Deep waters, slowly drying up in Punjab, India

[DesiGuy]

Clement weather and plentiful water mean that Punjab produces an eighth of India's total food grains. But the water table has dropped by ten metres since 1973 and the rate of decline is accelerating on both the Indian and the Pakistani sides of the region. It is a similar story for the north-western Sahara aquifer system (NWSAS), shared by Algeria, Tunisia and Libya. Withdrawals increased ninefold between 1950 and 2008. Springs are drying up and soil salinity has increased.

Such depletion of aquifers is a classic tragedy of the commons. Farmers pump, oblivious of others' actions or the impact of their own. Scarcity stokes this rather than braking it. Worse, much abstracted water is used in inefficient irrigation; compounding that, underpricing means it is often used for watering low-value crops. Powerful farming lobbies have little interest in changing the status quo.

Aquifers, like fish stocks, are most at risk when they cross national borders, making property rights weaker. Groundwater provides about a fifth of the planet's water needs and half its drinking water. In arid countries such as Libya or Saudi Arabia, that figure is close to 100 per cent. Almost 96 per cent of the planet's freshwater resources are stored as groundwater, half of which straddles borders. UNESCO, a United Nations body, estimates that 273 aquifers are shared by two or more countries.

The signing this summer of a treaty between Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay to protect the Guarani aquifer, after a six-year study of the region's underwater resources, has thus come as a nice surprise. It may even be a trend. Mali, Niger and Nigeria are due to sign a provisional deal early next year to set up a body to run the Iullemeden aquifer, where withdrawals have exceeded recharge ever since 1995, endangering the Niger river in the dry season.

The two deals follow a UN resolution in 2008 on creating a legal regime for aquifers (it may become a full convention next year). Lifting sanctions on Libya has had an effect, too. The Libyans say they may stop growing wheat using water from the NWSAS and the Nubian sandstone aquifer system, the world's largest fossil aquifer, which they share with Egypt, Chad and Sudan. An agreement in 1992 set up a body to run this but it has stayed largely dormant. Now sampling and monitoring have resumed, under the aegis of the International Atomic Energy Agency (which has a sideline in environmental monitoring).

Such scientific work is crucial because aquifers are still poorly understood. Until a UNESCO inventory in 2008, nobody knew even how many transboundary aquifers existed. Experts are still refining the count: the American-Mexico border may include 8, 10, 18 or 20 aquifers, depending on how you measure them. Defining sustainability vexes hydrologists too, particularly with ancient fossil aquifers that will inevitably run dry eventually. Estimates for the life of the Nubian sandstone aquifer range from a century to a millennium.

Deep waters, slowly drying up - Yahoo! India News

 

[third eye]

We are simply drawing out much more than can be replenished. Nature has a way of doing so but we do not allow that to happen by expanding our villages, encroaching village ponds and clogging water bodies.

Water harvesting is the only answer.

Not long ago there was a time when in parts of Punjab farmers used to pump water back into the canals as the water table was too high,now its the reverse.

 

[flameboard]

Pakistan needs piplines to pump seawater that has been converted into fresh water all over Pakistan. But beofre that we have the obvious initial problem of electricity.

 

[Abhishek_]

would receding water table in indian punjab in any way impact water table in pakistani punjab? just a curious question.

 

[PanzerFaust]

Pakistan needs piplines to pump seawater that has been converted into fresh water all over Pakistan. But beofre that we have the obvious initial problem of electricity.

Do you have any idea about the economics of converting sea water to fresh.
Do you know why countries like Qatar, UAE and Kuwait top Carbon emissions per capita in the world. Contribution of their immense desalination plants is huge, and there we are not even touching commercial irrigation with that water.

 

[ajtr]

simple answer use technologies and better water management.

 

[ajtr]

people of gujrat have shown it how they raised the water table in one of the severe drought prone district of Saurastra......

One man’s initiative ensures water-security in drought condition​

M. J. PRABU

Planting lakhs of trees, designing hundreds of check dams, and evolving new techniques of irrigating tree saplings in dry regions are feats of an out-of-the-box thinker named Mr. Premjibhai Patel, Rajkot, Gujarat.

Mr. Patel’s tree planting efforts first started from Rajkot, but soon spread to states such as Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

Every morning, carrying a bagful of seeds and a small spade, the farmer planted seeds on field bunds, along road sides, and vacant lands. Individuals and some institutions also volunteered to help in the farmer’s effort at ecological restoration.

Since manual seed planting proved laborious, Mr. Patel developed a petrol-driven mechanical blower mounted on a jeep back for broadcasting seeds.

The blower, which cost about Rs 12,000, blows seeds upto a distance of 15 meters, says the farmer. Using the blower he broadcasted 10 tonnes of tamarind seeds in several villages.

Mr. Patel also developed a unique technique for tree planting in drought prone regions of Kutch, Bhuj, and Saurashtra. He selected plastic pipes of about seven inches diameter and 1-1.5 feet height.

“Bore two small holes on opposite sides at the top end of the pipe and place it inside a half foot pit. Keep the root of the seedling next to the pipe inside the pit. Add a mixture of sand, soil and gravel to fill the pipe. Insert a small stick through the two holes at the top of the pipe and remove the pipe. Water poured on the sand reaches the roots of plants without wastage or evaporation,” he explains.

The rate of seedlings survival increases by this method, according to the farmer.

Now Mr. Patel is concentrating on watershed development through an organization called Vruksh Prem Seva Sanstha Trust. The trust works through about 150 nature clubs on nearly 1,000 hectares. The trust launched a campaign in several villages for ground water conservation through well recharge.

“Though the government introduced several schemes to encourage the development of checkdams’ in drought prone regions of Gujarat and offered subsidies, villagers did not evince interest in them because they often considered check dams as government projects. To motivate people to actively participate in building dams and to bring awareness on groundwater recharging I introduced a scheme for people,” says the farmer.

Mr. Patel himself bears the cost of checkdam construction except cement cost. (In some cases the farmer also bore the total cost including cement). Those interested in the scheme contacted him and he personally visited the area to get first hand information about the location and help them construct the dams.

Explaining the checkdam construction method Mr. Premjibhai says:

“I place large stones in the middle of the flowing water and use river sand, stones and cement to fill the gap between the stones. Iron rods are inserted into holes in the stones for added strength. The body wall of the dam is built in such a way that it slopes at an angle of 60 degrees and the width of the top wall maintained at one metre height (height can be increased in future)."

According to the farmer, circular dams are more economical than the straight ones, because the thin walls of the dams make them cost effective.

About 1,500 check dams and 50,000 feet of pipeline for recharging underground wells are his contribution to society.

Mr. Premjibhai’s initiative in water conservation ensures water security even in a drought season. Today farmers no longer remain idle even during summer as ground water table has increased considerably and there is timely water availability for agricultural activities. He also bagged the National Water Award recently from the Ministry of Water Resources.

For more information readers can contact Mr. Premjibhai Patel, Fulara Mill Godown, Furniture Gali, Rajmarg, Upleta, Rajkot, mobile: 9426202340.

 

[ajtr]

Dry district shows a nation how to get wet​

Hamirpur, June 5 -- A small district in Himachal Pradesh, a traditionally dry area that has experienced water woes for several years, is showing India how to conserve water. To tackle water scarcity, villagers in the district began harvesting rain water in khatris (deep pits) lined with impervious rocks, several years ago.

This simple form of water conservation caught the eye of the district administration, and, 11 years ago, it launched a water conservation drive in the region. They began by experimenting with harvesting water from rooftops of about 14 village houses.

Soon, a series of check dams were built to hold rain water for using after rains. Today, Hamirpur has 4,339 small and big check dams and 507 farm ponds.

"We have achieved it by involving the community," says Abhishek Jain, deputy commissioner, Hamirpur. "We also brought all the departments, working separately on water conservation under one roof for effective results.

" In the last six months, 666 traditional water sources in as many villages have been rejuvenated in government land. Rooftop rain water harvesting tanks have been installed in schools and village council offices and buildings.

The results are there to see. The ground water level in Hamirpur has shown an increase of over a metre from 2000 to 2008, according to NASA satellite data.

"We are able to use the water stored through check dams as per our own needs, for household requirement or for irrigating our fields," says Mathu Ram (54), a farmer from Kasiri village. "The hand pumps near the dams are re-charged.

" Inspired by Hamirpur's success, the state government has decided to spend 40 per cent of the Rs 900 crore.

 

[ajtr]

Water in the wells​

view the slideshow embedded in the above article.

From above link

Impacts of water harvesting

Regeneration of the river Fofal

The river Fofal, like all the other rivers in the region, was not a perennial river. Water would be available in the river only up to November. As a result of the check dam building, the river has been regenerated. Today, water is seen in the river through out year including the lean months and the river flow is observed in almost nine months. Villagers use the river water for meeting all their needs, from drinking to irrigation. Women no longer have to walk miles to get water, and are able to devote time for education and other social activities.

Other ecological impacts

Villages, which once looked like a desert, have now turned into green areas. An integrated approach has been made to the watershed development including wasteland development, plantation of forest species and checking of soil erosion. The construction of dams helped to increase the water level in the wells from 152.4 m to 6 m below ground level. The sarpanch of another village, Mespar, said that water is now available for 24 hours.

Because of the increased availability of irrigation water, the land that was lying fallow came under cultivation and the total area under farming increased from 890 hectare (ha) in 1995-96 to 22275 ha in 2006-07. More than 5000 hectares of land was brought under irrigation. Farmers began to raise three crops per year and there is no shortage of drinking water. The average yield of cotton, groundnut, wheat and chilly increased substantially. The villagers reaped a profit of 15 crore (approximately US $ 3 million) at the end 2004 from agricultural products.

As the salinity of the soil decreased, the farmers can now grow cotton in almost 80 % of the cultivated area, replacing groundnut in many fields. According to VPSST, the cotton production at the end of 2004 increased ten times in the villages under watershed project. Jerambhai Patel, chairman of Watershed Committee says that in 2003, he earned only Rs. 50,000 (US $ 1000) from cotton and groundnut crops, whereas, in 2004, after water harvesting, his income shot up to Rs. 4 lakh (Us $ 8000).

The availability of the fodder has also increased the milk production (5 litres/day to 8 litres/day) from the cattle in the area. As a result about 16,000 litres of milk is produced per day in the areas under the watershed program.

Socio-economic impacts

The ecological regeneration arising from increased availability of water has led to socio-economic and lifestyle improvements. Newly constructed houses can be seen in almost all the villages under this watershed project. Villagers have purchased tractors and constructed pucca (cement construction) houses. More than 150 families have purchased motorcycles and increase in percentage of admission in schools increased from 50 to 90 %. More numbers of girl children are being sent to school. Womenfolk now do not have to travel very far for washing, cleaning or collecting water for potable uses. Other small streams villages have appreciable water even during peak summer.

The increase in agricultural activities not only assured employment to the local people but also provided jobs to the villagers of the neighbouring areas. The villagers went back to their original profession of farming and gave up polishing of gems and jewelleries. The migration to nearby cities has completely stopped and people in the villages concentrate on farming. Today not a single inhabitant of the village depends on drought relief.

6.4 Community mobilisation

The VPSST acknowledges that local communities have an excellent knowledge of the geology, topography of the land and are thus best placed to decide on the design, height, location etc of the check dam. The role of VPSST was to secure and manage the finances and to provide training to the villages on construction technologies.

VPSST also encouraged villagers to involve themselves in the construction work. This would reduce the costs and also ensure quality of construction. Village communities, led by the sarpanch, would decide on the cost of the project, based on detailed calculations for stone, sand, cement etc. Villagers were then convinced of the genuineness of the cost estimates and contributed their share more willingly.

Initially people were not interested in the public participation for the construction of the check dams. Villagers were distrustful of government programmes and were reluctant to participate. The trust had to hold several meetings to convince the villagers that they stood to gain from the building of check dams to hold rainwater. VPSST therefore, started the movement by going ahead with the construction without any contribution from the villagers. Once the benefits of the check dams were visible to the people, they then came forward to be part of this endeavour.

By the end of 2005, the trust was successful in this movement and many farmers joined the user group for an assured source of irrigation. Due to availability of water in the river/rivulets through out year, there is no competition between the farmers for lifting water from the water bodies. Any one, irrespective of caste and creed, can use the river water for irrigation.



Traditional Water Harvesting In india

 

[ajtr]

A man of ideas​

Gujja Biksham is a man who marshals information to push the envelope of ideas. Serish Nanisetti discovers more about the man with ideas about water

You can be taken in by a man by three things: Appearance, impressions and ideas. It is easy to grasp the import of the first two qualities, but to know the third quality you have to sit down and wrestle. Gujja Biksham is one such person. He can easily be called the water man of India considering his immense contribution to the study of ebb and flow of life. A man who knows, researches and understands water: The source of life that is increasingly going to be in short supply. “Water is my turf,” says Biksham, who is a policy advisor of Fresh Water Program at WWF-International. Hailing from Turpugudem in Nalgonda where his mother still lives, Biksham knows what is agriculture and what is water. Currently he is associated with Icrisat-WWF collaborative project. “In the 80s it was discovered that tiger conservation cannot happen in isolation. Sustainable development and ecological balance became the buzz words and that's how I got involved with WWF,” says Biksham who has been with the organisation working from Switzerland for the past 18 years. Discovering the fact that water is the key to conservation, WWF wanted someone with specialisation in water and Biksham came into the picture.

He moved from his role in the Deccan Development Society to the WWF's International Fresh Water Program in 1993. How he moved from an ordinary neighbourhood school in Turpugudem to JNU where he did his PhD in water management and a post-doctoral in McGill University is a success story that can be a moral for a generation of young men who see the end of rainbow beyond their ken.

In 2001, Biksham Gujja led a study about the bottled water business and came up with a stunning find that the bottled water is no more safer than tap water. The findings included a fact that 1.5 million tonnes of plastic is used to bottle water every year (now this figure would be much higher as the developed countries have taken to the magic of bottled water). The key findings included the fact that tap would help not only one's pocket but also the environment.

Biksham also has authored or teamed up with others in writing a number of books that put a fresh perspective on water. Biksham is also involved with the WWF project on System of Rice Intensification (SRI) that seeks to reduce the usage of seeds for paddy crop and also lower the usage of water, helping improve the lifestyles of farmers at a time when labour is in short supply.

When it comes to water management, Biksham is a contrarian who advocates community based small and medium projects. “Earlier building dams was a technical challenge now the infrastructure is so well developed that the industry can build huge dams anywhere. And the dam building industry has become so big that we are building the dams not for the sake of the people but for the sake of the industry,” says Biksham.

“I don't like the phrase water wars, I prefer water conflict. It is a conflict that has to be resolved. We need simpler mechanism to solve them. Look at the Krishna basin problem, if the decision was arrived at earlier, there would not have been so much bad blood,” he says. Many years ago when Sir Arthur Cotton was questioned about the expensiveness of the Dowleswaram anicut he told the British Parliament that: “My Lord, one day's flow in the Godavari river during high flood is equal to one whole year's flow in the Thames River of London.” Now, Biksham Gujja who has created a forum for eclectic debate with his: Perspectives on Polavaram was almost prescient with his warning on Polavaram and flooding: “Based on climate models, it is highly likely that daily discharges could reach 120,000 cu m/sec and if trends continue, discharges could possibly even touch 200,000 cu m/sec. Even without factoring in the proposed dam, such daily discharges will cause immense damage to people, property and ecosystems.” It is no surprise that Biksham blames the 2009 Kurnool flood on sloppy water management. “The decisions were driven by greed and ignorance. If only the decision makers had done some calculations the flood and suffering would not have occurred,” says Biksham. Another book that Biksham co-authored that follows the footsteps of Arthur Cotton is that of inter-linking the rivers of India for irrigation and flood control, but here also it is about evaluating the pros and cons of a mega project.

“When building dams was a technical challenge, the location was based on feasibility and cost. Now, locating a dam is a political choice. And that is the reason why there is so much opposition as most of the decision making processes are non-transparent. Perspectives on Polavaram was an effort at informed decision-making. Where a minister held forth on the need for the dam and people opposing it also got their say,” says Biksham. It might appear like informed decision making, evaluating all perspectives but at the end of the day, it is obvious that Gujja Biksham believes in small is big as against the decision makers' fancy for big and mega. But are we willing to learn from him?

Keywords: Gujja Biksham, WWF, water

 

[ajtr]

The story of revival of Arvari river in Rajasthan. One mans struggle to bring perennial river back.

 

[ajtr]

Nanodams may be another answer. Nano Dam Development Foundation: The Foundation for developement of Nanodams in India and other parts of the world.

It's like having ponds all across the river, especially in summer when water is needed the most..


Welcome to Nano Dam Foundation


Nanodam development foundation is a non-profit organization involved in development of nanodams in India. We are working with various state governments of India to develop nanodams as a supplementary water storage system for benefit of people. Additional source of water will act as ponds for bird and aquatic life; helps to recharge ground water level in adjacent area and maintain humidity during summer conditions. Water storage is spread across the length of the riverbed, which helps to increase resource availability for the given geographic area.

 

[ajtr]

Project on linking of irrigation tanks extended​

Staff Reporter
DINDIGUL: With the successful implementation of a pilot project at Gujiliamparai union, the district administration has extended the project on linking of irrigation tanks and renovation of supply channels to all panchayat unions in the district except Kodaikanal.

Launching the project at Sukkampatti panchayat near here on Tuesday, Collector M. Vallalar said that 109-km supply channel would be rehabilitated and linked with 50 tanks.

A total of 62-km channel was partially silted and 14-km channel massively damaged, he said.

This project will be implemented at an estimated cost of Rs.3.55 crore under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme. It will generate 3.55 lakh man days providing jobs to lakhs of rural farm workers who have registered their names under MGNREGS.

Fourteen silt ravaged ponds in Gujiliamparai, two in Dindigul, six in Athoor, four in Reddiyarchatram, two in Sanarpatti, seven in Natham, one each in Nilakottai, Batlagundu and Vedasandur, three each in Oddanchatram and Thoppampatti and six in Vadamadurai unions will be renovated.

In Dindigul union alone, 28.27-km supply channel will be desilted and rehabilitated.

On completion of this project, rural people, particularly farmers, will reap maximum benefits. A total of 215 million cubic feet of water will be stored in these renovated tanks and 1,200 open wells and 3,750 bore wells will be recharged.

The water table at nearby villages will go up sharply. Besides, 22,725 hectares of land will be brought back to cultivation. Water stored in these tanks would feed 71,000 cattle and act as sustainable drinking water source to more than 30 habitations, he added.

The district administration has plans to plant 2.5 lakh saplings in the district in September to make the district green. Saplings will also be planted along the banks of these channels. Instructions were given to dig several pits along supply channels for planting saplings.

 

[ajtr]

Do you have any idea about the economics of converting sea water to fresh.
Do you know why countries like Qatar, UAE and Kuwait top Carbon emissions per capita in the world. Contribution of their immense desalination plants is huge, and there we are not even touching commercial irrigation with that water.

one sea water desalination plan is already working in chennai. and you will be be amazed to know that it doesnt cost eye,arm or leg...


YouTube - Clean drinking water at low price in Chennai

 

[ajtr]

Local engineer spends two years helping out in India​

Chip Halbert helped villagers make sand filters to capture rainwater from rooftops and showed them how micro-hydroelectric projects could provide power to remote areas.
By CINDY KESTER
Landau Associates

Often people are drawn to environmental consulting out of desire to balance a healthy natural environment with the need for commercial and industrial development. As professionals, they serve a vital need in sustaining and restoring our natural assets, but sometimes, these people choose to make a difference at a grassroots level through volunteer engagement.

For Chip Halbert and his family, the perfect mix of ecological knowledge, a motivating desire to serve and strong commitment to preserving the world in which we live, stirred them to put down roots in the Indian Himalayas for two years.

Chip, an environmental engineer with Landau Associates for the past 12 years, was serving as director of environmental permitting and natural resources when he and his family made the decision to relocate to India in 2008.

After taking a trip to India a few years before, he and his wife were impressed by both the need for growth in rural areas, specifically economic development, and the collaboration among people eager for change. Chip says, “We wanted to help preserve what we have in the world, and find opportunities to help make it a better place.”Chip talked about his plans with Landau Associates’ management team, and they were very supportive as the company has a strong commitment and long track record of encouraging its employees to reach out, get involved, and give back to people and the environment.

Landau Associates retained Chip on a part-time basis, allowing him to provide senior technical reviews for several projects from wherever his travels might take him.

“It was a real win-win,” Chip explains. “The reduced salary was still enough to cover our expenses in India, but it also gave us enough flexibility in our schedule that we could commit our time and our energies to the community we were living in.”

A new home

Chip, his wife Sandy, and their three children packed up their lives here and moved 8,000 miles away to their new home in Mussoorie, Uttarakhand, in the northern part of India. This small town is tucked away in the lower Himalayas at an elevation of 7,000 feet. All around them lay dense rainforest, thick with oak and pine trees and inhabited by exotic wildlife such as leopards and monkeys. Instead of clean paved roads and sidewalks, they trekked through muddy footpaths to get from place to place, sometimes sharing the same path as nomadic buffalo herders.

Chip and his family didn’t set out with a clear plan for how they could make a difference in India. Opting against volunteer opportunities tied into any specific organization, they chose to simply go as tourists and help out wherever they could.

After spending the first few months intensively studying Hindi, the opportunities to help came naturally. As they got to know people locally and became more immersed in the day-to-day living experiences in this small town, the opportunities grew and the needs became evident.

Unstable water supply

People in nearby villages were concerned and frustrated by the unstable water supply and asked Chip if there was a way they could recycle rainwater from their roofs. Chip taught them about the benefits of using sand filters to reduce water contaminants and provide potable water. He then designed several sand filters, which allowed them to harvest rain from the rooftop runoffs.

Managing the water supply in India has been a significant struggle for hundreds of years. The state became the sole provider of water in the 19th century, which meant communities were no longer the primary agents of water provision and management.

The use of rainwater and floodwater declined and in its place the state grew to rely on surface water, primarily rivers and groundwater. Over time, the usage level of river water has significantly depleted many of India’s river basins and led to considerable river pollution. The groundwater supply has been heavily over-used, leading to depleted resources.

Overall water supply throughout India, in terms of quality and quantity, has declined to such an extent that in many parts, both rural and urban communities hang in a precarious balance, facing drought-like situations regularly.

“Any time someone heard about my background in environmental engineering they were eager to learn more because the needs are so apparent in that part of India,” Chip says.

Environmental regulation is in a relatively early stage there. Much of what’s happening with recycling, municipal waste management, and so on, is happening at a grassroots level. In Mussoorie, it is largely private citizens and schools introducing change and making improvements.

Micro-hydroelectric options

One of the interesting dialogues during their two years in India grew out of a chance introduction. While celebrating Christmas on the beach in Goa, more than 1,300 miles from Mussoorie, Chip met Scott Smith over dinner with mutual friends.

Scott was just taking over as the director for Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit GTZ’s regional economic development program in Uttarakhand.

Chip had backpacked through remote areas of the Himalayas in Uttarakhand, places well off the electrical grid but with thriving village communities near creeks or small rivers. Chip had been giving a lot of thought into the potential for using micro-hydroelectric projects to provide power to those communities when he happened to meet Scott.

With Scott working as the director for economic development in that region, he and Chip began to brainstorm about some overlapping elements of the economic and environmental fields.

Micro-hydroelectric installations can produce up to 100 kilowatts of power for isolated and/or smaller communities. These installations offer these communities an economical way to access a form of renewable energy without needing to buy fuel. They produce no greenhouse gases and provide an alternative to other traditional energy sources that contribute to global warming. As such, hydroelectric projects can often qualify for the registration of carbon credits.

Although an individual micro-hydroelectric power plant would be too small to warrant the effort of pursuing registration of carbon credits, Chip recognized an opportunity for the state to combine several individual projects into one larger project plan that could register carbon credits and sell them on the international market to help offset the costs of constructing the micro-hydroelectric plants.

After that initial chance meeting, Chip and Scott had several follow-up conversations to consider how GTZ and the Uttarakhand government might implement such a program. Chip returned home to the U.S. before any solid plans were developed, but the idea was planted and there is hope that GTZ will continue moving forward with the plan.

“We don’t always get the chance to see a plan carried out through its end,” Chip says. “Sometimes planting the idea and helping it get through its first formative stage is the only chance we get.”

The Halbert family returned to the Puget Sound area in June and Chip is back working full-time in the Edmonds office of Landau Associates as the lead for air-quality permitting and risk assessment projects.

The time that Chip spent in India brought with it new perspective and a renewed passion to his projects.

“India is such an incredibly diverse place and its people are wonderfully resourceful,” he says. “Seeing that creative resourcefulness play out in daily life has really reinforced for me that there are so many different and viable solutions to any need at hand.”