Incentives for homeowners could help the groundwater supply. This was among the points made at a forum held on July 20 about landscaping, sustainability, and community action. There are a load of local, county, state, and even federal regulations about water quality, the group acknowledged; far fewer are rewards for doing the right thing in terms of the environment.
The rate of water consumption and, equally, what owners do on their properties is being more widely understood as a long-term problem. The Suffolk County Water Authority, which serves thousands of houses and businesses, alerted the public recently that its supply tanks are running low.
The explanation for this includes to a large extent, lawns. Irrigation is the biggest single consumer of water authority water. During early morning, when many lawns are being watered, as much as 500,000 gallons a minute flows out of the system. Many of those gallons pick up fertilizers and lawn chemicals along the way, eventually reaching bays and harbors or entering the aquifer closest to the surface, which is still being tapped by hundreds of residents, despite the growth of so-called public water mains. And, with the tanks at low levels, water pressure for firefighting could soon be diminished.
The supply in Montauk is at the most immediate risk, the water authority said. The numbers are staggering. In winter, Montaukers use about 300,000 gallons a day. Come summer, that figure explodes to 2.5 million gallons a day.
East Hampton Town Councilwoman Cate Rogers, who took part in the July 20 conversation hosted by ChangeHampton, has said that incentivizing conservation practices might help. New rules might not just penalize property owners for overclearing, but in addition encourage under-clearing. Less lawn, more woods sounds good to us.