Wednesday of this week is a national day of action in which
people are asked to “Imagine a Day Without Water.” The annual event
was launched in 2015 to increase appreciation for the water we
enjoy in our everyday lives.
It’s a serious subject, but one that can be approached with a
sense of humor, as you can see from the videos I’ve tracked
down.
In the event’s initial year, participants included nearly 200
organizations, from water and wastewater providers to public
officials, business leaders, environmental organizations, schools
and more.
Federal funding to restore Puget Sound and other large U.S.
estuaries would be slashed by more than 90 percent under a
preliminary budget proposal coming from President Trump’s
administration.
Funding for Puget Sound restoration would be cut by 93 percent,
from the current budget of $28 million to just $2 million,
according to figures cited by the
Portland Oregonian and apparently circulated by the National
Association of Clean Air Agencies. Here’s
the list.
The Great Lakes, which received a big boost in spending to $300
million in the current biennium, would be hammered down to $10
million. Chesapeake Bay, currently at $73 million, would be reduced
to $5 million.
Much of this money goes for habitat protection and restoration,
the kind of effort that seems to be kicked to the bottom of the
priority list, at least in these early budget figures. The new EPA
administrator, Scott Pruitt, appears to be focusing on upgrading
water infrastructure, cleaning up toxic sites and reducing air and
water pollution, although everything is cut deeply and details
remain murky.
An award-winning film, “Liquid Assets: The Story of Our Water
Infrastructure,” could be a “catalyst for community discussions
about local water infrastructure and other important civic issues,”
according to Kitsap County Commissioner Charlotte Garrido.
The film, produced last year by the WPSU-TV, is scheduled to be
shown on BKAT, Kitsap County’s community access channel. It is
currently scheduled to be shown on four different days beginning
Sept. 30.
Kitsap County has set up a special page to comment on the film
and local water infrastructure.
“We’re very pleased to be able to present this award-winning
documentary on local cable television in Kitsap County. It tells
the story of essential infrastructure systems: drinking water,
wastewater, and stormwater and provides a catalyst for ongoing
discussions about local water infrastructure and other important
civic issues. I hope you’ll watch and then help develop solutions
that protect our water resources.”
“We are facing some very difficult decisions on how to protect
and maintain infrastructure in Kitsap County. We’re interested in
hearing thoughts and ideas from local residents as we continue the
long-range planning to ensure viable water resources in the
future.”
A four-minute trailer for the film can be viewed above at right.
If you’d like to share a comment about water issues with county
officials, click here, and
feel free to share your thoughts on this blog as well.
To read more about the film, visit the “Liquid Assets” Web site set up
by Pennsylvania State University, the home of WPSU.
The film was shown last fall on Seattle’s public television
station KCTS, so some of you may have seen it then. Here the
schedule for BKAT (Channel 12 on Comcast and Channel 3 on Wave
Cable).
