We All Take Water For Granted by Stuart Lieberman I'm thirsty. I need a drink of water. We turn on the faucet, and we expect water to come out of it. But what if there was no water? While public water suppliers generally still have product to sell, we are seeing some pretty bad drought conditions in the United States and through out the world. What this means is that we all need to start appreciating the value of water and to start thinking about how we use it. Unless we live in the more drought stricken States such as Texas and Florida, we just don't believe that there are water shortages. The idea of not having water, on demand, is so frightful that most of us do not even want to entertain the notion of water scarcity. And its not as if there is nothing that we can do about this problem, because in fact we all can make a difference. For example, manufacturers have developed household appliances which can save water usage. The EPA's Energy Star designation can help point you in the direction of washing machines and dishwashers that use less water. A recent six month study sponsored by the United States Department of Energy indicated that better, more efficient washers can use up to 40% less water. Newer dishwashers can save 25%. The feds waste so much money on so many useless things. Maybe one smart investment would be a tax credit for people who replace inefficient appliances with modern, energy savers. Current drought conditions go beyond agricultural and health concerns. They also affect areas of life that are not as obvious. For example, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration recently announced that it will provide its weekly drought outlook reports earlier in the day, well before grain trading begins in Chicago. Officials wanted to provide investors with this information in advance of trading so that they can make trading decisions based on the drought outlook. There had been complaints from traders that later announcements were influencing grain prices. Of course, the world doesn't revolve around the United States and this is a global problem. China and Africa are also experiencing terrible drought problems this year. In China, 13% of its farmland, which is a lot of farmland, has thus far been affected. That figure may rise and may lead to production problems in China. In turn, Chinese food shortages can implicate a host of other issues. Several years ago, Congress passed the National Drought Policy act. The Commission consists of 15 members, representatives of all levels of government and other drought impacted groups. It was charged with providing advice and guidance to Congress in responding to serious drought emergencies. The Commission just issued a report to Congress in which in urged that there be more preparedness nationwide. The Commission further urged that there be a national drought policy which favors preparedness over insurance, which favors insurance over relief, and which provides incentives for planning for drought relief. Early in May, a Bill passed the House of Representatives that would authorize the EPA to make grant money available to state agencies for the purpose of maximizing water supplies and creating alternative water supply sources sources. The Bill applies to instances in which there is a critical water supply shortage. A critical water supply shortage is defined as one in which existing supplies are not likely to meet current or reasonably anticipated water use needs. That this Bill has passed the House and is on to the Senate is another indication of the magnitude of this problem. For your reference, the Bill is "HR 1106." | 
