Without water, we would not survive, let alone thrive

Water is essential for life. It keeps us hydrated, healthy, and clean. Water supports our economy, environment, and food production. We recognize that our families and communities cannot thrive without it. Now, imagine if it was gone, even for a few hours or a day; life would look much different for all of us.

This week, people across the country are being challenged to Imagine a Day Without Water , as recognized by the Value of Water Campaign. This event, now in its tenth year, aims to raise awareness about the value of water in our daily lives and emphasize the importance of protecting this precious resource. It also seeks to highlight the need for sufficient funding and support for municipalities across the United States to ensure the continuous flow of water into our homes, businesses, schools, and hospitals.

Here in Arizona and in our desert communities, water is not just a resource; it is our lifeline. Without access to high-quality water, our survival, let alone our prosperity, would be at stake. Water security is not just a concern; it is necessary for our communities to thrive, for our resilience to be maintained, and for our prosperity to be sustained. 

The fact is that without cities and the utilities that provide us with access to water, we would not be left with much. Hospitals and medical facilities would be unsanitary and unsafe without clean and safe running water. Keeping our homes clean would be challenging without running water to easily wash anything, such as dirty dishes or clothes, elevating the risk of sickness and disease. Restaurants could not prepare any meals without access to running water to cook, clean, or keep food sanitary. Firefighters could not do their jobs without operating fire hydrants, and fires would be left to burn. Parks, recreational, and athletic fields would be barren, dry, and, for the most part, unusable. Office buildings, warehouses, schools, and academic institutions would not function correctly or be safe without the availability of water. 

Additionally, cooling towers, which are critical for making our workplaces and other frequented venues livable during our long summers, would be unable to operate. In industry, machinery relies on water to keep temperatures cool and to keep the manufacturing process going. Many people don’t realize that almost every manufactured product uses water during some part of the production process for fabricating, washing, diluting, cooling, or transporting a product.

On a grand scale, generating electrical power also requires the use of water to cool equipment and to push the turbines that are the heart of the process that produces electricity, including the power created by the Palo Verde Nuclear Power Plant that utilizes water provided by the Valley cities. Without power and water distributed throughout our communities, our modern world would be unrecognizable, and life here in the arid desert with extreme heat would be nearly impossible to survive.

Imagining a Day Without Water reminds us of water's crucial role in our lives, communities, health, and safety. It's a reality check as we discuss our changing environment, prolonged droughts, and water shortages affecting millions of people. Our current way of living depends on having clean and reliable water available whenever needed. That's why the ten AMWUA cities, which provide water to 3.7 million people, take their responsibility to deliver safe and reliable water seriously throughout our communities.

For 55 years, the Arizona Municipal Water Users Association has worked to protect our member cities’ ability to provide their communities with assured, safe, and sustainable water supplies. For more water information, visit www.amwua.org .