California drought rules eased significantly
Last edited Mon May 9, 2016, 05:34 PM - Edit history (1)
Source: San Jose Mercury News
This summer's drought rules in California are going to be a whole lot looser than last summer's.
In a major shift, the administration of Gov. Jerry Brown on Monday announced plans to drop all statewide mandatory water conservation targets it had imposed on urban areas last June.
The new rules, which are expected to be approved May 18 by the State Water Resources Control Board, would instead allow more than 400 cities, water districts and private companies to each set their own water conservation targets, as long as they report them to state officials.
Water agencies, particularly in Southern California and around Sacramento, had complained bitterly about the statewide rules, saying that they were costing them hundreds of millions of dollars in lost water sales, and did not accurately reflect each community's local water supply conditions.
Read more: http://www.mercurynews.com/drought/ci_29868853/california-drought-water-wasting-rules-made-permanent-under
Edited - update
sakabatou
(42,152 posts)NickB79
(19,239 posts)Why is anyone assuming there will be an end to this drought?
Given that we've altered the planet's climate to such a massive degree, it's entirely plausible the CA drought conditions are the "New Normal", and wet years will be the outliers.
ffr
(22,670 posts)KansDem
(28,498 posts)RANCHO SANTA FE, CALIF. Drought or no drought, Steve Yuhas resents the idea that it is somehow shameful to be a water hog. If you can pay for it, he argues, you should get your water.
People should not be forced to live on property with brown lawns, golf on brown courses or apologize for wanting their gardens to be beautiful, Yuhas fumed recently on social media. We pay significant property taxes based on where we live, he added in an interview. And, no, were not all equal when it comes to water.
Yuhas lives in the ultra-wealthy enclave of Rancho Santa Fe, a bucolic Southern California hamlet of ranches, gated communities and country clubs that guzzles five times more water per capita than the statewide average. In April, after Gov. Jerry Brown (D) called for a 25 percent reduction in water use, consumption in Rancho Santa Fe went up by 9 percent.
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WP
Hey, Asshole! What happens when you run out of water? All of your f*cking money won't buy you a drop!
ffr
(22,670 posts)He should be jailed or penalized monetarily so severely that he gets with the program. Fuck traditionalists!
ffr
(22,670 posts)Residents who exceed their allotment could see their already sky-high water bills triple. And for ultra-wealthy customers undeterred by financial penalties, the district reserves the right to install flow restrictors quarter-size disks that make it difficult to, say, shower and do a load of laundry at the same time.
In extreme cases, the district could shut off the tap altogether.
Californias largest lake is slipping away amid epic drought
The restrictions are among the toughest in the state, and residents of Rancho Santa Fe are feeling aggrieved.
I think were being overly penalized, and were certainly being overly scrutinized by the world, said Gay Butler, an interior designer out for a trail ride on her show horse, Bear. She said her water bill averages about $800 a month.
Next thing you'll know, these 9% increase water wasters will be running their city fed water systems 24/7 into holding tanks so they can flow water at higher rates as they wish. Only problem for them will be that they'll begin to see how precious and costly fresh drinking water can be.
chernabog
(480 posts)Person 2713
(3,263 posts)Killing all life would reduce water usage. I wouldn't say "save" because its not like the water vanishes into a black hole never to return. Your idea of starting by eating the cows is a good one, hamburgers for lunch every day this week!