I received this email early this morning. I used to get a couple of
similar emails per month, usually asking me where to move.
This one strikes me as from someone who wants to go
off-grid, not just live in a 'sustainable community'.
I think the sender is doing the right thing; the water future of
Las Vegas is not bright. This is from someone who lives a few
hundred miles east of the Cascadia subduction zone, on the
clock for the 'big one'.
Here goes:
Hello,
I live in Las Vegas and know that this city has no real
sustainability. This is motivating a recent decision of
mine to relocate and re-career. However, I'm unsure
of what information sources exists that would
help me select property with adequate water
resources.
Beyond the desire to have trees and weather again,
I am considering microhydro as a sustainable
energy source. Ideally, I'd like to recycle water, too,
I do not know where to start.
Best thing to do: go to a public library or the UNLV library and
see a reference librarian. In this day of online searches, people
forget about these professionals, who are trained to help people
find the information they seek. Believe me - they
know how to search. Trust me - I am married to one. But you do need to figure out what you want. 'LIving sustainably' or 'living off-grid" sound like what this person seeks.
Having said that, here is some information I got from a brief Google search.
Microhydropower - Microhydropower.net
Water supply: American Rainwater Catchment Systems Association (ARCSA); Brad Lancaster (rainwater harvesting, permaculture, greywater, etc.)
Greywater - Rainbow Water Coalition blog; LetsGoGreen
Living off-grid: here (places to live); Living Off The Grid; Off-Grid;
Off The Grid News
Renewable energy: National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). I am unsure NREL deals with household-scale systems.
Enjoy!
"Human salvation lies in the hands of the creatively maladjusted." - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Michael, for those of us who plan in future to reside and work in a poor developing nation the idea of living off the grid is fully expected. Thanks for the links.
Posted by: Dorian Roffe-Hammond | Monday, 16 July 2012 at 08:12 PM