"We are a family of five with three teenage boys. Our water is hauled and stored in a 12-foot deep concrete cistern next to our house. At times, we need to make 1,400 gallons of water last up to three weeks. The average family uses that much water in five days. I have to tell my boys that they are unable to shower because the man who hauls our water won't come for a couple of days. Try telling today's teenagers that life will go on without a shower.
Patsy Storhoff and family.
The man who hauls our water is a farmer, so our water supply depends on his planting and harvesting schedule, as well as the weather. We use hauled water for all of our household usage.
We have considered drilling a well for our house, but the well drillers cannot guarantee they'll reach water, and if they do, it's most often undrinkable.
During the flood of 1997, our driveway washed away. We had to use two 300 gallon tanks on the back of two pick-ups to haul water. We would pump the water from one tank on one side of the road to another on the other side of the wash out. We would then pump it again into the cistern. We had to haul water this way for over three weeks until our road was repaired. Showers were in very short supply that month.
We grow the wheat that makes your bread and the beef that makes the hamburger. We raise our children with a strong work ethic, a belief in values and an emphasis on kindness and helping out our neighbors. Our living is made off the land, and we provide for our neighbors and the world. Our lives are not picture perfect, but we believe our strengths and ideals are important to the future of our state and nation.
Without a positive outlook on the future of our water supplies, I'm afraid that our family may be one of the last generations to live where we do and pass on these beliefs. I strongly support the Dakota Water Resources Act for my family and the future of our state."
The Southwest Pipeline Project is a positive example of Garrison Diversion MR&I funding providing a clean and reliable supply of Lake Sakakawea water for the citizens of southwestern North Dakota.
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