KNAPPSTER George Knapp is a longtime reporter and anchor for KLAS Channel 8.

Thursday, February 20, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Mercury

Knappster: Officials shocked...shocked to discover water waste

By George Knapp

Local water honchos are back from a three-day, 300-mile jaunt to check out the water situation along the lower Colorado River, and boy are they surprised. By golly, there's water a-bein' wasted down there in Californey. Don't these people know we're in a drought, the water officials asked?

According to an account in the Las Vegas Sun, the officials and staff members concluded that "water-hungry consumers south of Lake Mead are largely oblivious to a three-year drought" in the Colorado River basin. If so, those water-grubbing outsiders are in good company. It's hard to believe Nevada officials could say such things without busting a gut and chortling uncontrollably. After all, who wastes more water than we do?

Yes, it's true that the Imperial Valley, one of the most productive agricultural areas in the nation, uses far more water than it needs to use. It's also true that the Imperial Valley Irrigation District has title to its own share of Colorado River water and can use it pretty much in any way it sees fit, much as Southern Nevada has done. And yes, it's true that Southern California's Metropolitan Water District isn't contemplating any mandatory conservation measures for its 17 million customers. But why isn't it? Is it just because they will be the last folks along the river to feel the effects of drought (as Nevada officials have stated), or could it be that they have already done plenty to prepare themselves for inevitable droughts, while Nevada has twiddled its water-wasting thumbs?

Here's one reason California isn't contemplating drastic conservation measures: It has already cut its per-capita consumption by huge amounts over the past 10 years. In the early '90s, per-capita water use in SoCal was more than 200 gallons per day. These days, it's down to 140 gallons per day in L.A., 150 in San Diego and 170 for the district as a whole. Want to know what the Las Vegas consumption rate is? Try 307 gallons per day, highest in the Southwest, highest along the entire Colorado River, perhaps the highest in the country.

We can quibble all day about comparing apples to oranges in water consumption, but the fact is, when you compare Las Vegas water use to other desert cities in the Southwest, places such as Phoenix and Tucson, and if you limit the comparison to single-family homes, our water use is higher by a ridiculous amount. What's more, over the past few years our per-capita consumption has increased, not decreased. This occurred despite occasional PR efforts to encourage voluntary conservation, and despite frequent news stories about the severity of the drought. Now, why do you suppose that is?

One image from the Great Water Jaunt of '03 that sticks in my head is that of our water officials, tsk-tsking as they peered into Lake Havasu, a man-made tourist attraction that uses a hefty allotment of precious water. I can't imagine anyone from Nevada having the nerve to look down their noses at such a project. Good God, how many man-made lakes do we have here anyway? And how many lagoons, pools, fountains, canals and other wasteful, profligate water features do we use to advertise our casinos, hotels and housing developments? You might think this is Brazil or Cameroon instead of the Mojave Desert. You think that doesn't register with the locals who see it all, day after day? Wonder what a fact-finding group of Colorado officials might make of it all?

I know that such ornamental consumption doesn't amount to much in the big picture, but I would bet anything that it sends a subtle message to local consumers that the water situation can't be all that bad. And every day locals see our officials approve new housing developments and new casinos. They have to wonder, how can this be if we're in such a terrible drought? Despite the drought, local water officials are on record as saying that our overall water supply will never be a hindrance to future growth. Never. The way they figure it, we can always go out and get some more, either by buying it or strong-arming it or a combination of the two. Drought, what drought?

On the day that this issue of the Mercury is distributed, water officials will be meeting to formally institute our first-ever drought plan. We live in a desert, but 2003 will make the first adoption of a drought plan. They're talking about limits on turf installation, car washing and other radical concepts, ideas that probably should have been adopted a decade ago. At that same meeting, they will hear about a new media campaign aimed at encouraging conservation. Gee, you think?

Saving Red Rock

It's sort of a hoot to see the scrambling under way concerning efforts to limit development around Red Rock Canyon. A few weeks ago, this reporter told of plans by state Sen. Dina Titus to enact state-level restrictions on the types of development that could be built anywhere near Red Rock. Follow-up stories have prompted Clark County officials to defend their turf, suggesting this is a local matter and that the state shouldn't impinge on local zoning matters. Sen. Titus wants to take away some of the authority of the Clark County Commission to modify (or ignore) development guidelines concerning Red Rock. What's that? County commissioners ignoring the master plan, changing zoning regs to accomodate big developers? Can this be true? As everyone knows, zoning votes are the butter on the bread of county commissioners. More than a few times, they have voted against public opinion and in favor of new developments.

Perhaps most intriguing is the attitude of new Commissioner Mark James. James' district encompasses Red Rock, so he certainly should be heard in this debate, but his suggestion that the state needs to back off and leave it to the locals is far different than some of the things he advocated when he was at the Legislature. For instance, back in 1997, he co-authored SB208, which aimed to limit casino development to certain areas, removing discretion from local authorities. Later, he co-sponsored SB391, which usurped county authority over land use planning in certain rural neighborhoods. Now that he wears a new hat, though, he appears to be singing a different tune.

Etc.

Anyone else heard the story circulating at Caesars Palace that the property may ressurect its legendary Bacchanal Room? That restaurant was a staple at Caesars for many years but fell victim to a modernization project and was terminated a few years ago. The way we hear it, Bacchanal may be on the way back and could possibly be reborn in the space now inhabited by the Magical Empire. ... Michael Schivo, the one-time king of local rock 'n' roll promoters, is back in town to work on a jazz mega-show. Schivo left Las Vegas about six years ago for the rainy climes of Seattle, but still returns for the occasional music promotion. "Jazz only," he says. "No more rock." ... A moment of silence for Sandstone, the newsletter of Clark County government. Each issue of Sandstone cost tens of thousands of dollars to mail to county residents. More than a few of us always felt it was little more than a free promo for commissioners, who were pictured in each issue cutting ribbons or kissing babies. Suffice to say, the newsletter was never the kind of publication that would cause people to stand anxiously by their mailboxes to await its arrival. Alas, Sandstone is no more, at least not in print. County public information chief Erik Pappa has decided to issue it only in an online edition. No muss, no fuss, no mailing expenses. Bravo.