Gov. Huntsman Hosts Conference on Water Planning for a Sustainable Future (10/10/07)

on 10 October 2007.

Gov. Huntsman Hosts Conference on
Water Planning for a Sustainable Future

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 10, 2007Contact: Shaun McGrath or Karen Deike, 303-623-9378

SALT LAKE CITY -- Utah Governor Jon Huntsman, Jr. today challenged participants attending a regional water planning conference to think creatively in developing recommendations for how the West can best meet increasing demands for water. The three-day conference is sponsored by the Western Governors' Association and the Western States Water Council.

"We are facing unprecedented demands for our limited water supplies in the West, and we will need to be creative in developing strategies for a sustainable future," said Huntsman, WGA's Vice Chairman. "Smart planning for future demand is critical to support both our expected growth and our way of life."

Vice Admiral Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, also delivered a keynote address today.
Tomorrow's speakers include Steven L. Johnson, Administrator, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency and Bob Johnson, Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation.

WGA and the water council addressed the challenges the West faces in their 2006 report, Water Needs and Strategies for a Sustainable Future. The conference will build upon the report's findings in three areas:

The role water policy and planning should play in dealing with growth for a sustainable future.
Water planning at the local or watershed level and the commitments that will be required by various levels of government.
Understanding climate change and deploying adaptation strategies.

More than 200 people are participating in the meeting, which will include breakout sessions focusing on those three topic areas. They will be asked to identify priority actions that should be taken by the WGA and WSWC to advance the report's recommendations.

The Western Governors' Association is an independent, nonprofit organization representing the governors of 19 states and three U.S.-Flag islands in the Pacific. Through their Association, the Western governors identify and address key policy and governance issues in natural resources, the environment, human services, economic development, international relations and public management.

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