A sharp-eyed reader (Thanks J.!) pointed out a resident of Deer Street in Rutland watering his/her lawn today. That’s why it’s called voluntary water conservation, and people like that are why it is likely to become mandatory conservation soon. Gee, I hope it wasn’t my tax accountant …
True story No. 1 from the drought year we endured in Maryland/Virginia (1998?) …
Our pape
r covered Potomac, Md., one of the tonier suburbs of Washington. But there was a state of water emergency in both states and the District, and rules were strictly enforced. It was hard on the competitive landscaping crowd, watching their prize roses wilting. One day the Potomac police station, which yes, was pretty much a preretirement stop for senior members of the Montgomery County police, got a call about somebody washing his Mercedes in his driveway in contravention of the prohibition on using water except for drinking and sanitary uses.
The officers responding decided it wasn’t illegal to buy two cases of Perrier (sold at the time in those teensy-weensy bottles) and use it to wash your car.
thistownvt 