As students begin to settle into their dorms for the fall, the lack of rain has left Keene and most of New Hampshire in drought. The dry conditions are raising concerns about water use and brush fires.
“I have been here for 20 years, and I have never seen it this dry,” said Joe Britton, the facility manager for grounds services.
Britton recalled that it rained much of last spring, but once summer arrived, the rain stopped and the heat set in.
According to the most recent assessment by the U.S. Drought Monitor, 91% of N.H. is currently experiencing drought conditions, with nearly half of the state classified as severe.
While Keene itself is currently in moderate drought, severe drought in other parts of the state can stress crops, increase fire risk and strain water supplies, according to The Concord Monitor. These conditions reflect what Britton and others have observed around campus.
“The lawns are just burning up everywhere,” Britton said, reflecting on the effects of drought.
Although it may be brown, Britton reminded students that it doesn’t mean the grass is dead, just dormant.
Sophomore Jozuwe Tunguru shared the same concern, “When I walk around the grass, it’s more brown than last year when I came here. The ponds and rivers look a little bit less full than they usually look.”
“We do not have on-campus irrigation for lawns,” Britton said, “We have irrigation at some of the fields at the athletic complex, but other than that, none of the campus is irrigated as part of a sustainability effort.”
Britton noted that with 2,000 students on campus, toilets and showers are the largest water consumers, not lawn care. He added that under current circumstances, he does not foresee water usage being impacted unless drought conditions worsen.
For some students, the drought is negligible. “I don’t think I am worried. It wasn’t really on my mind like that,” Tunguru said.
With drought conditions drying out grass and foliage, Britton said the risk of fires on campus is always a consideration.
“There’s so many cameras and fire suppression systems on campus. I mean, you can’t walk 100 feet on campus and there’s not a fire extinguisher and those are annually tested, so they’re good to go,” he said.
While the college does not have a traditional drought plan, Britton noted that the Keene Fire Department can be on campus within minutes of a call. His reminder to students is simple: Be mindful of your water consumption and trust the safety systems in place.
Xander Noel can be contacted at
xnoel@kscequinox.com
