where is the water going? (San Diego, Imperial: HOA, how much, house)

[cre8lite]

i make 2 trips thru california each year (from vegas to the bay area), usually on 5. for years i've read the "congress created the dust bowl" & "crops grow where water flows" signs. the local farmers seem to be quite upset over the water situation - not enough water, too many taxes. i haven't really read into the topic, but today i found 2 news articles that show the other side of the coin:

Future of Colorado River on agenda in San Diego
As Lake Mead shrinks, California uses more than its share of water | Las Vegas Review-Journal

interesting reads

[EscapeCalifornia]

I believe the Central Valley farmers are complaining about Sierra Nevada water being allowed to go out to sea rather than being used for irrigation because of some fish. I don't think any Colorado River water is used in the Central Valley.

[DMenscha]

These are folks who are part of the Westlands water district. When it was created, they knew they were the red-headed step children of the Central Valley Water Project and would only get the surplus water from the system.

Back in the '70's all they grew out there was cotton and barley. Since then a lot of them planted orchards and when the allocation came up short, they've had to remove quite a bit of them. They may want to blame congress, but they knew the rules when they created the district and now they don't like the hand they've been dealt.

http://www.thebusinessjournal.com/ne...urther-slashed

[Des-Lab]

To explain it in the most simplest of terms, we don't have a WATER problem. We have a PEOPLE problem. There are just too many of them. The farmers in Imperial Valley blame the suburban folks watering their lawns who in turn blame the golf courses who in turn blame the farmers. All of them have their arguments to explain why THEY are important and why conservation and rules and root cause doesn't apply to them. The reality is *ALL* of them are to blame. You've heard the old expression "no one drop of water is responsible for the flood?" Same logic applies here.

It doesn't take a phd to figure out what's going to happen when you have a static or receding supply of a resource with more people demanding a piece of it.

Take a standard 16 oz glass filled with water. Put one straw in it. That person gets 16 ounces. Then put two straws, then four, then eight, etc etc and THEN how much water is there to go around? No refills.

Between the drought and the massive buildups of SoCal/San Diego, Las Vegas, and Phoenix over the last decade, we are basically at the point now where the glass only contains maybe twelve ounces of water. But contains about 64 straws in it.

[MIKEETC]

Originally Posted by Des-Lab

To explain it in the most simplest of terms, we don't have a WATER problem. We have a PEOPLE problem. There are just too many of them. The farmers in Imperial Valley blame the suburban folks watering their lawns who in turn blame the golf courses who in turn blame the farmers. All of them have their arguments to explain why THEY are important and why conservation and rules and root cause doesn't apply to them. The reality is *ALL* of them are to blame. You've heard the old expression "no one drop of water is responsible for the flood?" Same logic applies here.

It doesn't take a phd to figure out what's going to happen when you have a static or receding supply of a resource with more people demanding a piece of it.

Take a standard 16 oz glass filled with water. Put one straw in it. That person gets 16 ounces. Then put two straws, then four, then eight, etc etc and THEN how much water is there to go around? No refills.

Between the drought and the massive buildups of SoCal/San Diego, Las Vegas, and Phoenix over the last decade, we are basically at the point now where the glass only contains maybe twelve ounces of water. But contains about 64 straws in it.

That sums it up right there.

[and no one is going to like the solutions to the problem]

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by MIKEETC

That sums it up right there.

[and no one is going to like the solutions to the problem]

I drive around OC and it certainly doesn't look like a desert. Pretty much every house has a big green lawn, business parks are surrounded by grass and trees, and major streets have big grass medians. Cities in other dry climates seem to be landscaped much more in accordance with the climate. I'm not saying I don't like green, but I think its overdone considering where we live. Cut back on the unnecessary non-native outdoor greenery and there's plenty of water for human consumption. People are also going to have to get over their fear of recycled and purified water.

[MIKEETC]

Originally Posted by EscapeCalifornia

I drive around OC and it certainly doesn't look like a desert. Pretty much every house has a big green lawn, business parks are surrounded by grass and trees, and major streets have big grass medians. Cities in other dry climates seem to be landscaped much more in accordance with the climate. I'm not saying I don't like green, but I think its overdone considering where we live. Cut back on the unnecessary non-native outdoor greenery and there's plenty of water for human consumption. People are also going to have to get over their fear of recycled and purified water.

Agreed.

[bounty80]

Another side effect of all of the suburban watering of non-native plants is the eventual increase in invasive species. I bring this up because it seems that it gets little attention.

The non-native and invasive Argentine ant has thrived here largely due to the abundance of moisture provided to them through watering. This effects the biodiversity by pushing out native species and in their place is an aggressive ant that costs people quite a bit of money each year to keep loosely under control and out of their homes.

This and other pests are gaining footholds in the area due to watering in an otherwise difficult environment to survive in. New fungus, molds, plants, bacteria, diseases, etc - all coming in and thriving. Many of these are exotic and malicious in how they destruct animals, plants, and insects that have no natural defense against them.

[Fontucky]

There are too many cities that don't allow homeowners to rip out lawns for replacement with xeriscaping. That mindset has to change.

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by Fontucky

There are too many cities that don't allow homeowners to rip out lawns for replacement with xeriscaping. That mindset has to change.

I've even heard stories of HOAs fining people for having brown lawns when state and local laws specifically say that HOA regulations go out the window during a declared drought. Now that's a group of people that need to be stomped into the ground and set on fire.