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While recognizing the limits of water conservation in providing "new" water and additional <br />caveats relating to the site - specific impacts of water conservation measures, states are carefully <br />considering opportunities to "stretch" existing supplies of water through more efficient use, reuse, <br />and reservoir reoperation (prior to the development of new storage facilities). States are further <br />exploring opportunities to cost - effectively manage ground water recharge, recognizing it as a <br />potentially significant storage alternative, and some states are further pursuing the potential of <br />desalinization and weather modification to augment existing supplies. <br />As the emphasis on the importance of water conservation increases, states are developing and <br />adopting a number of programs to encourage such measures as low water -use landscaping, and water <br />rates that encourage conservation in urban areas, and development of conservation plans and <br />incentives and leak detection programs in rural /agricultural settings. The reuse of wastewater <br />effluent is also increasing. Many communities are currently reusing effluent for landscape and <br />agricultural irrigation. To facilitate a reallocation of existing uses to augment supplies in areas of <br />relative scarcity, some states have established water banks, while others have adopted measures to <br />streamline the transfer process. <br />Western states have made innovations in their laws and institutions in order to augment and <br />protect instream flows and to incorporate consideration of the public interest in their water right <br />application and transfer processes. States are also endeavoring to incorporate innovations in their <br />water quality programs, particularly regarding non -point source pollution. States have adopted <br />various measures to deal with the problem of ground water depletion. States have also strengthened <br />their capacity to deal with floods and drought. Innovations to improve information on water <br />availability and use are common. <br />States in the West have recognized and moved to enhance the potential value of local <br />watershed coordination initiatives. As conflicts over water use intensify in an era of both increasing <br />and changing demands, states are also addressing the need to deal more effectively with these <br />disputes. For a variety of reasons, states are also increasing their emphasis on maintaining and <br />enhancing the environment. These reasons include, but are not limited to, federal mandates such as <br />the Endangered Species Act and the Clean Water Act. <br />Given the diminishing federal resources available to carry out the requirements of these and <br />other federal acts, and the concurrent increase in the state burden for environmental protection, states <br />urge that increased flexibility be given regarding their implementation, so that states and others can <br />tailor programs and prioritize resources to meet real needs. Streamlining federal permit processes <br />is also important. The federal government should encourage innovations, which frequently involve <br />market incentives and non - regulatory tools, as they have often been found to work more effectively <br />than top -down regulation. The Council has, for example, urged flexibility in implementing the Total <br />Maximum Daily Load program under the Clean Water Act. Further, the federal government <br />continues to have an important role with regard to disaster response and other mitigation associated <br />with droughts and floods. <br />19 <br />