On Sept 5, the Albert Lea Tribune printed an interesting op-ed article from The Mankato Free Press.  It was about Gov. Mark Dayton’s commitment to improving and protecting our state’s water resources. In August, Dayton kicked off a “Year of Water Action” by urging businesses, the agricultural industry, outdoor enthusiasts, communities and families to take action to improve and conserve water. Gov. Dayton said it is a shared responsibility to protect our water resources, and that it is an important issue that everyone, individually and collectively, must work toward. An effort will be made to educate individuals, communities, businesses and farmers on how they can all do their part to conserve water and reduce pollution. That effort by all of us can come in as small of everyday actions as buying water-efficient appliances, limiting lawn sprinkling, fixing leaky toilets or faucets, slowing water runoff from our yards and preventing transport of evasive water species.

With all of the above being said, do you believe as a community of businesses and individuals we are following Gov. Dayton’s lead and commitment to conserve and protect our water supply? Is using our entire community’s single day usage of 2 to 3 million gallons of fresh water for entertainment (the splash pad) being conservative, and is siphoning off only enough water into a holding tank for the parks staff to draw from, to water community plants, sufficient stewardship of our water supply?

There are many more questions to be asked and answered.  Is the splash pad’s location more important than being conservative with our water supply? Could putting the proposed splash pad near the existing aquatic center make more sense, where possibly pool water could be used for the splash pad, filtered and returned to the pool creating a more environmentally friendly and economical solution?

Some other things to consider, at the Broadway and Fountain Street location will the splash pad be shut down during the Eddie Cochran and the Fourth of July car shows, so if the wind comes up the water mist created by the splash pad will not drift onto participants vehicles, and if the splash pad is shut down will you have unhappy people who are not car show participants? How about people parking in the North Broadway parking lot or on the adjacent streets to attend a show at the Marion Ross theater, shop or have a meal and return to their car to find them covered with hard water stains on a windy day? Is the solution a better location?   

I believe this a teachable moment to our children, showing them we are making every possible effort to protect and conserve one of our most precious resources, clean and abundant water. It would be a selfless act showing them that their future is more important to us than our entertainment wants for them in the present.

Please support Gov. Mark Dayton’s “Year of Water Action” and his commitment to improving, protecting and preserving our (above and below ground) water supply.

Gary Hagen

Albert Lea