In the Navajo Times, a piece about Darlene Arviso, the water lady. She drives a big truck around to homes on the eastern side of the reservation without running water, of which there are many:
Armed with her cellphone and massive truck, Arviso heads out into the community to deliver water to families in need.
“I go to different areas every day. I do 10 to 14 houses a day,” Arviso said of her route, adding that if some of the elders are home alone she’ll help them fill their buckets and take them inside.
In that regard, it is worth noting that the administration’s Fiscal Year 2016 budget request asks Congress to appropriate $91.2 million dollars for continued work on the Navajo-Gallup Water Supply Project, which will bring a more reliable supply of water into the eastern reaches of the Navajo Nation, where hauling water is the norm.
I was so sorry to read that you’re leaving the Journal. I’ve always read your column, even when some people (I won’t mention names) in my household tried to hide it from me. You have a talent for explaining complicated science to the average reader! You will be missed!
John, Have you ever written about the Kirkland fuel spill, and it’s possible impacts? Ditto for a repository for nuclear waste that is located near a reservation just South of Albuquerque? Could either of these threaten Albuquerque’s water supply? I left this question on an earlier post of yours, but don’t know if you saw it. And I also will regret seeing you leave the Journal. You were one of the few reasons to read that corporatist rag.