Member Bill Staufenberg (raffle prize winner), Kay Sullivan (president), and Bill Wilkening of Watershed Management Group
Kay Sullivan
Bill Wilkening, a 15-year volunteer for the Watershed Management Group, gave a presentation called “Rainwater Harvesting: It’s More Than Just Tanks” to 50 Nature Club members on Feb. 12 in the DesertView Theater. Some of Bill’s family members can trace their Tucson roots back for six generations. He shared that his grandfather used to fish in the Santa Cruz River, which flowed through Tucson. Until the 1990s, Tucson relied only on groundwater, which eventually caused the river to go underground.
Bill told the group that he became passionate about water-saving techniques when his science teacher wife bought two 30-gallon trash cans before a storm, and he watched them fill within minutes. He realized that the rainwater flowing off his roof could be harvested and could nourish his plants and garden during the hot summer months.
He shared many techniques that can be used other than tanks, which are prohibited by our SaddleBrooke CC&Rs. However, we can all do our part, even in small ways: Adjust your irrigation system for the seasons to accommodate the weather. You could save up to 45% usage when those plants don’t need the same water in February as they do in May and June. Turn it off when it’s raining.
Did you know that the top-loader washing machine uses 30 to 40 gallons of water a load, but a front-loader only uses only 17? Do you save the water waiting for the shower water to get hot? Do you flush every time? Bill shared that a person uses approximately 80 gallons of water a day. It was an informative presentation.
The Watershed Management Group has a Living Lab and Learning Center at 1135 N. Dodge Boulevard, which is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. They have a 60-person classroom, and if you want to learn more, visit the website at watershedmg.org.
At the SaddleBrooke Nature Club meeting on March 11, we had a presentation by the Tucson Cactus and Succulent Society.