PRECIPITATION AND YOUR WATER FOOTPRINT
            A few days of sunny, clear skies and the importance of precipitation is easily forgotten. For many, such as engineers, hydrologists, entomologists, insurance experts, building contractors, ball players and coaches, and certainly farmers, keeping track of precipitation is essential to their livelihood.  Precipitation is important for us all. Water is a basic human need.
            Precipitation varies greatly. Getting accurate data about where and how much makes possible mapping of storms. With sufficient local data, local patterns can be revealed that are valuable to scientists and residents. After a storm that hit Ft. Collins, Colorado in July 1997, the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail & Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) was organized. This unique, non-profit, community-based, high density network of individual and family volunteers take daily measurements of rain, hail and snow in their backyards.
            Because all data collected is shared daily on the Web to be used by scientists, research managers, and decision makers, it is important that all precipitation reports be as accurate and consistent as possible. Local training sessions are held to train the volunteer observers who use high quality rain gauges. The headquarters of CoCoRaHS are at Colorado State University but volunteers can be found all over the United States. Rod Slamp, Board Member, Stephenson Soil and Water Conservation District, is a trained CoCoRaHS volunteer from Stephenson County. You could join too. Find out more at www.cocorahs.org.
            CoCoRaHS provides educational material to volunteers. Rod Slamp recently shared information about water use in the United States. Researchers have developed the water “footprint” showing the total volume of freshwater that is used to produce the goods and services consumed by an individual, business, or nation. You can figure your own water footprint at www.waterfootprint.org.
            Some interesting facts about average water use from the water footprint website include:

• The production of one kilogram of beef requires 4,227 of water.
• To produce one cup of coffee we need 37 gallons of water.
• The water footprint of China is about 184,920 gallons per year per capita.
• Japan has a water footprint of 303,798 gallons per year per capita.
• The US water footprint is 660,430 gallons per year per capita.
• Particularly high consumption of meat significantly contributes to a high water footprint. The average meat consumption in the United States is for instance 265 pounds per year, more than three times the world-average meat consumption.
• India (13%), China (12%) and the USA (9%) are the largest consumers of the global water resources. (from research reported in 2005 by A. Y. Hoekstra and A. K. Chapagain)

We can become more aware of our own water footprint. Without waiting for water shortages to get our attention, we can learn to be more efficient in our daily use of water.

Della Moen, Earth Team Volunteer, NRCS/Stephenson Soil and Water
Conservation District, an equal opportunity provider and employer, 09/17/08/ (for publication on 09/27/08 in the Journal-Standard, Freeport, Illinois).
Della can be reached at info@stephensonswcd.org