During 2015, the American Southwest was caught in a major drought. The Southwest has been suffering under drought conditions for almost a decade, and projections state that these conditions may persist for several more years. While populous California has been the worst hit, the effects have been felt here in Arizona as well, and it seems as though there is no end in sight. In 2015, a “call” was put into effect on Arizona’s water allocation. A “call” is a mandatory cutback in water delivery to low-priority users. Although conditions in Arizona are far from catastrophic, Parker & Sons encourages drought awareness.
The Arizona Department of Water Resources stated in their Short-Term Drought Status Summary for June 2016, that drought conditions did not worsen during the month of June. While statewide, no location other than Flagstaff received more than 0.50” of rain, this was in accordance with standard precipitation levels for the month of June.
Long-term status updates are mixed. While drought conditions in the upper, and lower Colorado River basins did not worse earlier in the year thanks to wet monsoons and winter storms, the areas are projected to begin drying out as summer progress.
For an El Nino winter, precipitation levels were well below average. Winter storms largely ceased in January, and those storms that did occur landed largely in Utah and Northern Arizona leaving the central and southern portions of the state quite dry.
Every household in Arizona can do their part to ameliorate drought conditions by reducing water use. The kitchen, bathroom, and laundry room are all sources of massive amounts of water waste. Individuals can change a few everyday habits and end up saving thousands of gallons of water in the long run.
By using high-efficiency showerheads, Homeowners can save over 3,000 gallons of water every year. This savings grows in large household. Low-flow toilets save a number of gallons with every flush. By combining low-flow toilets, with disciplined flushing habits, homes can save well over 10,000 gallons of water on an annual basis.
Laundry should only be run when washing machines are full to capacity. The name of the game is efficiency. Homeowners want to produce the highest amount of clean clothing they can with every wash. If they are unable to produce a full capacity load, they can adjust the load size control on their washing machine.