Friday, March 14, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
SO WHY DO YOU always drink bottled water?
The question came from one of our community's more concerned citizens who has been around long enough to notice such things. He was part of an exciting and informative group of the citiy's seniors who make it their business to follow and understand foreign policy issues and the impact such decisions might have on ordinary Americans. I was asked to speak to them last week and, as is often the case, the subject matter changed to issues of local import.
Water, of course, is of vital importance to Las Vegans. So is Congress' desire to dump the nation's nuclear waste a few miles from town. Right now, we have to rely on the considerable ability of Sens. Harry Reid and Richard Bryan, the promised veto of President Bill Clinton and the goodwill of 34 of Nevada's friends in the Senate to stop the latest insanity concocted by Alaska's Frank Murkowski and Minnesota's Rod Grams -- neither of whom will win the "Be Kind to Nevada's Children" award. As far as the nuke waste issue is concerned, we have met the enemy and he is the nuclear industry and its puppets in the U.S. Congress.
As far as Las Vegas' water issue is concerned, though, the enemy is far closer to home. That's one of the reasons I have been drinking bottled water for a number of years. Recently, though, what many of us have suspected was proved true in a number of SUN stories by reporter Mary Manning who alerted the community to a plume of unknown content and suspicious origin that has been growing in Lake Mead -- the primary source of the valley's drinking water.
Experts on water matters have been warning us that action needs to be taken soon to determine just what kind of hazards exist in the plume that is snaking its way through Lake Mead, coming dangerously close to the intake "straw" which draws water from the lake to quench a thirsty population of over 1.1 million people.
I don't know all the reasons why scientists and other experts are so concerned about what might be growing in the middle of our drinking water supply, but I do know that, unlike the nuke waste issue which is being fought in Washington, the ability to clean up our own water supply rests solely with the people who live in this valley.
We are the folks who, by our usage decisions, determine the amount and nature of polluted water that washes down the natural drainage paths and into the lake. We are the people who allow the decisions to be made that provide for known chemical and industrial pollutants to be carried throughout the valley and back into Lake Mead. And we are the people who hold in our hands the power to say "enough" to any agency or institution which wants to act adversely to our long-term interests in clean drinking water.
It is very possible that the efforts our leaders have taken to prevent bad water from flowing through our taps are working. It is also possible that the "plume" which is becoming more evident each day is just some harmless phenomenon causing undue concern. If that is the case, though, we should know it. And soon.
There are some quality of life issues that can and have been sacrificed on the altar of the explosive growth that this valley has experienced for the past couple of decades. There are others, though, that should never be compromised. Water is one of them!
The good news is that people involved in the water quality business have been meeting to try to determine the proper course of action to ensure safe drinking water for Clark County's burgeoning population. The bad news is, like everything else in life, vigilence and diligence cost money. And freeing the funds necessary in the face of other pressing priorities may not be so easy.
Some of the scientists who have been studying this problem for many years believe that the time to act is upon us. Further studies, they claim, are just a waste of time. Time we may not have if the worst proves true about the biological and bacterial contaminants that may exist in our drinking water supply.
One biologist who has been at this problem for the past 20 years says we must act now. Larry Paulson says, "We don't need another five years of studies to tell us there is a problem." He says that improved water quality can be achieved if we just decide to act rather than continue to put off dealing with the issue.
The problem I see in spurring our citizens and, through them, the politicians to action is the same one that encourages procrastination throughout our public lives. No one understands the dangers that may be lurking beneath the surface of Lake Mead until it is too late. And, unless the people insist on spending the time and money necessary to protect our drinking water, it is not likely the scientists or other governmental agencies will.
One suggestion I read in a story by Mary Manning was that signs should be posted in marinas and around the lake warning people of the danger of swimming in what might be polluted waters. That idea reminded me of the time when my father took us to Lake Mead to go swimming and water skiing. We weren't home from the lake for five minutes when he came charging in the house and threw every one of us into a very hot shower. He had just learned what Las Vegas Wash was and what flowed in it into the lake. And he just learned that that was where his family had just spent a most enjoyable day!
Yes, we were germ freaks. But, who can argue today that caution should not be the watchword of every family that plays in the lake and draws liquid sustenance from it?
Can you imagine how fast the public will be called to action if everywhere Las Vegas families went at Lake Mead there was a sign warning of potential health risks from the water itself? I am not suggesting that now is the time to make life miserable for Las Vegas families, especially with a very long and hot summer approaching. But doesn't it make sense that we do everything we can to insist that those to whom we give responsibility for our safe and healthy drinking water supply take whatever action is required? Whatever the cost?
It makes sense to me, that's for sure. And, until something positive is done to assuage these concerns of mine, I'll continue to drink water from a bottle.
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