The Salt Lake Tribune asserted in a May 31 editorial ("Slow the flow: Water efficiency before Lake Powell Pipeline") that St. George and neighboring communities need to get up to speed with other communities in the arid West on water conservation. We want everyone to know that water use is becoming ever more efficient in Washington County. Furthermore, we compare favorably in water conservation with the communities mentioned in the editorial (Albuquerque, Tucson and Las Vegas).

Conservation is a primary goal of the Washington County Water Conservancy District. The WCWCD and the City of St. George each have full-time water conservation officers. We have almost met our original goal of saving 25 percent of the water we use and are setting new goals of another 25 percent.

We already have many of the conservation programs found in other arid areas, such as water controller rebates, toilet rebates (St. George City), school education programs, a water-wise demonstration garden, landscape workshops, landscaper training, watering restrictions and are adding more.

Anyone looking around this area can see that water-wise landscapes are becoming more prevalent. Water used for golf courses in Washington County is not potable and could not be treated for culinary use with today's technology because the Virgin River is polluted by salts. Using this water for outdoor watering conserves treated water for residential use.

A proposal from Citizens for Dixie's Future (which opposes construction of a Lake Powell pipeline) would remove all water from the Virgin River, decimating populations of endangered and native species.

The two largest cities in Washington County, St. George and Hurricane, use less water than Las Vegas in gallons per capita per day. Residential use exceeds Tucson and Albuquerque by only 10-15 gpcpd.

The total per capita usage differences between these cities may be accounted for, in part, by differences in rainfall or elevation. Tucson gets 12 inches of precipitation a year, compared to 8 for Washington County. Tucson's wettest month is July, when water is needed for landscapes, while Washington County's wettest month is February. Albuquerque is over 3,000 feet higher than St. George and has lower evapotranspiration losses, reducing the need for outside water.

There are also large differences in population size and density, as well as commercial and other demands that cause variances not accounted for in a simple per-capita calculation.

We agree with The Tribune that water conservation is important and must be enhanced. We do not agree that St. George and other communities in Washington County are the water wasters that critics assert.

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* RONALD W. THOMPSON is general manager of the Washington County Water Conservancy District.