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LAS VEGAS EVENING REVIEW JOURNAL JUNE 11, 1948 City Manager Cautions Against Water Wasting City Manager J. M. Murphy today issued a stiff warning to 11 water-happy residents: “Stop rwatering’ the city streets." Murphy urged property own- fers to exercise control over ex- | cess waters which flow 'from their yards into the city streets, i thereby causing costly damage to thoroughfares. “Las Vegans have the highest per capita water use during the ; summer of any other, city in the United States,” he declared, after j a survey disclosed" that per capita i Water use here is 647 -gallons. ’ He learned that other cities | having high water usage during; the summer were those with sim­ilar high temperatures, hut pointed out the closest “rival’'* city used only slightly more than 100 gallons per capita. “Based on this comparison, it is easy to realize how far out of line the city of Las Vegas is in the. extravagant use of water,” he said. This chronic summer condition in Las Vegas results not only from the misuse of sprinkler systems and water hoses, but from the persistence of . many residents to operate coolers with­out installing pumps, Murphy said. : He appealed to! residents to keep, a closer watch while Water­ing yards, since overflow of water penetrates the street sur­face -into the subgrade and de- stroys surfacing, as .well as - ag­gravating the normal, poor ground water condition. The city manager pointed out that residents are abusing the flat water rates and reminded that the supply of artesian watery upon which “Las Vegas entirely depends, rapidly is being de­pleted. In fact, he warned, the State engineer’s office is- threatening to issue no further permits for artesian wells. He urged that residents co­operate in restricting extrava­gant use of water, and pointed out. that prosecution is possible under a city ordinance.