KVOA | KVOA.com | Tucson, Arizona
TUCSON - In some places, like California, immediate changes are being made amid a severe drought. However, here in a desert region that is lucky to get 12 inches of rain in a year, our water demand has actually declined.
Tucson Water attributes this partly to the culture in the Old Pueblo. Many Tucsonans are very careful how they manage and use their water.
"The goal is to minimize the water you use and use it as many times as you can," said Nancy Peshawar, who is currently implementing elements into her home to collect and manage water more efficiently. "It's the right thing to do. It's great for Tucson. It's great for the environment. We are creating habitats here and fruit trees and we are doing it without using City water."
Non-profits dedicated to water conservation, such as Watershed Management Group, want to educate the public on how to collect and manage water in the desert.
"Money can't buy water in the desert, so it's just a really important asset here in Tucson. That's why we live here. Without water, nobody would be living here," said Lisa Schick, executive director of Watershed Management Group. "People really have embraced that we live in a desert and that water is precious here and that we really want to take care of our home, [so] we have water for the future."