WANTED: Sustainable Landscape Services for Savvy Consumers
For decades, Billy Goodnick has been showing people how to create sustainable landscapes – and how to ditch their lawns. But don't think of me as a "bad guy," he says.... more
Drought Forces Overhaul of City Irrigation Systems
| Latest NewsWidespread drought conditions in Texas have forced
government officials at the state and local level to think critically about the
aging irrigation infrastructure that serves city parks.
Municipal regulators in Midland, Texas, spent the better part of the year imposing emergency fines and regulations on residential and commercial property owners, but the battery of tax credits and surcharges failed to address the city’s most important water-use issue: irrigation.
“Irrigation usage is by far the biggest threat to our water supplies,” said Midland Mayor Wes Perry. “We need to craft policies that will cause a cultural shift.”
Perry decided that, to have a lasting effect, the government would have to lead by example. City council members voted last week to invest park maintenance funds in revamped irrigation systems that will greatly reduce the public parks’ dependence on water. By limiting the city’s demand on the water supply in a visible way, Perry hopes Midland residents will follow suit and take measures to conserve the precious commodity.
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