This is a river. This is a stream. This is a river. This is happening all over the country. There are tens of thousands of miles of dewatered streams in the United States. On this map, the colored areas represent water conflicts. Similar problems are emerging in the East as well. The reasons vary state to state, but mostly in the details. There are 4,000 miles of dewatered streams in Montana alone. They would ordinarily support fish and other wildlife. They're the veins of the ecosystem, and they're often empty veins.
Isto é un río Isto é un regato. Isto é un río. Isto está ocorrendo en todo o país. Hai decenas de miles de quilómetros de cursos de auga secos nos Estados Unidos. Neste mapa, as áreas coloreadas representan conflitos pola auga. Problemas similares están xurdindo tamén no Leste. As razóns varían de estado a estado, pero, sobre todo, nos detalles. Hai 6.400 km de cursos de auga secos só en Montana. Que normalmente deberían ter peixes e outra vida salvaxe. Son as veas do ecosistema, e, a miúdo, son veas baleiras.
I want to tell you the story of just one of these streams, because it's an archetype for the larger story. This is Prickly Pear Creek. It runs through a populated area from East Helena to Lake Helena. It supports wild fish including cutthroat, brown and rainbow trout. Nearly every year for more than a hundred years ... it looked like this in the summer. How did we get here? Well, it started back in the late 1800s when people started settling in places like Montana. In short, there was a lot of water and there weren't very many people. But as more people showed up wanting water, the folks who were there first got a little concerned, and in 1865, Montana passed its first water law. It basically said, everybody near the stream can share in the stream. Oddly, a lot of people showed up wanting to share the stream, and the folks who were there first got concerned enough to bring out their lawyers. There were precedent-setting suits in 1870 and 1872, both involving Prickly Pear Creek. And in 1921, the Montana Supreme Court ruled in a case involving Prickly Pear that the folks who were there first had the first, or "senior water rights." These senior water rights are key.
Quero contarlles a historia dun destes cursos de auga porque é un arquetipo dunha historia máis grande. Isto é Prickly Pear Creek. Discorre a través dunha área moi poboada dende o East Helena ata Lake Helena. Ten vida piscícola como a troita esganada, a troita común e a troita arco iris. Case todos os anos desde hai máis dun cento deles, parecíase a isto no verán. Como chegamos a isto? Ben, todo comezou a finais dos anos 1800 cando a xente comezou a asentarse en sitios como Montana. En resumo, había un monte de auga e non había moita xente. Pero a medida que aparecía máis xente, máis auga cumpría, a xente que chegou antes comezou a preocuparse, e en 1865, Montana aprobou a súa primeira Lei de augas. Basicamente dicía que toda persoa de preto dun curso de auga pode compartir ese ben. Curiosamente, presentouse unha gran cantidade de xente querendo compartir o curso de auga, e os que chegaran alí primeiro preocupáronse abondo como para levar os seus avogados. Houbo preitos que sentaron precedentes en 1870 e 1872, os dous relacionados con Prickly Pear Creek. E en 1921, o Tribunal Supremo de Montana pronunciouse nun caso relacionado con Prickly Pear sentenzando que a xente que chegara alí primeiro tiña dereitos primarios, ou superiores, sobre a auga. Estes "dereitos superiores" son a clave principal.
The problem is that all over the West now it looks like this. Some of these creeks have claims for 50 to 100 times more water than is actually in the stream. And the senior water rights holders, if they don't use their water right, they risk losing their water right -- along with the economic value that goes with it. So they have no incentive to conserve. So it's not just about the number of people; the system itself creates a disincentive to conserve because you can lose your water right if you don't use it. So after decades of lawsuits and 140 years, now, of experience, we still have this. It's a broken system. There's a disincentive to conserve, because if you don't use your water right, you can lose your water right. And I'm sure you all know, this has created significant conflicts between the agricultural and environmental communities.
O problema é que hoxe en día todo o Oeste ten este aspecto. Algúns destes regatos teñen reclamacións por de 50 a 100 veces máis auga ca a que hai actualmente no seu curso. E os titulares de dereitos superiores sobre a auga, se non os usan, arríscanse a perdelos, xunto co valor económico que implican. Xa que logo, non teñen ningún incentivo para conservar. Non se trata só da cantidade de xente; o propio sistema desincentiva a conservación porque un pode perder o seu dereito á auga se non o usa. Así, logo de décadas de demandas e 140 anos de experiencia aínda temos isto. É un sistema roto. Desincentívase a conservación porque se un non usa o seu dereito á auga pode perdelo. E, estou seguro que todos o saben, isto creou importantes conflitos entre as comunidades agrícolas e os ambientalistas.
OK, now I'm going to change gears here. Most of you will be happy to know that the rest of the presentation's free ...
Ben. Aquí vou cambiar de marcha. A moitos de vostedes agradaralles saber
(Laughter)
que o resto da presentación é gratis.
and some of you'll be happy to know that it involves beer.
E algún alegrarase de saber que hai cervexa polo medio.
(Laughter)
(Risos)
There's another thing happening around the country, which is that companies are starting to get concerned about their water footprint. They're concerned about securing an adequate supply of water, they're trying to be really efficient with their water use, and they're concerned about how their water use affects the image of their brand. Well, it's a national problem, but I'm going to tell you another story from Montana ... and it involves beer. I bet you didn't know, it takes about 5 pints of water to make a pint of beer. If you include all the drain, it takes more than a hundred pints of water to make a pint of beer.
Hai algo máis que está sucedendo no país, e é que as empresas están empezando a preocuparse por súa pegada hídrica. Preocúpaos asegurar unha subministración axeitada de auga, están tratando de usala de maneira moi eficiente e interesados en saber como afecta o seu uso de auga á imaxe da súa marca. Ben, é un problema nacional, pero eu voulles contar outra historia de Montana, e que ten que ver coa cervexa. Aposto a que non sabían que cómpren 5 pintas de auga para facer unha pinta de cervexa. Se se inclúen os sumidoiros, son máis de 100 pintas de auga para facer unha pinta de cervexa.
Now the brewers in Montana have already done a lot to reduce their water consumption, but they still use millions of gallons of water. I mean, there's water in beer. So what can they do about this remaining water footprint that can have serious effects on the ecosystem? These ecosystems are really important to the Montana brewers and their customers. After all, there's a strong correlation between water and fishing, and for some, there's a strong correlation between fishing and beer.
Agora ben, os cervexeiros de Montana xa fixeron moitas cousas para reducir o seu consumo de auga, pero aínda empregan millóns de litros. Digo, hai auga na cervexa. Que poden facer eles con esta pegada hídrica remanente que pode afectar seriamente o ecosistema? Estes ecosistemas son realmente importantes para os cervexeiros de Montana e os seus clientes. Despois de todo hai unha forte correlación entre a auga e a pesca. E, para algúns, hai unha forte correlación entre a pesca e a cervexa.
(Laughter)
(Risos)
So the Montana brewers and their customers are concerned and they're looking for some way to address the problem.
Por iso os cervexeiros de Montana e os seus clientes están preocupados e están buscando algunha maneira de enfrontar o problema.
So how can they address this remaining water footprint? Remember Prickly Pear. Up until now, business water stewardship has been limited to measuring and reducing, and we're suggesting that the next step is to restore. Remember Prickly Pear. It's a broken system. You've got a disincentive to conserve, because if you don't use your water right, you risk losing your water right. Well, we decided to connect these two worlds -- the world of the companies with their water footprints and the world of the farmers with their senior water rights on these creeks. In some states, senior water rights holders can leave their water in the stream while legally protecting it from others, and maintaining their water right. After all, it is their water right, and if they want to use that water right to help the fish grow in the stream, it's their right to do so. But they have no incentive to do so.
Como poden enfrontar esta pegada hídrica remanente? Recorden Prickly Pear. Ata agora, a administración comercial da auga limitouse a medir e reducir, e estamos suxerindo que o próximo paso sexa restaurar. Recorden Prickly Pear. É un sistema roto Hai desincentivo para a conservación porque se un non usa o seu dereito á auga, arriscase a perdelo. Pois ben, nós decidimos conectar ambolos dous mundos: o mundo empresarial coa súa pegada hídrica e o mundo dos granxeiros cos seus dereitos superiores sobre estes regatos. Nalgúns estados os titulares dos dereitos superiores poden deixar a súa auga na corrente mentres que a protexen legalmente de terceiros e e manteñen o seu dereito sobre ela. Despois de todo é o seu dereito á auga e se queren usalo pra promover a cría de peixes no curso de auga teñen dereito a facelo. Pero non teñen incentivos.
So, working with local water trusts, we created an incentive to do so. We pay them to leave their water in stream. That's what's happening here. This individual has made the choice and is closing this water diversion, leaving the water in the stream. He doesn't lose the water right, he just chooses to apply that right, or some portion of it, to the stream, instead of to the land. Because he's the senior water-rights holder, he can protect the water from other users in the stream. OK? He gets paid to leave the water in the stream.
Por iso, traballando cos fideicomisos locais de auga creamos un incentivo para facelo. Pagámoslles para que deixen a auga no curso do río. Iso é o que está sucedendo aquí. Esta persoa tomou a decisión de pechar esta comporta, deixando a auga no regato. El non perde o seu dereito á auga, só elixe aplicar ese dereito, ou unha parte del, ó regato, no canto de aplicalo á terra. Dado que é titular do dereito superior pode protexer a auga fronte a outros usuarios do regato. De acordo? Págaselle para que deixe a auga no regato.
This guy's measuring the water that this leaves in the stream. We then take the measured water, we divide it into thousand-gallon increments. Each increment gets a serial number and a certificate, and then the brewers and others buy those certificates as a way to return water to these degraded ecosystems. The brewers pay to restore water to the stream. It provides a simple, inexpensive and measurable way to return water to these degraded ecosystems, while giving farmers an economic choice and giving businesses concerned about their water footprints an easy way to deal with them.
Este fulano está medindo a auga que deixa no regato. Despois tomamos a auga medida e dividímola en incrementos de miles de litros. Cada incremento recibe un número de serie e un certificado, e despois os cervexeiros e outros mercan eses certificados como unha forma de devolver a auga a eses ecosistemas degradados. Os cervexeiros pagan para restituír a auga ao regato. Isto proporciona unha maneira simple, barata e medible de devolver a auga a estes ecosistemas degradados, á vez que lles dá aos granxeiros unha alternativa económica e ás empresas preocupadas pola súa pegada hídrica unha maneira fácil de lidar con eles.
After 140 years of conflict and 100 years of dry streams, a circumstance that litigation and regulation has not solved, we put together a market-based, willing buyer, willing seller solution -- a solution that does not require litigation. It's about giving folks concerned about their water footprints a real opportunity to put water where it's critically needed, into these degraded ecosystems, while at the same time providing farmers a meaningful economic choice about how their water is used.
Tras 140 anos de conflito, e 100 anos de cursos de auga secos, unha circunstancia que o litixio e a regulación non foron quen de resolver, nos elaboramos unha solución de mercado, de compradores e vendedores dispostos; unha solución que non require litixios. Trátase de dar ás persoas preocupadas pola súa pegada hídrica unha oportunidade real de poñer auga onde se necesita con urxencia, nestes ecosistemas degradados, mentres que á vez propónselles aos granxeiros unha alternativa económica coherente sobre o uso da súa auga.
These transactions create allies, not enemies. They connect people rather than dividing them. And they provide needed economic support for rural communities. And most importantly, it's working. We've returned more than four billion gallons of water to degraded ecosystems. We've connected senior water-rights holders with brewers in Montana, with hotels and tea companies in Oregon, and with high-tech companies that use a lot of water in the Southwest. And when we make these connections, we can and we do turn this ... into this.
Estas transaccións crean aliados, non inimigos. Conectan a xente no canto de dividila. E dan o apoio económico necesario para as comunidades rurais. E, o máis importante é que funcionan. Levamos devoltos máis de 15 mil millóns de litros de auga aos ecosistemas degradados. Levamos conectado aos titulares de "dereitos superiores" sobre a auga con cervexeiros de Montana, con hoteis e empresas de té de Oregon e con empresas de tecnoloxía que usan moita auga no Sudoeste. E cando establecemos estas conexións, podemos e facémolo, transformar iso en isto.
(Applause)
Moitas grazas.
Thank you very much.
(Aplausos)
(Applause)