PERFECTION IS EFFORTLESS

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Front Range water providers to give up such a valuable resource because of water savings, said MacGregor, the water law expert at CU.

“Anyone who pockets (water) savings can make a ton of money by selling those savings to another water user,” he said. “ e question is, what is the mechanism for leaving water on the Western Slope through conservation?”

Even if a water e ciency program is enormously successful, cities and towns can still choose to use their water savings toward building new developments, rather than leaving them in reservoirs.

“ is is the really frustrating part of what’s happened in a lot of areas. It’s like, you look at it, and e ciency has increased per capita, use has decreased over time, but we’re still susceptible to drought,” MacGregor said. “It’s because we’re not actually banking those savings.”

If at-home water e ciency measures are adopted widely, and the unused water is conserved for the future, those savings can help storage at local reservoirs and even help meet environmental and ecological needs by keeping more water in streams. It could even be used by downstream water rights holders who might have their supply cut o earlier in a dry year.

But there’s no guarantee that the water will reach the Colorado River’s main storage reservoirs, like Lake Powell on the Utah-Arizona border. at would require complicated, interstate legal and administrative procedures — an option being explored by Colorado.

Experts are adamant: Residents should still try to use water eciently at home.

If Colorado residents are more e cient in their water use, then cities and towns could pull less water from rivers and streams on the front end, which leaves water in the stream for others. Landscapes could be better able to withstand wet and dry years with the addition of native plants. Treatment plants spend less money on treating water before releasing it, which could help with water bills, experts say.

“ is isn’t a situation that there’s going to be one thing that’s going to solve the problem. It’s more of a case of incremental change, so every little bit helps,” Novick said. “If you’re saving a gallon of water by taking a shorter shower, or two gallons of water — if everyone were to do that … all of that would add up. We have to think of this more holistically.” is story is from e Colorado Sun, a journalist-owned news outlet based in Denver and covering the state. For more, and to support e Colorado Sun, visit coloradosun. com. e Colorado Sun is a partner in the Colorado News Conservancy, owner of Colorado Community Media.