Here’s a response to your article about “Candidates face off at Wednesday forum” [The Citizen, Dec. 14, 2007]:

We have a water problem here in Georgia and all but one of the candidates for the 72nd district seat appear to have questionable ideas about how to solve it. This became evident in review of the statements they made at the recent Wednesday forum.

Candidate Steve Brown wants to spend $30 million to study the state’s current water production capacity. Matt Ramsey says more reservoirs are needed and Heidi Becker says she wants to speed up the process to provide permits for reservoir construction. Candidate Kevin Madden mentioned better conservation.

I am surprised to learn that the state is in the “water production” business; however, I do know that building reservoirs not only requires significant amounts of water for construction but water to fill them up once constructed, water we don’t currently have.

The comment that rings true is “conservation” since it means we all must reduce what we use. So let’s forget about taking more land for reservoirs when we aren’t getting the rain necessary to fill them much less water to build them.

“Reduce, Reuse and Recycle” are words to live by in this period of water shortage as well as “Conserve.”

Bill Holland

Peachtree City, Ga.

[Holland identifies himself as a “member of a statewide environmental board.”]