TO THE EDITOR:

THE PROPOSED NEW WATER BUDGET IS A SHAM

Regrettably, the Committee's proposed Water Budget
is a stall and a sham -- because (1) it postpones any
water allocations for affordable housing or other
priorities into the rosy future, (2) ignores the
prospective water consumption from 700 more hookups for
outstanding building permits, yet (3) offers business
as usual for developers who pay for a toilet retrofit
program run by the City.

Retrofitting old bathroom fixtures is wise water
conservation. But retrofits only conserve but create
no new water resources. They are a short-term fix but
no long-term cure. Anyway, retrofitting Santa Fe's
older homes will play itself out within a few years.

Large water savings from a retrofit program are
doubtful in Santa Fe where people have already cut back
their toilet flushes and showers. Will homeowners with
new mini-toilets keep flushing only once a day while
their bathrooms smell? One extra flush actually raises
daily water usage.

Add the administrative nightmare for City staff to
collect retrofit fees, locate more voluntary toilet
takers, monitor timely installation of bathroom
fixtures, and trouble-shoot complaints. Given the
incomplete record of the City's Low-Flow Water Wise
Toilet Retrofit Program, there is a real risk of a
toilet retrofit fiasco aggravating our catastrophic
water shortage.

The community's faith in the City Council will be
shattered by worse water shortages due to a botched
toilet retrofit program while builders go scot free
with business as usual.

Fred Rowe