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Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Should you or shouldn’t you call water cops on neighbors?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It didn’t rain Tuesday night.
But the lawn and roses looked especially spry at this particular house in Lawrenceville.
Richard Pate parked his county truck alongside the curve for a closer look. He got out and ran his fingers through the grass in the front yard.
“Pretty wet,” he said Wednesday.
Wood chips and the bottom half of a side fence were wet, too.
Yet the woman who came to the door professed ignorance. She told Pate that she’d just returned from vacation. She said her lawn crew may have watered the landscape, but she didn’t know for sure. She hadn’t seen any workers stirring.
Pate issued a warning anyway. Next time, he explained, there would be a $1,000 fine.
“I hate doing that to people,” he said as he climbed back into the driver’s seat. “Normally people know when they are in the wrong. She may not know. But there’s definitely been some watering going on this morning.”
In these parts, every drop of water counts. Lake levels are dim. The state is at a Level 4 drought, and because of that, outdoor residential watering has been banned.
Though the region may be blessed today, Mother Nature hasn’t provided the rain to fill reservoirs and erase a deficit. So we all should conserve. That means taking shorter showers, and turning off the faucet while you brush your teeth - doing things we should do anyway, not just in crisis.
But what about neighbors?
Should one’s concern for conservation creep into our neighbor’s yard? Do we ignore those who skirt the law to wash cars and maintain lush lawns?
Should neighbors turn in neighbors, call the water cops?
Generally, “yes,” said David Word, spokesman for the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District, which takes in Gwinnett. But he offered a caveat.
“That kind of question presents more things to consider than water - the relationship with neighbors, how long you’ve known them, whether they have a mean dog at home,” he said.
“But taking action - whether friendly, suggestive or through the neighborhood association, I think - is appropriate. Most people, if a neighbor came by in a friendly way, would respond.”
The other day, my daughter, Olivia, rode her scooter while I followed in tow. Down the street, a neighbor had his front-yard sprinklers going full blast. I didn’t know him, but I approached and asked if he knew about the watering ban. He grunted something indiscernible but cut off the sprinklers.
In Gwinnett, people generally adhere to the restrictions. Usually, a written warning is all it takes, Pate said. The county has issued about 200 warnings and about 20 citations since the state banned outdoor water use Sept. 28.
“We get 15 to 30 e-mails a day from people reporting other people, and over 100 phone calls,” he said. “But our customers are starting to realize how serious this is.”
Pate’s a backflow prevention supervisor for the county Department of Water Resources. He’s also one of a dozen or so employees who’s a sworn officer of the court, empowered to carry a badge and write citations.
If they see water-ban violations while out on their “real jobs,” they address it. They also respond to citizen complaints when radioed about an accused offender whose address is in the vicinity of their work assignment.
Pate has taken several national and local TV news crews on ride-alongs, so he had no problem Wednesday accommodating the Badie Tour. Even when sprinklers are absent, this water cop knows to check for smoking guns.
Wet driveways. Water streaming down the curb or from the front yard. Hoses that appear to have been stretched to reach the front yard.
Little things.
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