(Host) For much of our history Americans have treated water as an almost
unlimited commodity, equally suitable for washing, watering the garden
and drinking. But writer and commentator Bill Mares is a former teacher
and state legislator who thinks that attitude is changing.
(Mares)
Twenty five years ago, a fellow legislator Don Cioffi and I made fun of
Killington Ski Area for their plan to spray treated sewage water onto
the slopes. We created a bogus "Vermont Association for Sanitary Skiing"
and made up a bumper sticker, in white and brown, naturally, which
read: KILLINGTON, WHERE THE AFFLUENT MEET THE EFFLUENT. There were a few
hours of amusement and annoyance in the State House, and we returned to
our business. Now the joke is on me. Killington was way ahead of its
time.
Living as I do in view of Lake Champlain it’s hard to
think that there’s a water crisis, but growth, drought and the effects
of global climate change are taking a toll, especially in the arid West.
So as rainfall becomes less predictable and aquifers dry up, more
attention turns to water re-cycling. A recent National Academy of
Sciences report says that "Expanding water reuse, through the use of
treated wastewater for irrigation, industrial use and even drinking
water could significantly increase the national total water resources."
The
report says that "the risk of exposure to microbial and
chemical contamination from drinking reclaimed water doesn’t appear to
be any higher than the risk experienced in at least some current
drinking water systems, and may be (significantly) lower."
Depending
upon the end use, water managers "can choose from a portfolio of
treatment options in designing a wastewater reclamation system." And
it’s worth noting that unintentional reuse of treated waste water is in
fact already quite common, as when surface water coming from an upland
wastewater discharge enters a municipal drinking water system. Another
example of de-facto re-use occurs in some Vermont towns that depend on
rivers for part of their water supply.
Out West, re-cycling water
is big business. El Paso Texas recycles all its wastewater. Most goes
into cooling industrial plants, or waters playing fields, but some goes
back into the ground water and into the Rio Grande River.
As
more communities explore water re-use, the biggest challenge may be
psychological. After meeting with water biotech industry executives, San
Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders became an advocate, and authorized focus
groups and public relations campaigns. He now says, "The public is
worried about scarcity. If science is behind you and you can prove that,
I think people are willing to listen." The San Diego Times Tribune
agreed. An editorial headline read "Yuck factor. Get over it!"
The
inflammatory catch-phrase "toilet to tap" is giving way to what one
advocate calls "toilet to treatment to treatment to treatment to tap."
Getting
back to Lake Champlain… the exit pipe for my treated sewage is not a
half mile from the intake pipe for my drinking water. And when I think
of all the other treatment plants feeding into the Lake – well – I’d
like to offer Killington a belated but sincere apology!