It rained!

Hello everyone,

I hope you've all survived the critical weather we've had lately.

I feel like the last two weeks have gone by without me being more than 1/2 awake. I don't do well in hot weather. And we've had temperatures over 30C most days, including a record-breaking 36.7C.

It is, of course, indication of the increased unusual "weather events" that we can expect in future due to climate change.

We've also not had rain for over three weeks (I don't count 2mm in early July).

I water my gardens as I need to. I'm not talking lawns, as you know; I don't do lawns. I'm talking areas where I've got seeds just in, or small transplants, the vegetables like beets that need regular water. And with our .2435 acres (1/4 acre if I trellis the produce!), a few water barrels off the roof don't supply the amount of water needed. So, I turn on the tap and fill containers ... letting the chlorine evaporate off ... and use that for smaller plants or areas where I've got a newly laid compost mulch down.

I water straight from the hose too. Letting a slow flow 'round a tree or shrub that's struggling; or setting the hose where the flow will be under the mulch and gently flooding a lowered bed. I weed or add mulch nearby so I can keep an eye on what's happening and move the hose frequently.

We put money and effort into the gardens, so that we get food for ourselves and help develop a safe place for birds and pollinating and beneficial insects. We don't mind adding the small amount of money to our water bill that this takes. Our return is many times more than our outlay.

And for those people, like a store customer recently, who commented "what 'til you see your water bill" ... I say that water is an inexpensive commodity. There are a few extra charges that go on the bill when we use more, but that's fair to pay for infrastructure or pay down debt or whatever it is. We live in an area that has safe water, there where we need it. We are far more water-conservation-minded than most people. We don't have air conditioning, don't take long showers, and most water that goes through our place is used twice - we've got quite the soak-wash-rinse-save-water to put on something outside system in place for just about everything. If anything, it's amazing that water doesn't cost way more than it does.

The cost of most utilities will be going up in the next years as fossil fuel resources run out and Canada gets farther behind in all levels of government policies to do with conservation and futures planning.

What's it going to take for Steve to "get" climate change? ... or just about anything ... hmm, that could take this post in another direction.

Back to water.

Thanks to the people who maintain the water supply system we have. I do thank you every time I turn the tap outside.

And check out the Council of Canadians website, water issues section: http://www.canadians.org/.

Best regards to all,

Why's Woman