Water, Water Everywhere and Not A Drop To Drink

Though our sky, rivers and our beings are full of water most of the year it is easy to be lulled into believing that our water supply is an infinite resource. Most of the United States is projected to have adequate water supplies until at least 2025, but if the sciences collide this prediction may diminish drastically in the next 18 years.

Over 70% of our Earth's surface is covered by water. Although water is seemingly abundant, the real issue is the amount of fresh water available.

• 97.5% of all water on Earth is salt water, leaving only 2.5% as fresh water.
• Nearly 70% of that fresh water is frozen in the icecaps of Antarctica and Greenland; most of the remainder is present as soil moisture, or lies in deep underground aquifers as groundwater not accessible to human use.
• < 1% of the world's fresh water (~0.007% of all water on earth) is accessible for direct human uses. This is the water found in lakes, rivers, reservoirs and those underground sources that are shallow enough to be tapped at an affordable cost. Only this amount is regularly renewed by rain and snowfall, and is therefore available on a sustainable basis.



Water in Clatsop County is a commodity that is not taken for granted by those who are on a well that has brown water, a well that dries up in August, or those who want to build a new home where water meters are no longer available due to a lack of infrastructure to support more customers.

Local water boards are under constant pressure to not only supply water to all its customers, but this water needs to be clean and safe and adhere to federal guidelines. They also need to regulate the acidity of the water so as not to dissolve lead from the joints in plumbing that were assembled before silver solder was mandated.

The water boards also need to see exactly how much water they have and how much they can reasonable take from their source. They also have to responsibly add to their infrastructure when allowable.

Water sources must be pristine and protected. Astoria is studying running an electric generator with its water output. Other water districts should be encouraged to do this as well.

Citizens should take an active part in their local water works. They should see where their water comes from so they will understand that water is a finite resource, and realize that a climate change could bring about major restrictions in its use. We should consider conservation methods every day. Rarely is the word “drought” ever mentioned here in Dried Salmon County. Though if one happens we will all feel the effects; not just those who rely on water for business, such as fish processors, car washes and nurseries.