World Water Day

World Water Day is a good time to take a moment and reflect on the water that sustains us and where it comes from. One of the things I appreciate the most about my home in the McKenzie River valley is that we have some of the cleanest, purest water in the world. When a vacancy opened up this last year on the McKenzie Watershed Council, I was glad to take the opportunity to become a Resident Partner and get involved with local land and water stewardship. You may remember a while back I did an interview project with my friend and neighbor, Kurt Cox, about his work on the council:  Who are the Stewards in your Watershed

When Kurt and his family took off on retirement adventures to travel the country, it was his vacancy I replaced, and I felt honored to take up where he left off. When we were visiting recently one of the things that stuck with me from the stories of his travels was that one of the things Kurt missed about here the most was the water. Everywhere they went, all across the country, they said the water tasted terrible. When I got to thinking about it, I realized that I have a habit of taking a quart canning jar of our well water with me when I’m traveling because the tap water in other places leaves a lot to be desired, and I like knowing I’m taking along a little bit of home. When I think about parts of the world where water scarcity is an increasing reality, water quality is facing constant threats, and water is being treated carelessly like the oil spill that just happened downriver only 800 feet beyond the intake for Eugene’s water supply, I am deeply grateful for the abundant, clean water of the McKenzie, and all the work that goes into keeping it that way.  The river, the water table that feeds our well, the spring on the hillside that we are lucky to have water rights over that are grandfathered in, these all contribute to our quality of life on the homestead every single day.

So, today, (and every day really), I encourage you to contemplate the water that comes out of your tap. Where does it come from? Have you ever visited the source? What’s upstream from you? What’s downstream from all the drains in your house? Do you know what organizations are working on conservation and stewardship projects in your watershed? Then raise that glass of water and drink deep with appreciation.