Barriers to Conservation
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Water conservation has tremendous potential to reduce the stress on our rivers and to extend the lifetime of our water supply.
Unfortunately, this potential is not now being recognized. Everyone loves the idea, yet not enough is done to achieve a low water use community. Here are a few of the beliefs that inhibit aggressive water conservation:
Underestimating the Potential
Historically, water conservation programs have significantly reduced water consumption in Arizona. For example, ADWR has published this graph in 2012:
It is true that Arizona GDI (a measure of economic activity) and population have increased while total water use has decreased; the Prescott AMA has similar results. This shows that conservation works. We are concerned that some water managers may assume that further reductions are impractical. Actually these results represent only the "low hanging fruit." Much, much more must be done.