet the agricultural people will continue to water when watering isn't necessary.....all because they aren't going to let what little shares they have left get passed on to the next guy....or hit the next reservoir downstream...

Too bad...our fish are going to suffer this year....and next.
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[cat_man]

PBH is right. That water can be shut off higher upstream, before it reaches your dad's property. They can reduce the flows up higher during the day, then increase it at night according to people's needs and that would conserve the water up in whatever reservoir is holding it upstream from that canal.
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[addicted2fishin]

Actually, they can't realistically do this. This is the canal system that runs from Utah lake up to the Great Salt Lake and water much of the SL Valley. That volume of water, over that distance, could take days to fill and empty the canal.

It's not a matter of a farmer not wanting to "share" the water, or not letting it get down to the next person. It's just that the water is flowing. There is no realistic or feasible way for them to restrict it to certain times of the day. Them not allowing people to spread out the watering through different times of day is wasting more water than the evaporation caused by watering during daytime. Also, by them not allowing people to spread out the watering like this causes bottlenecks of people watering at the same time. This is what could possibly hinder the water from getting down to the next guy.

Please don't judge unless you know the whole story.
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[PBH]

addicted -- things may be different in SL with the canal, but I know that water is a precious thing. People do not want to let water slip past them, and have the next guy down be able to use "their" water. It happens all the time. I have relatives in Garfield county. If you only knew how many times I have heard "I am not going to let some bastard from Delta get my water!"

It makes me sick to drive past alfalfa fields and pastures that are a muddy swamp this time of year, in the middle of our 6th year of drought. What is the purpose of flooding a field? I understand watering, and I have no problems with them using what water they need. I have big problems with them using up everything for the sake of not letting the next guy get "theirs". If it's raining, is it really necessary to have the sprinklers running?

FYI -- the water that hits the Great Salt Lake is not wasted....maybe from an agricutlural, or culinary standpoint it is, but not over all. Matter is neither created nor destroyed. It merely changes forms.
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[poorfisherman]

I think that a lot of the problem is people want someone to blame for living beyond there means. I firmly believe that when the drought is declared over the resivoirs will be drawn down just as much as they are now.

cause come on the differance between a full resovior during drought and a full one not during drought can't be that much.

but I agree that the thing of being so anal with homeowners is kinda rediculous because the farmers use 85% of the secondary water from our resiviors, so halving homeowner use is still only 7.5% differance.

but enuf complaining time for a solution, if they pipe the treated sewer into the secondary water system, people could still use tons of water and our resivors would stay full.

They have talked about it but people don't want it because they can't get past their emotions of wtering with treated sewer water even though it would be drinking water standards.
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