The Dammed - The Ripple Effect: The Fate of Freshwater in the Twenty-First Century - page 161

According to a USGS study that looked at ity years' worth of statistics , water use
in the United States steadily increased between 1950 and 1980; it was expected that as
the population continued to rise, so would water use. But water use began to decline
in 1985, the study found, and has remained relatively stable ever since, despite a stead-
ily growing population. This was the result of water conservation efforts, mainly by in-
dustry, along with the government's 1992 laws mandating the use of conserving techno-
logies—such as low-flow showerheads and toilets—in new homes.
For those who share Gleick's view, the question is, how do you convince the public,
which largely takes its water supply for granted, and the Water Buffaloes, who are en-
trenched, to think about and use water in a new, intentional way? How do you make
water efficiency and conservation the new ideal?
In May 2007, Gleick decided it was time to go outside his usual comfort zone and
speak directly to those in charge: Lester Snow and the ACWA men who run California's
water systems.
At 2:05, inside the cavernous auditorium at the Sacramento Convention Center, Peter
Gleick stepped onto the stage and took up his position behind a lectern, stage right.
At 2:06, he raised his fists, which were now encased in a pair of bright red boxing
gloves, and threw a few punches in the air—whiff, whaff!
The crowd's chatter suddenly stopped, and perhaps a thousand eyes turned at once to
focus on the stage. After pounding the red mitts together a few times, Gleick cleared his
throat and said, “When I asked my wife what I should wear today, she said, 'Something
that doesn't show blood.' “
The crowd chuckled appreciatively, settled into seats, crossed tanned arms, adjusted
hats, and raised chins in anticipation.
Winding his voice up like a game-show host, the moderator, the journalist Tom Philp
(who won a Pulitzer Prize for editorials about the Hetch Hetchy controversy), pointed
to the lectern on the opposite side of the stage and said, “And in this corner of the Aqua
Dome, ladies and gentlemen, please welcome … Mr…. Lesterrrr … Snoooooww!”
Snow is stocky, with thinning hair and a mustache the color of sand. He gave a barely
perceptible smile and took up his position behind a lectern. Like Peter Gleick, Snow was
a transplant from the East: originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he was now Cali-
fornia's main water expert, a man considered by many—even Peter Gleick—to be one
of the smartest water managers in the country.
At 2:20, Gleick, now gloveless, took the first verbal jab: “California's water infrastruc-
ture has brought enormous benefits to us today, but it comes with some costs. The time
may come when we doneed new surface storage, but I don't believe that time has come
yet. You don't spend billions of dollars to build something you think mightbe needed