Make no mistake; water is the fuel that drives the real estate engine in Arizona.
Imagine if you could not provide gas for your vehicle. How much do you think your car would be worth? Gary Brasher, manager of our Tubac office, feels that we all know the answer to that question, and the same applies to real estate if we have no water to meet our needs and the community at large.
The Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR) Conservation Program provides an integrated approach to water conservation by offering conservation assistance, outreach, education, and information on conservation resources and regulations.
ADWR encourages and promotes the wise and efficient use of water through the development and distribution of conservation resources and tools, water conservation assistance to individuals and communities, participation in outreach activities, and collaboration with regional and national conservation partners.
Brasher believes that it is time for this discussion to be about more than just what politicians or the Arizona Department of Water Resources can do, but include in that discuss what we can do.
Some years ago, when one of Gary’s daughters was in grade school, she had to experiment with environmental credit in one of her classes. She decided to see how much water was lost by the leaky faucet in her bathroom. The experiment was straightforward. The Brasher family put a gallon jug under the tap for 24 hours and measured how much water was lost each day. The results were surprising. Almost one gallon of water was collected after just 24 hours. According to Gary, it seemed unreal just how much water could be lost “one drip at a time.”
They extrapolated this result to show that over a week, that would equate to 7 gallons of water or 28 gallons in a month and 336 gallons of water in a year—all of this from one leaky faucet. Suppose one calculates the number of leaky faucets in a home or toilets which run “just a little bit” or irrigation that leaks etc., and multiply that by a million homes. In that case, you can see very quickly how we can make a huge difference by just being aware of our living environment and applying water-saving methods when we see those leaks begin.
Practicing a low water-use lifestyle is a way everyone can help ensure a long-term, sustainable water supply. Reducing your water use helps meet future needs, results in cost savings, decrease energy use, and helps preserve the environment.
In 2022, let us all make “water responsibility” ‘ a key concept for each of us, and “one drop at a time,” we can collectively make a huge difference in our water future!
I’m so glad that Water is becoming front and center in the real estate conversation in Arizona and I’m so proud of Russ Lyon Sotheby’s International Realty for being at the forefront of this effort.
Gary Brasher, tubac Manager
