People live, work, shop, play on and in the valley watershed.  How is canyon watershed so much more important than valley watershed.  The canyon watershed issue is used to regulate and profit by the few the use of the many of access to local mountains?

“Between 2002 and 2006, the Vegas metro area actually managed to reduce its total consumption of water by around 20%, even though its population had increased substantially.” National Geographic “Drying of the West” February 2008, page 109.

Water conservation is a good  and venerable green policy; however, it buts up against the policy of a city to generate revenue.  The less water a city sells, the less revenue a city takes in.  As water rates increase, water demand decreases and so do revenues.

Conservation and demand for revenue are at cross purposes.

Not only can revenue go down, the city’s water rights can go down too.  What does a city do with surplus water rights due to conservation?  The correct thing to do is let the water revert to the State which granted the water to the city for beneficial use.  There is  a temptation no to let these water rights revert but to create a surplus water sales business.

Watershed Protection is also a good and venerable green policy.  Salt Lake City has a commendable watershed protection principle.  The issue is not the good principle of watershed protection, but the implementation of the means to achieve the ends of watershed protection.

The I-15 Corridor is a primary pernicious pollutant source of watershed along the Wasatch Front thru air pollution and land pollution.  We are literally drinking water out of the tail pipes of cars and diesel trucks as these fumes are absorbed into drinking water snow pack.  Reducing air pollution, or protecting the airshed may do more for watershed protection in the canyons than patrolling for dogs.

The I-15 freeway collects tire grindings, oil, anti-freeze, brake grindings, etc. creating a toxic chemical soup often activated by rain or snow which moves these toxins into ground and surface water sources.

The Salt Lake Airport is also a contributor to air pollution along the Wasatch Front’s watershed near the airport and in the canyons.  Raw and burned jet fuel is toxic and churned into the Wasatch Front airshed which may find its way into drinking water.

Pharmaceuticals are also a source of watershed pollution.  It is reported 41 million people have drinking water with traces of prescription drugs.

While driving  and consuming oil is an American right of passage into American Consumerism, it is not a sustainable economic and ecological position without protections the planet.  Oil & gasoline powered leisure craft on water bodies and drinking snow watershed makes no sense when natural gas and electric powered leisure craft achieve the same ends–recreation without polluting.

It makes no sense to ban oil and gas in and around water bodies, yet have leisure craft churn these substances into water bodies.

The pallets of salt sitting in front of Smith’s Food King, Alberton’s, etc. in Utah County end up in Utah Lake.  If one  tossed bags of salt into Utah Lake, that would violate some law.  However, if one tosses those same bags of salt into one’s water softener which delivers the salt for discharge from the treatment plant into Utah Lake, that is not only permitted by promoted by current commerce.  This makes no sense.

No one is suggesting, people can’t use natural resources, but that the use should be consistent with sustaining the longevity of life and economic security of society.