After dealing with a bad drought this year in Colorado, John Gibson, Swingle Tree & Lawn Care, Denver, Colo., learned a lot about water and how it can impact the landscape industry. As a result, he put together tips for other contractors who are currently dealing with drought.
If droughts are common in your area and you want to plan ahead, Gibson recommended that you consider these issues so you can be better prepared to handle drought once it starts:
· Communicate with your customers on the need for wise water use before a drought.
· Communicate within your industry and your state associations – drought is only one issue that might bring you together for a greater cause.
· Understand how much water landscapes really use vs. industrial, commercial, municipal uses or food and fiber agriculture.
· Understand how you get your water – what is the supply, how it is influenced, etc.
· Who controls the decisions on how water is used – a water board made up of elected or appointed officials … do they have staff for recommendations?
· Understand your influence on water providers; make sure they know who you are.
· Does your water provider have a drought response plan? Will they follow it? Can you influence the type of restrictions that are proposed?
· Regularly complete economic impact studies – have specifics of your industry, size in dollars, jobs, areas of impact, who you employ (minority composition, economic background, etc.).
· Understand and calculate the community value of landscape.
· Investigate partners in water planning – HBA, community associations, building owners and managers associations, apartment associations, etc.
· Coordinate all activity with the state’s agriculture schools; insist that the school’s program directors address the authority of their master gardener programs and other outreach groups.
· Develop widely accepted “best management practices” for wise water use in the landscape – and implement them today.
The author is Managing Editor of Lawn & Landscape magazine and can be reached at nwisniewski@lawnandlandscape.com.