LE††UCE PREY
“I’ve already asked all Utahns to conserve water by avoiding long showers, fixing leaky faucets and planting water-wise landscapes,” Spencer Cox said in a video posted to Twitter.
“But I fear those efforts alone won’t be enough to protect us. We need more rain and we need it now. We need some divine intervention. That’s why I’m asking Utahns of all faiths to join me in a weekend of prayer [from] 4 June through the sixth.”
He added: “By praying collaboratively and collectively, asking God or whatever higher power you believe in for more rain, we may be able to escape the deadliest aspects of the continuing drought.”
The governor said all were welcome to pray regardless of religious affiliation.
“There’s nothing wrong with prayer,” said Zachary Frankel, executive director of the Utah Rivers Council, “but there’s a suite of state policies we could implement to address this drought which are being ignored.”
Utah has some of the highest municipal water use in the United States, he added, yet state leaders and water managers refuse to enact meaningful water conservation policies that could help curb the state’s overall water use.
According to the site Statista, Utah has the second highest per capita water usage among the states.
“Can we get real? We need some courage from state leaders to tackle these solutions and stop pretending like there are no solutions to use our water wisely,” Frankel said. “I’m praying for courage from the people we elected to represent us to take on the special interests fighting water conservation programs. Will my prayers be heard?”
Three weeks ago News Views ran this discussion:
Farmers and Ranchers Asking All People in Utah to Fast and Pray for Moisture Today
“I really believe that this solution comes from one person and one person only,” said Ron Gibson, a sixth-generation farmer who also serves as the president of the Utah Farm Bureau. “And that’s our Father in Heaven.”
