Georgia and several other south-eastern states are going through, what many believe to be, the worst drought in our history. In fact, many counties in Georgia are under Drought Response Level 4, which says that no outdoor water use is allowed.
Some experts feel that a total watering ban does more harm than good. Outdoor watering accounts for only 20-25 percent of residential water use. Therefore most of residential water use is inside the home, which is not affected by the ban. The ban fails to address other commercial uses and other businesses that use enormous amounts of water.
Droughts are part of the natural environmental life cycle, and they should be included into water management plans. They should not be a surprise. They occur normally every few years. Efforts should be made to conserve and store water properly so that there will not be a crisis.
Even though watering bans are well meaning, they seem to severely impact only one industry-landscaping and horticulture. This industry is one of the largest in Georgia with over $8 billion in sales and more than 80,000 workers. The industry includes garden centers, floriculturists, landscapers, nurseries, florists, golf courses, and others.
Maintaining healthy landscapes and green environments is essential to our health as well as our culture. Landscapes are critical to water storage and management, and their proper care creates water shed and protects the land from floods, erosion, and pollution. They also cool the environment, filter the air and storm water, and provide wildlife habitats.
Exemptions from the outdoor water use rule:
- Use of gray water or water from air conditionings.
- Use of reclaimed water for landscapes.
- Irrigation for food gardens.
- Irrigation for golf courses.
- Landscapes newly installed by professionals (30 days).
- Irrigation contractors.
- Sod producers.
- Growers.
- Retail garden centers.
- Power washers.
- Construction sites.
- Car washes.
Tips to help your landscape survive:
- Avoid added plant stress: Don't fertilize if you can't water, mow grass higher than normal, don't disturb the soil.
- Reduce demand for water: Cut back plants that wilt or die.
- Use other water sources: Collect water from your air conditioning unit, collect rainwater in barrels.
- Mulch: Cover area under plant from trunk to ends of limbs, use pine straw, pine bark, shredded hardwood.
In the spirit of community cooperativeness and conservation, we should do everything we can to conserve water. In doing so, however, let's not destroy one of our largest and most important industries and take away thousands of jobs from our citizens. The drought will end-it always does.
