Longtime sponsor Tucson Water loves “being part of a Tucson tradition’

Talk about multi-tasking, well, Tucson Water does that for and with the El Tour de Tucson.

They’ll be at El Tour with its water buggy (official name is a hydration station), be the sponsor and judges for the children’s bike decorating contest and El Tour’s information booth.

Tucson Water has been a longtime sponsor of the event and will continue this year as El Tour moves into year 41.

“We’ve been with El Tour for a number of years, and we feel it’s one of those symbols of Tucson and the Old Pueblo that has been tried and true,” said Natalie DeRoock, Public Affairs Administrator for Tucson Water. “We love being part of the Tucson tradition.”

It’s also what Tucson Water does, given it is at several events in Tucson. Outreach is important.

“It’s about having a community presence and putting a face to a utility,” she said.

Tucson’s favorite mascots, Tucson Water’s Pete the Beak and Tucson Roadrunners Dusty Roadrunner, will be on hand for the decorating contest again this year.

Just as important – to all involved – Tucson Water will have information regarding water conservation and water education.

“We are the largest water company in Tucson,” she said. “We are Tucsonans working for Tucson.”

Water education is very important to them as it should be for many in the desert southwest.

“We are water service providers, but we also deeply believe in the ethic of water conservation because it is critical for the vitality of the Sonoran Desert, a vibrant Tucson economy, and for future generations,” she said. “We have many ways people can learn to conserve water without compromising quality of life, whether they are simple steps you can take in the kitchen to conserve water, maybe changing out a leaky toilet, etc, Or, doing other things like rain water harvesting, using grey water … xeriscaping – a lot of things that contribute to the City of Tucson’s Climate Action Plan.

DeRoock said people have been very receptive to the information at the events.

“People, when they see us out at these events, especially El Tour to Tucson, are excited that we are there,” she said. “We always get two questions: do we have enough water for our future? The answer is yes, we do, because Tucsonans have been responsible Sonoran desert dwellers, they have responsibly used water in the desert to preserve a great quality of life.

“And the second question we get is: is the water safe to drink? We know a lot of communities nation-wide struggle with water quality issues. The City of Tucson has been proactive in addressing water quality concerns and continues to keep our water supply safe and secure.”

Thank you Tucson Water … We’ll see you at El Tour!