As members of the Columbus Lions Club, Fran and I are well versed in the issues involved in blindness. Helen Keller charged the fledgling Lions organization to become “Knights of the Blind,” so that became the primary focus of Lions around the world. We are trying to prevent blindness as well as helping those who are visually impaired already. In some areas of the world there is something called “river blindness” caused by swimming in the river. The Lions are vaccinating children by the hundreds to prevent their going blind before they are even grown.
There is increasing awareness here of the importance of protecting watershed lands. It seems to me that everybody lives on somebody else’s watershed. The arguments are still going on about Polk County buying Lake Adger as a water supply, thus making some land in Henderson County a “watershed.” Those affected see their land decreasing in value if it cannot be “developed.”
We cannot all drink water from an aquifer, so many must drink surface water, which is “polluted” by all manner of things and therefore must be “treated.” Even some wells tap into water that is loaded with minerals naturally from the earth around it.
In admiring photos of the new bridge just completed downstream of Hoover Dam, I noticed that Lake Mead is down about 130 feet. In reading up on that, I find that it is not likely ever to refill completely! That means people are using more water than the river can provide. It also means that the dam cannot generate the power it once did since there is so much less “fall” available. I suppose that southern California is now burning a lot more natural gas to make their electricity. I don’t know what they are doing for water!
As I wrote earlier, “some need oil, but all need water.” We may find a substitute for oil, but I understand that all life depends on water and there is no substitute for it. The quest for potable water is becoming futile in some places. Be ye thankful if you have a dependable supply of good water, as many do not, and more will not as world population continues to increase.