7 Comments
User's avatar
Patricia's avatar

Thank you so much for this!

Expand full comment
Silvaine Zimmermann's avatar

very informative - I really hope some pertinent journalists and politicians read this!

Expand full comment
Jos T's avatar

Thanks for what you do Ross

Expand full comment
Jean9's avatar

THANK YOU!

Expand full comment
Beverley Wigney's avatar

Thank you for telling it like it is.

Expand full comment
Ross Reid's avatar

Always!

Expand full comment
Ben's avatar
2dEdited

Thank you! I totally agree. Policymakers are doing everything they can to not have to change.

Along with the list of tangible things you shared, I would like to a water cycle restoration. Here is some more info to anyone interested.

Recently, when the fires were burning through L.A., my wife and I happened on a solution that one man, Zachary Weiss, used to keep his property from burning up in the fires. Zach has a website called Water Stories and it turns out his solution works on a small scale private property and scales up on a larger county or watershed basis as well.

This solution says that Climate Change isn’t just a carbon issue. It is also a water cycle issue. This is a less than 3 minute video on the problem.

https://youtu.be/TvHco_GL4Mo?si=_7TzG-L8m72mTw5J

This is a less than 2 minute video overviewing the solution and its positive impacts.

https://youtu.be/WxKIQs-t-o0?si=Bp4oRkQydFX90hjw

One person who observed and implemented this water cycle restoration over a number of decades is Sepp Holzer. He lives in Austria. His story is pretty amazing, and I find his view on nature and the earth inspiring. Sepp speaks High German I think, so this video has some English subtitles. It lasts less than 6 minutes.

https://youtu.be/yrpA0eFhscM?si=2UOp5xb_5yvJSKxG

Sepp worked with the unique identity of the land which is how he was successful with land no one else wanted.

He learned what worked in that specific bioregion and took powerful action steps to shift the direction of the land and farm in positive ways.

He brought out the latent potential of the land with water.

Sepp's main points are living system alignment, presence, continuous learning, and renewal.

He discarded “power over” for “power with” and stewardship with nature. Essentially, he listened to nature and responded accordingly.

This next video is about a farm in the Pacific Northwest in Oregon where these water cycle restoration projects have been done over time. It works, and it’s good to see it happening here. This video is 6 minutes. If I am not mistaken the owner came to Sequim and worked at Nash’s Organic Produce and Farm for a bit.

https://youtu.be/WPgC_ZUtLzk?si=DvuRLEJtJLRKDUno

These projects show you can do small decentralized projects that are interconnected and they can help the rivers and raise the aquifer tables.

It doesn’t have to be about building large reservoirs.

Farmers and others can get into a relationship with the land where they take water in a balanced way and give it with reciprocity.

This solution potentially gives the watershed what it needs to evolve and adapt to stress.

Here is a link to more and longer films you can access on the Water Stories website. This work is so encouraging. It seems like there are some educational opportunities and/or partnerships possible here as well.

https://www.waterstories.com/stories?category=videos

Water Stories offers educational opportunities so you can do your own Water Cycle Restoration projects.

The Water Stories Core Course - training the next generation of water cycle restoration practitioners

FYI: I am not a contractor or a salesperson, and I have no financial or any other ties with the folks at Water Stories.

You can access Water Stories video library with your email on the Water Stories website. They have more in depth videos.

Also, the link below is to a website where Water Cycle Restoration has been going on in India since 1975. I think there is a Water Stories film about it. Their before and after photo in the "Water Conservation" section is really something that has to be seen. Also, they have done a good job capturing metrics on their substantial progress. They talk about self reliant communities in harmony with nature. Having some level of water and food independence is not a bad goal in view.

https://tarunbharatsangh.in/?mc_cid=5b1063f587&mc_eid=29170f2e25

Expand full comment