How bad water shortage in California?

[Hogtamer]

Thought some of you western guys might chime in...and what's the prognosis? I recently watched a documentary "Last call at the oasis" made in 2011 that now seems pretty accurate and prophetic even with the benefit of hindsight.

[Bzcraig]

Do we need rain and snow, yes! Is this the worst ever drought? I don't know, I guess NOAA records would reveal that but in my 57 years in CA I have heard the 'drought' word many times. In the area of Central CA I live it is an arid enviornment and in an average year we get about 13" of annual rainfall. Though I don't know the specifics, we also experience rain cycles measured best in term of years/decades that are more indicative of actual drought conditions and that is rarely addressed by the media outlets. For me personally, I might get concerned if we have another year as dry as the current. The real problem comes in summer and fall when we start to have wildfires. I have heard the Farmers Almanac says we will have a very wet spring, will have to wait and see, but it is usually more accurate than weather prognosticators.

[hithard]

I can say this, the river's that I pan for gold in are exposing places that I have never had access to, and I am 47 years old. I just drove over the Sierra Nevada mountains yesterday and there was but a few inches of snow, less than a foot. There should easily be many feet. I also stopped at a few of the resevoirs along the way that should be at or near the top, well we can now call them holes. My friends that are fishing the delta tell me that the salt water intrusion from the bay is up further in the delta than they have ever seen. These are guy's that have lived their whole live's here fishing these waters.

We ship alot of our northern water south, I mean alot, they can change the flow of the delta when all the pumps are running. Hindsight projects were stopped along time ago due to all of the EPA regulations and the environmentalist here in California. Yes, we have fu....ed ourselves. It will be interesting to see if some of that changes due to this awesome shortage.

I beleive we will all see some of the highest prices for fruit's and vegetable that we have ever seen by a large margin. I am getting things ready for a big garden this year. I plan on getting my water from the grey water from the house. I'm currently looking into the best way to do this.

Let's not even talk about what the salmon are doing in those river's right now.

[462]

Currently, reservoir levels and the Sierra snow pack are at historically low levels. California droughts are nothing new, with evidence of them as far back as the pre-Medieval days, and lasting up to 150 years.

The problem is multi-faceted and totally political. The southern part of the state gets most of its water from the northern part, and takes more than its allotted share from the Colorado River, creating water level problems at Lake Mead and Lake Powell. Fish have been given more rights than humans, thus water storage has not been increased in many years, a number of dams have been dismantled, and the amount of water allowed to be pumped from some rivers has been decreased. Unabated growth has outpaced any means of supplying sufficient water, making voluntary water rationing an ongoing reality in many areas.

Rather than looking for realistic ways in which to increase water supplies, state and local politicians (bought and paid for by nut-case environmentalists and other special interest groups) have mandated policies to reduce the amount of water usage, i.e. low-flow faucets and toilets (which require multiple flushes) and low water usage appliances. While not wasting water is commendable, it's immoral, for those who supply our water, to do nothing to increase its availability.

[Iowa Fox]

I think everybody needs to get their victory garden in this year, lots of produce comes out of that corner of the USA.

[olereb]

Don't mean to hijack the thread but I'm curious do you have water usage restrictions in CA for watering your lawn and that kind of stuff?. Here in SW FL we have water usage restrictions so that we don't run out of fresh water,i thought I read that CA doesn't have any which if true amazes me with the water problems I always hear about there.

[Charley]

Not to slam California (well ok, a slam) here in Texas we've had a severe drought for the last three years...currently officially "severe", up from "extreme". Because we are considered "flyover country", very little notice has been taken by the news media on the coasts, but the California story is everywhere you look. Here are some picture of Medina lake, to the WNW of San Antonio, levels are about 5% of "normal". Water rationing, pumping limits for private and public well has been ongoing for three years.//http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=How+Low+Is+Medina+Lake&FORM=RESTAB (http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=How+Low+Is+Medina+Lake&FORM=RESTAB)

[462]

The water company that supplies my area has had voluntary water usage guidelines in place for about 30 years, and they include lawn and garden watering.

In the past, we have been mandated to 50 gallons per day per each person in a household. I suspect the mandated usage will soon be reinstated.

[Love Life]

I was in the Sierra's today, and we have a little over a foot at 7,500 ft. All the reservoirs are low and it will need to snow about 20 feet in the next couple months to make us sort of right.

To answer the OP- The drought is pretty legit. Remember how Georgia was during the big drought when Big Hart turned into a creek? That's us right now, except we don't replenish as fast.

[Duckiller]

The drought is almost real. So Cal has water meters, Nor Cal is getting water meters. There are no restrictions on building houses. So far it is just a matter of money. If the politicians really believed in the drought we wouldn't be able to have unrestricted building. When some areas in Cal have had REAL water shortages you couldn't build a new house with three bathroom unless you took three existing bathrooms out of use, ie you bought three small houses. Most of Cals water comes from the snow pack in the Sierras and Rockies. Not sure about the Rockies but the sierra snow pack is very low. The snow pack for the entire west coast is down. Friend just came down from Corvalis Ore area. ski slopes not open, no snow. If the drought measures are enforced I don't think we will have victory gardens. No water to irrigate them. With present reserves no water is being released for farms or normal residental useage. All that is left is being held for emergencies. If we don't get some serious snow fall in Feb, Mar and Apr then California will cease to be the golden state and The rest of the country will soon figure just how much of their produced is from California when it is not available. Based on tree rings there have been some long trem severe droughts in the west. If this is what we are entering then there will be major relocations of populations. Everyone in the rest of the country should hope and pray that the west coast gets reasonable rain so they can still pick on California.

[ph4570]

1.8" so far this year while typical is about 40" at the same time of year where we dwell in northern calif mountains. It will be dry, dangerous fire season and water will be rationed in muni regions.

[Love Life]

Very well written post Duckiller.

[Hogtamer]

The graywater works well for the garden...if you have easy access under your house.

[Bad Water Bill]

If it is YELLOW let it mellow.

If it is brown will take on a whole new meaning.

There are many ways to save,conserve water that the desert folks can teach folks with short supplys.

The folks in apartment buildings will be the hardest hit.

Private residences still have options.

#1 collect and use lots of rain bbls while you can.

[bhn22]

One big problem is that you have too many people in California for the resources available. Deport half the population, and everything will fall back into line naturally.

[MT Gianni]

When it is really a shortage they will shut down watering golf courses.

[Freightman]

Just don't send them to Texas we don't need any more people!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[GOPHER SLAYER]

What we need to remember is the fact that much of the populated part of California is a coastal desert. When it was part Mexico there were very few people who lived here for that reason. A man named Mulholland changed that when he conspired to steal the water from Owen's valley and turn that area into a dust bowl but he made the mega city of Los Angeles possible. When we moved to are present location, which is over a hundred miles from the coast there was a large grove of beautiful oak trees close to our home. All of them are now just rotting stumps. We have drown down the aquifer until they could no longer get enough water to survive. Our governor Brother Moon Beam wasn't lying last week when he said we have a serious water problem. I think it will get much worse. What humans have trouble with is the fact that the earth nor nature cares what our plans are. We could have a drought for a thousand years and there is nothing we could do about it. It has happened before in other parts of the world. In ancient times, North Africa was a green and lush place to live.

[Bad Water Bill]

When it is really a shortage they will shut down watering golf courses.

How about saving the water in those swimming pools for fire use only.

Put a seal over them to prevent evaporation.

[tomme boy]

Better find out if you can have a rain barrel or not. Some states it is almost as bad as a felony if caught collecting rainwater.

[starmac]

Bill This is how some minds work. I knew a guy that contracted to tear down a huge motel in Salt Lake City. The law forced him to use water to keep the dust down, but they would not give him a permit to use or buy water. lol He could however fill the pool at the closed down motel as many times as he wanted too, so he just used it to fill the water trucks and didn't need a permit. lol

[starmac]

Better find out if you can have a rain barrel or not. Some states it is almost as bad as a felony if caught collecting rainwater.

The only state I have ever heard with that law, or at least enforcing it is Colorado.

[Love Life]

If this drought doesn't break, expect some sticker shock at the grocery store.

Somebody in another thread joked about an east/west water pipeline being better than a north/south oil pipeline. He just may be on to something...

[Bad Water Bill]

More ways to skin a cat than most think.

I be a bunch of politicians and special interest folks were perturbed tho.

Good on him.

[tomme boy]

Starmac, with the shortage they are talking about, the crazies will start enforcing it if they have it out there. Or they will pass a law to make it that way. Better be safe than sorry.

[starmac]

When I was pretty young (still in school) we were going through a drought in eastern NM, and an old timer told me then that eventually with the population of the world growing like it is, water would eventually be our most precious commodity. Something we take for granted these days.

[Love Life]

Uncle Sugar doesn't take it for granted and has an eye on where a lot of the world's fresh water is.

[Bad Water Bill]

If this drought doesn't break, expect some sticker shock at the grocery store.

Somebody in another thread joked about an east/west water pipeline being better than a north/south oil pipeline. He just may be on to something...

And just where are they going to get water from the east. I do not know how many times the Mississippi waters are recycled before it reaches the golf.

Last year it was so shallow most of the barge traffic came to a standstill.

The great lakes are already tapped out by INTERNATIONAL LAWS.

[Love Life]

Good point BWB. Maybe it's time for America to take water from other countries. Lord knows we have given enough free stuff and lives away over the years to keep countries whole-ish.

I thought Antarctica and the north pole were supposed to have melted by now and raised the sea level high enough for the beach to be in Colorado?

[dragon813gt]

Southern California is a desert. There really isn't a need to say anymore.

[462]

I asked an out of state friend to bring us his over abundance of snow.

I mentioned, in an earlier post, the state's unabated growth. It was an attempt to be polite, but the cat is now out of the bag. California has about half the country's population of illegal aliens. More than a few extra million people put a huge strain on more than just the water supply.

Rain barrels only work if there is rain. The area where I live has had less than two inches in the last seven-plus months

[Finster101]

Doesn't the Middle East use a lot of de-salinization? I think it may be pricey but it is much better than none.

[Bad Water Bill]

In about a year of more drought perhaps we should let the cat out of the bag on how our carriers produce enough fresh water to not only provide full power but also plenty to keep 6k sailors clean and fed and still have water left over.:bigsmyl2:

By that time the enviro wackos will probably be drummed out of the state.

[Love Life]

I believe the carriers use magic and hocus pocus.

[Bad Water Bill]

How did you guess?

It's all black gang magic don't you know.

[lka]

We haven't had snow yet, I'm in the big bear area, got a dusting fri and last night, looking like a little more tonight. It's been a dry winter, I'm sure we will get slammed here soon feb is usually our wettest month..

[Duckiller]

Most golf courses in southern California are irrigated with reclaimed water. A large percentage ofour fresh water is used more than once. More than one person drinks the same drop of water.

[462]

Desalination is an on-going consideration, but estimates say that the currently very expensive water bills would triple, at least. Of course, the estimates do not include the usual cost over-runs.

California's water supply has always been a tough game, played by the rich and special interest connected politicians. The end-user may as well be mute.

[starmac]

Desalination is always an option, but many would want much of the population to die of thirst before they would consider it.

[MUSTANG]

Most of the US is dependent upon "Ancient Water". This is water derived from the Little Ice Age (1350 to about 1850) and the last Ice Age after the Pleistocene period (approximately 110,000 to 12,000 years ago). It was stored in glaciers, lakes, and below ground in aquifers such as the extensive Ogallala Aquifer across the Great plains. Drought is upon us because:

1. We are in a tens to hundreds of thousand of year cycle of warming and drying).

2. Our population has dramatically grown requiring more water.

3. We have moved vast portions of the population to the desert over the last 60 years (Los Angles, San Diego, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, Phoenix, etc..

4. We have diverted vast amounts of water for not only population centers, but also for agriculture in fertile - but arid lands across the West. These efforts have reduced the levels of surface and subsurface water while dramatically increasing loss through evaporation from both farm lands and population centers.

5. We have a population (myself included at times) that expects to use vast amounts of water, most without understanding the eons associated with the cycle of water that they are drawing down, nor do they care. (Short term vision is common).

[popper]

Predicted 10-12 years ago but the pols never pay attention.

[dtknowles]

If it is YELLOW let it mellow.

If it is brown will take on a whole new meaning.

There are many ways to save,conserve water that the desert folks can teach folks with short supplys.

The folks in apartment buildings will be the hardest hit.

Private residences still have options.

#1 collect and use lots of rain bbls while you can.

I read story in the last year about someone being fined for collecting rain water on their property. I can't tell where I heard it maybe someone else remembers.

Tim

[dtknowles]

What we need to remember is the fact that much of the populated part of California is a coastal desert. When it was part Mexico there were very few people who lived here for that reason. A man named Mulholland changed that when he conspired to steal the water from Owen's valley and turn that area into a dust bowl but he made the mega city of Los Angeles possible. When we moved to are present location, which is over a hundred miles from the coast there was a large grove of beautiful oak trees close to our home. All of them are now just rotting stumps. We have drown down the aquifer until they could no longer get enough water to survive. Our governor Brother Moon Beam wasn't lying last week when he said we have a serious water problem. I think it will get much worse. What humans have trouble with is the fact that the earth nor nature cares what our plans are. We could have a drought for a thousand years and there is nothing we could do about it. It has happened before in other parts of the world. In ancient times, North Africa was a green and lush place to live.

A story I remember indicated that Walnut groves were expected to be cut and the water rights sold. Did this happen and I wonder what happened to all the wood??

Tim

[dtknowles]

I believe the carriers use magic and hocus pocus.

A lot of spare heat to evaporate sea water in an almost unlimited supply and a heat sink to condense it. In the desert sometimes you have Heat and some times you have cold but you don't often have an unlimited supply of sea water unless you are on the coast.

Tim

[Teddy (punchie)]

Gray water from washer. I used it for dry season in PA. Used a channel and little pools by each plant. After set up covered the area with wood chips and hay (mulch) . Every time I used the washer I would have the water go into the wash tub and using a garden hose siphon the water out. Turned on the tap to get if flowing and kink the hose and use a big nut or sheet lead for weight, to hold it under. One load of cloths would water about 20 plants. Move the hose in garden a wash an other load. take about 10 days to water 1/8 acre garden. 5,000 square feet or so. Anything out past that area didn't get any water, and it showed. Just an Idea. I would use any gray water, just don't touch the plants. Let in flow into the ground and the plant take it up.

[Garyshome]

Now that's paradise for you!

[MtGun44]

Its a desert, with too many people. What could possibly cause a water shortage?

As mentioned, this was predicted, but no effort to fix. The state has ALWAYS been short
on water. The coastal folks bought up all the water from the Sierra Nevada over a hundred
years ago, built the lakes and canals to move that water to the coastal cities. This is OLD
news. Now there is no more water and there are a LOT more people. Until water prices
RISE a LOT, there will be no fix. Any time there is a shortage, price increases will ensure
that the rare material will be put to it's best use. D'rat pols will not likely increase water
costs, so there will be no more water.

Bill

[Bzcraig]

One big problem is that you have too many people in California for the resources available. Deport half the population, and everything will fall back into line naturally.

A lot of truth to that indeed. Apart from the illegals, the last reservoir in our area was put in during the 40's and the politics of the Delta Smelt have been slowing screwing farmers for decades now.

[Bad Water Bill]

Lets hope that a lot of these criminals get good and thirsty.

With any luck they will wade back across the river to their home villages where there is water to drink and it will be free.

Water is going to cost big bucks in Kalifoamia shortly.

[starmac]

Bbut the climate is worth it.....

[lka]

I read story in the last year about someone being fined for collecting rain water on their property. I can't tell where I heard it maybe someone else remembers.

Tim

I think they wanted to tax people more, they always do that. I do recall something like that in la.

[popper]

Many HOAs won't allow the rain barrels. The older turbine ships had compressor desalinization systems, guess the nuke boats do also for cooling. I got laughed at by the local pols when I commented they needed to use tax money ( & raise the employment rate) to dig the pond deeper. They aren't laughing much now, just raising the water rates. Don't laugh much now about Obummer care either. City health ins. went up 10% with big deductible, of course the bill was passed on to us.

[quilbilly]

Scientists have been looking into the climate history of the West over the last several thousand years using tree rings, pollen. etc and have noted that over the last 4000 years California and the 4-Corners region have experienced "mega-droughts" lasting over 50 years about every 300 years. Currently the region is 150 years overdue for the "big one". During the last one, Lake Tahoe's surface level dropped 250 feet long enough for 50 year old pines to grow (now 250 feet under water). The California water resources agency (don't know the official name) noted that if such a drought occurred today, California only has enough water for 3 million souls. That same mega drought collapsed the Anasazi Indian culture in the 4-Corners Region for the final time so Nevada, Utah, Arizona, and parts of Colorado will not escape as the Colorado River dwindles.
Not to be entirely Casandra-ish, this drought is the result of cooler ocean temperatures combined with lack of sunspots which means record salmon returns to the Pacific Northwest. Wooooo Hooooo!

[Love Life]

When is Salmon fishing time?

[xacex]

Not to be entirely Casandra-ish, this drought is the result of cooler ocean temperatures combined with lack of sunspots which means record salmon returns to the Pacific Northwest. Wooooo Hooooo!

Lets hope so. Springer fishing has sucked the last several years.

[MUSTANG]

Scientists have been looking into the climate history of the West over the last several thousand years using tree rings, pollen. etc and have noted that over the last 4000 years California and the 4-Corners region have experienced "mega-droughts" lasting over 50 years about every 300 years. Currently the region is 150 years overdue for the "big one". During the last one, Lake Tahoe's surface level dropped 250 feet long enough for 50 year old pines to grow (now 250 feet under water). The California water resources agency (don't know the official name) noted that if such a drought occurred today, California only has enough water for 3 million souls. That same mega drought collapsed the Anasazi Indian culture in the 4-Corners Region for the final time so Nevada, Utah, Arizona, and parts of Colorado will not escape as the Colorado River dwindles.
Not to be entirely Casandra-ish, this drought is the result of cooler ocean temperatures combined with lack of sunspots which means record salmon returns to the Pacific Northwest. Wooooo Hooooo!


Nooooooo not global cooling, I mean Global Warming, I mean Global Cooling, I mean Global Warming, ahhhhh to heck with it - You people are responsible for climate change. My climate changes daily, maybe we need to get rid of that sun.

[ktw]

Predicted 10-12 years ago but the pols never pay attention.

Yours may not have. Mine did.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB125772053509137145
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Lakes_Compact

-ktw

[Bad Water Bill]

My town plugged into Lake Michigan water years ago. The big problem is that the water comes from Chiraq who sells the water to the next town who sells it etc till it finally reaches here with 6 towns markup added.

But it is better than the sulfur water we had along with the little droplets of crude that came as a surprise every time you washed your white clothes

[quilbilly]

This is going to be a good year for the salmon species. Spring chinook should be much better this year than last (not true in 2015 when it could get ugly). North Puget Sound River should get a record pink salmon return in July. Fall chinook should be better than last year on coastal river of Or and Wa. Fall coho returns will be excellent as will next winter's steelhead. All of this is due to the amount of plankton growing in the Pacific near shore at certain critical times. With cooler temps that began in 1999, plankton productivity has increased helping the young salmon survive. The exceptions have been 2 months in 2004 and 3 months in 2012. It was those 3 months in 2012 that ruined our steelhead season this winter in Washington (and I have heard Oregon too). I have been doing these projection for my industry for the last 30 years.

[starmac]

Gov Brown has his priorities, fish are more important than the farms.


News
Gov. Jerry Brown Calls Congress Drought Bill ‘Unwelcome And Divisive’


SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) – Gov. Jerry Brown said Monday that a Republican effort in Congress to address California’s unprecedented drought is an “unwelcome and divisive intrusion” in the state’s efforts to address the crisis by pitting water users against one another.

Brown, a Democrat, sent a letter Monday to leadership of the House Committee on Natural Resources and California’s entire congressional delegation asking them to oppose HR3964, which is scheduled to be taken up this week.

The legislation, which is sponsored by California’s Republican congressional delegation, would allow farmers to increase pumping from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta and create a House-Senate committee to tackle water problems.

“It would override state laws and protections, and mandate that certain water interests come out ahead of others,” Brown wrote in his letter. “It falsely suggests the promise of water relief when that is simply not possible given the scarcity of water supplies.”
DROUGHT COVERAGE

Feds Announce $20 Million In Aid For Calif. Irrigation Facilities
American River Fishing Could Be Banned Because Of Drought
Gov. Jerry Brown Calls Congress Drought Bill ‘Unwelcome And Divisive’
Water Delivery Cut Off As California Drought Continues To Worsen
Gov. Brown Recommends Flushing Toilet Less Frequently To Conserve Water

California officials announced last week they will not send any water from the state’s vast reservoir system to local agencies this spring, the first time that has happened in the 54-year history of the State Water Project. State Department of Water Resources Director Mark Cowin said there simply is not enough water in the system to meet the needs of farmers, cities and the conservation efforts that are intended to save dwindling populations of salmon and other fish throughout Northern California.

The House Majority Whip, Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, said the Brown administration’s decision puts unsustainable pressure on already dangerously low reservoirs and groundwater reserves. He urged the governor to relax state environmental regulations, such as those that protect fish, to allow more water to flow to the parched Central Valley.

“This bill ends the madness of putting fish before families and creates a solution to ensure consistent water deliveries for our communities when Mother Nature blesses us with precipitation,” McCarthy said in an emailed statement Monday. “Any other proposed idea to ameliorate the effects of today’s drought would not be felt for over a dozen years. Our communities cannot wait.”

Brown said the federal legislation would interfere with the state’s efforts and would “re-open old water wounds.”

The prospects for any water bill that passes the Republican-controlled House are uncertain because Democrats control the Senate, and both of California’s senators are Democrats.

[Bad Water Bill]

So Gov Brown feels that preserving the Delta minnow in the wild is more important than his voters having drinking water.

The minnows can survive very well in hobbyist tanks ACROSS THE WORLD and in municipal aquariums across the country.

If and when the water returns most hobbyists will gladly share their offspring for a reintroduction program.

But then again he will have to answer to the enviro wackos in August when the fish swim freely and the wackos are dying by the thousands from lack of water.

[snowwolfe]

For the life of me, I simply can not understand how ANY person can live in California, especially people who enjoy their freedoms and love guns.

[starmac]

Ah, but the climate is nice. lol

[Horace]

No earthquake season. Horace

[Hickory]

The drought needs to get server enough to drive the illegals back to their own country.
But that won't happen. It will only drive them to another state.
Get ready for a population shift folks.

[Socal147]

I work at a power plant here in Komifornia. This week we were restricted on water usage. This week we had to curtail power production due to lack of water. Keep in mind it is still cool outside. Once the temperature increases to the springtime norm, watch out. We and other generators will be curtailing production. There is no choice. We have to cool our equipment. The state will be reallocating resources when the rolling brownouts start to occur. The choice between water and power will be a forced decision.

Snowwolfe, I came here from Michigan for work in 2002. The draught condition has nothing to do with that decision. Staying here and and being a thorn in the side of AntiGunners, now that my friend almost makes the battle worthy. In other words, don't run and hide........ Stay and fight.

Oh and I can shoot year round. Even when the temperature drops to a brutal 45 degrees.

[LeftyDon]

Desalination is always an option, but many would want much of the population to die of thirst before they would consider it.

That would require Moonbeam to build electric power plants to provide the juice to run the desalt plants. Maybe put them in Nevada or Utah and power them with coal. Oh wait, Brarackingham Palace says no more coal! Maybe Chinese solar panels N to S and E to W covering over all of California would work. Or wind power generators could be used from all the wind generated coming out of the butts of the lib's eating organic alfalfa. I think what would work would be what California needs is to drag melting icebergs down to Santa Monica and truck them inland to the reservoirs using Nafta Mexican truck drivers. Thank God I fled Kalifornia for socialist NY state where nothing matters to Gov. Cuomo as long as NYC has water stolen from the rest of the state.

Gives new meaning to: "We have met the enemy and the enemy is us."

[snowwolfe]

Snowwolfe, I came here from Michigan for work in 2002. The draught condition has nothing to do with that decision. Staying here and and being a thorn in the side of AntiGunners, now that my friend almost makes the battle worthy. In other words, don't run and hide........ Stay and fight.


Glad you found your place in life. Both my wife and I were offered numerous Federal jobs in CA over the years, most recently was just before we moved. She was incomplete agreement with me, no way no how even if we were offered promotions would we ever relocate to CA.
IMO lack of water supplies in states such as CA, TX, and other southwest states will become so expensive in the near future as to be extremely painful to all their residents.

Stay east of the Mississippi and generally south of Kentucky and enjoy a moderate climate with all the cheap water you can ever use.

[OeldeWolf]

Some of us started out here, when things were not nearly this bad. And some of us had family here we felt we should stay for. but most of the family here has done me wrong for the last time, leaving only my son and his family to worry about. And the laws have gone from bad to terrible. So let my mortgage situation stabilize, and get some few repairs and painting done, I am planning to head out of here.

my tagline is coming to pass ...

[w5pv]

One big problem is that you have too many people in California for the resources available. Deport half the population, and everything will fall back into line naturally.
Send all the illegals back to Mexico and close the borders would help a lot,if they want to be US citizens there are proper chanels.

[Socal147]

Not to say I would not bail at the first reasonable opportunity. SE US is just a little too humid for my taste. ;)

[Beekeeper]

You Know I have lived in California for over 50 years.
Uncle sugar brought me out here in the 1950"s.
When I left texas they were in the middle of the worst drought since the 1930's.
In California we go through the drought about every 10 years.

It is only now that the tree huggers have become aware of them as now it is encroaching on their tree hugging agendas.
Sinse it is the tree huggers complaining it gets world wide attention just as all of their agendas do .
If it wasn't for that and good ol Moonbeam no one would even worry about it.
It will rain again and we will have water again and everyone will forget about it again and the tree huggers will migrate to a diferent emergency again and I will still live in California.

I have canvassed almost all of the states and they all have problems about something.
Many are worse than the problems in California so I am not going to change the problems I have now for others in some other state.
Besides the problems in california will soon be your problems as " as California goes so goes the rest of the states eventually"

So Yall be careful hear.


beekeeper

[AK Caster]

Besides the problems in california will soon be your problems as " as California goes so goes the rest of the states eventually"

So Yall be careful hear.
beekeeper
CA was at one time thought of a progressive state, leading the way in many areas. But IMO that thought has been lost due to excessive regulations, lack of enforcing immigration laws, creation of new laws, and taxes. Your drought will not become a problem for the other 49 states to resolve.

[Beekeeper]

Oh I do not think you will help with our water shortage but the tree huggers are on their way to your state and them terrable regulations we have will soon be your norm as well.
Just look at the number of members here that say the cut and run rather than stay anf fight that now live in your state.
Each one of them took a little of california with them and replanted it where you live.


beekeeper

[onceabull]

Born and grew up in No.Cal...Back then California's attempts to limit incomers was still fresh in memory...Perhaps that experience led to what happened later.. BUT THE MIGRATION in play at that time mostly involved people who all claimed to be from Texas..Los Angeles politicos were spending $ and sending deputies to assist the Nevada County sheriff to turn back the tide at the border N.E. of Truckee..and those were "our fellow Americans"... Onceabull [smilie=1:

[462]

To members who feel that they must speak ill of California and Californians:
Many of us were born and raised in California, and for reasons such as family, jobs, weather, recreation, etc., still live here. While I may have it in mind to live elsewhere (see my location) California remains my home. I'm no less conservative that those conservative members who live in other states.

I've never spoke bad of another member, for any reason, nor disparaged the state in which they choose to live. Just because California is experiencing a water supply, or some other problem, is no reason for others to tell us that we need to move. In fact, it may behoove those members to pay more attention to what goes on, here, as it may soon be happening in their state -- i.e. think of the banning of lead wheel weights, and anti-smog equipped cars.

Yes, the state is rife with all sorts of whacko-agenda, special interest, and radical groups, and I do my part to negate their influence. But don't think for one moment that they don't have national friends who share their agendas. They are driven by the politics of power and control and they don't know about borders.

I don't mean to start, or have an argument, just saying that there's no need for members to speak ill of where another member lives.

[dragon813gt]

Besides the problems in california will soon be your problems as " as California goes so goes the rest of the states eventually"

I'm not going to say it's impossible for this to happen. But the other states are aware of California's failures and don't wish to repeat them. If you haven't noticed there is major backlash against political exports from California.

[Beekeeper]

Oh I am not talking about political exports I am talking about your next door neighbor who used to live in California and seems to want to live where you live and still have all of the"things" and toys he had in California.
How long before he starts telling you you are to harsh on the illegals or how you should plant you property or what to plant!
I'll bet there at least 5 people here on the forum that left California and took their ideas about landscaping with them.
(ie; Palm trees swimming pools maximum population per square foot.
Kinda like welcome to California now go home and do unto your neighbors as we have done unto you.
You know the guy that was stationed here or worked here and took his ideas back home and now your neighborhood is starting to look like California.
Maybe not yet but soon , wanna bet?


beekeeper

[smokeywolf]

I'm pushin' 60 and been in Kali all my life. I don't think any of the Cast Boolits members condemn California residents or natives for living in Kali. It's just hard for some to imagine putting up with the constant barrage of unlimited increases in taxes, fees and assessments, more and more criminal aliens, more, more, and yet more oppressive and unconstitutional laws. Politicians who in spite of California's fiscal insolvency, are more eager to offer taxpayer funded services and benefits to the millions of criminals who have sneaked and slithered across our southern border than to work and legislate on behalf of the law abiding taxpayers who's hard earned wages fund the State.

California has fabulous weather and beautiful mountains, deserts and beaches. If you stay away from the major metropolitan cities the air quality is pretty good and the scenery and landscape is nothing short of breathtaking. For at least half my life I have enjoyed living here and would not have given serious consideration to leaving.

That has changed. Being forced into retirement or semi retirement at least 6 years earlier than I'd planned, my pension income will be reduced by a considerable amount. And, although property taxes are somewhat limited in their increase, all other taxes are increasing with never any mention of a maximum or limit ever being reached or even considered. Also, with the encouragement of the progressive liberals who control this State, criminal trespassers will continue to flood across the Mexican border, guaranteeing that those same progressive liberals remain in power. See this: http://www.sanctuarycities.info/sanctuary_state_california.htm

Without some plan to reduce the number of legal and illegal hispanic voters, California is lost and will remain a possession of the progressive liberals. That means that the wealthy and middle income taxpayers will continue to get their incomes confiscated to support the poor and the criminal aliens who reproduce like rabbits, with never any regard for their inability to feed, clothe, educate or medicate themselves, their children or the additional children that they keep producing.
Since the wealthy have far greater access to tax shelters and loopholes and are more inclined to establish a legal residence in another State than to share their wealth with the "tax and spend" California politicians, the middle class taxpayers in California are left holding the bag.

I will miss the truly great weather that California is blessed with. But, I will not and cannot continue to hand over my children's college education or what little might be left to them as an inheritance, to politicians who legalize the confiscation of MY hard earned and hard saved money, in order to reward people (criminals) who hold up the middle finger on one hand to our immigration laws, while at the same time holding out the other hand for free food, education and medical services.

I don't criticize those who think California can still be saved, I just hope you don't lose your legacy to your children before you come to the realization that Southern California is lost. And, unless Northern California is successful at seceding, it too will be lost. http://www.jeffersonstate.com/

As far as California escapees taking any anti Constitutional, pro government, tree-hugging, libturd loving ideas with them to other States; I think those will be few and far between. I would also hope that those residing in the States that still enjoy a modicum of freedom would see to it that those few Kali immigrants that might be inclined to pollute their Conservative, freedom loving environments were made to feel extremely unwelcome and made to realize that "When in Rome, do as the Romans do." When in Texas, do as the Texans do. Same goes for Arizona, Arkansas, Missouri, Kansas, Idaho, Wyoming and all the other "Conservative (red) States".

smokeywolf

[cbrick]

I'll bet there at least 5 people here on the forum that left California and took their ideas about landscaping with them. (ie; Palm trees swimming pools maximum population per square foot. Kinda like welcome to California now go home and do unto your neighbors as we have done unto you. You know the guy that was stationed here or worked here and took his ideas back home and now your neighborhood is starting to look like California. Maybe not yet but soon, wanna bet? beekeeper

Hhmmm . . . Have you been to any of these other places of which you speak? Absolutely no such thing has happened around here. I held none of the fairy tale world ideas for any of the 45+ years I lived in LaLa land and certainly brought none of them here.

Plant 20 million people in a desert and then have a water shortage? Now how did that happen?

The entire SoCal region is a desert and always has been. Rain fall is nowhere near uniform from year to year and never has been. That there was more or less rain fall this year than last means nothing and that it didn't rain much this year is very much the norm, it's a desert. The only reason all of the Los Angeles basin doesn't "look" like the desert that it is is because it's irrigated, turn off the tap and far faster than you would believe it will look just like the desert that it has always been.

Drought in CA is very much the norm, not the exception. Ever wonder why the weather is so nice in CA? Simple, it's a desert.

Rick

[dragon813gt]

now your neighborhood is starting to look like California.
Maybe not yet but soon , wanna bet?


This will never happen where I live. I live outside of Philadelphia and we export people all over the US as well. But this is the land of a holes and if you will be told in no uncertain terms to take your looney ideas back where they came from. I wasn't aware the swimming pools were a California invention either. So any neighborhood that has them must be a CA style one.

Yes, when people move they take pieces of where they came from w/ them. But people as a whole have had it w/ their area being changed into something they don't want. And luckily for me the harsh winters keep a lot of people from moving here.

[Hogtamer]

462 I hear you...a fellow got my dander up runnin' down my state a while back. I popped off a little that I regret some. But home is where the heart is and mine is in Georgia. If you ever leave I can tell California will be the poorer for it. I will say we've got a better state song than California though! http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BlLUMwo_VVU

[Love Life]

It was me and Georgia is my birth state.

[Beekeeper]

Well I guess "to each his own".
You stay where you want to and I will stay in California.
I do not condem you or your state and the libatards that live there and do take offence when you do it to me and the state where I live.

Before you do anymore condemming maybe you should take a long look at the sespool where you live.
I also wonder why this has not been censured by the moderators or shifted to the pit.
I also ( without any malice) wonder why some of the people condeming California are also moderators.
Just an observation of course!!


beekeeper

[rockrat]

If you think California cannot happen to another state, just look at what happened to Colorado!!!

[skeettx]

It is sooooo dry in Texas that two fire hydrants are fighting over one dog :)

[462]

If you think California cannot happen to another state, just look at what happened to Colorado!!!

Or: If you think California cannot happen to another state, just look at what happened to California.

[MT Gianni]

Well I guess "to each his own".
You stay where you want to and I will stay in California.
I do not condem you or your state and the libatards that live there and do take offence when you do it to me and the state where I live.

Before you do anymore condemming maybe you should take a long look at the sespool where you live.
I also wonder why this has not been censured by the moderators or shifted to the pit.
I also ( without any malice) wonder why some of the people condeming California are also moderators.
Just an observation of course!!


beekeeper

I reread the thread. I am the only moderator who has posted in in and did not consider my post condeming CA, just golf in general as a water waster. There have been no personal attacks, ie, no one has named anyone, said you or you guys or in any way demeaned any person. No reason to move it to the pit.

[Bad Water Bill]

WAAAAAAAHHHH

They are picking on me because I live in Illinois.:shock:

I still remember an old poem.

Sticks and stones will break. :bigsmyl2:

You cry because you do not like what YOUR politicians are doing.

We did not like what ours were doing so we actually did something besides cry.

Yes it did take time but our CCWs will be issued this spring.

[Love Life]

Funny BWB. Illinois used to be the one state I could point to when people began to slander California! Ya'll have ruined it....

[Socal147]

Back to the topic at hand.
I work at a power plant in SoCal.
Today our power output was 700 MegaWatts
Tomorrow it will be 330 MegaWatts
Lack of water will mean lack of available power........FACT

[bhn22]

95810

[quilbilly]

Back to the topic at hand.
I work at a power plant in SoCal.
Today our power output was 700 MegaWatts
Tomorrow it will be 330 MegaWatts
Lack of water will mean lack of available power........FACT
I am watching what is going on on the equator this week (what happens there affects salmon in the NW) and it does look like there will not be much of a break in the drought coming in the near future four Calif.. The drought is getting pretty serious up this way too so don't look to us for water either but you won't know it until August. Weather next week sounds hopeful for heavy rain in the Pac NW. Finger crossed and hope you get some too.

[AK Caster]

There is a little thing in the USA that is called free speech. As long as people are voicing opinions about different states or its politics without attacking a poster personally they should be free to do so.
If that offends some of you then you need to get tougher skin.

[SciFiJim]

The OP asked how bad the water shortage is in California. California is normally supplied by snowfall in the mountains. The is a photo of the majority of the watershed that supplies California. I think "disaster movie proportions" is a good description. The white area on the left photo is snow.

http://cdn-media.nationaljournal.com/?controllerName=image&action=get&id=36248&format=nj2013_10_columns

[opos]

I live near the border in San Diego...many folks forget that this is "Baja Norte"...just a desert with some irrigation and way too many people. My Wife is a native here...I been in California since the mid 60's....We are both older and retired and for all the folks that think we should move...why? It's feet of snow in the Midwest and the East (I have lived and traveled many many places over a lifetime)...we got a little spritz of rain this morning and then back to the 70's....I shoveled snow and fed cattle in Colorado and Nebraska as a kid and young man and I don't have bad things to say about those places other than I had my fill and would never go back to snow, wind, etc...so if you don't like California..simple...don't come here...Dry here? absolutely....earthquakes here...you bet...Illegals and too many folks...sure..but remember when you pay $4 a head for lettuce in the winter in the MidWest...it had to grow somewhere and be picked and packed by someone and most likely in California....

When it hits a rainy/snowy time here which it will again in a year or two....folks will be complaining about those nutty Californians doing something else that will offend others. We have a saying in San Diego...saw it on a banner over highway 8 many years ago (that's the highway leading east toward Arizona)...It said "Tourist go home....but leave your daughters" .... sort of sums it up.

[white eagle]

When it is really a shortage they will shut down watering golf courses.


just the thought

[Bullshop]

So will this mean a rise in the cost of fruit and produce or will it mean food shortages or will it make no difference at all?

[Freightman]

Going to get worse before it gets better, if you are wanting more water you will have to go farther east than Texas. There are towns here that will be out of water by the end of the year unless it rains a whole lot,(which I doubt) wild fires are already starting and pushed by a 60-100 mph wind firefighters cant keep up with it. I am going to live where it rains and only when we need it in my next life. :-D
And I have nothing against California, know some fine folks who live there. The best president of last century was governor there. IMHO

[AK Caster]

So will this mean a rise in the cost of fruit and produce or will it mean food shortages or will it make no difference at all?

Good question. I started checking the labels on produce in Costco and am surprised to find out a lot of the fresh fruit comes from foreign countries, mainly central America. Romaine lettuce is selling for under $3 for 6 heads.

I suspect prices will go up in and around California but the big retailers import most of their fruits and vegies. Local fruit and veggie stands throughout the USA will keep prices in check for most of us.

[oneokie]

So will this mean a rise in the cost of fruit and produce or will it mean food shortages or will it make no difference at all?

Yes, and we will see much more imported fruit and vegetables.

[Mal Paso]

I cast Boolits when it rains and the road gets too muddy.

It's been raining all night and it's raining now. Time to fire up the pot.[smilie=w:

[white eagle]

didnt they know it was a part desert when they moved there?
like being cold in winter WOW the science

[Iowa Fox]

Yes, and we will see much more imported fruit and vegetables.


Sadly the imported stuff gets sprayed with some really nasty chemicals.

[Alan]

IIRC the first four Spanish colonies to So. Cal. starved to death to the last man, woman and child.

[oneokie]

Sadly the imported stuff gets sprayed with some really nasty chemicals.

Very true. Most all the chemicals banned for use in the U.S. are used in central and south america for vegetables.

[Bullwolf]

Be careful what we wish for right?

It's snowing outside now. (and raining in California)

Best part is they had to go and sensationalize it already.

They are calling it "The first wave of a "Pineapple Express"-style subtropic storm".

I would simply call it some snow and rain, but then again I'm not a trained meteorologist or anything like that.

The National Weather Service said "It won't be a drought buster, but it may put a dent in it".

Looks like the Farmers Almanac was right, we may be looking at a later Winter this year.


- Bullwolf

[Bad Water Bill]

A woman in L A is now complaining about the rain water in her back yard.

You just can not make some folks happy.

[MtGun44]

Millions of folks move into a desert and are surprised that there is a
water shortage, and complain about the rains. Of course, the rains
bring..........

Mudslides. Good old Cali - a disaster for every season. Wildfires in
the summer, mudslides in the springtime, earthquakes year round
and craziness all the time.
Glad to not live there anymore.

Bill

[Love Life]

I love it!! I've played in in the snow for the last two weeks, and now I get to play in the rain!! California is pretty awesome, and I'm glad I get to bounce across the border from my compound in Nevada to enjoy it.

[Mal Paso]

I love it!! I've played in in the snow for the last two weeks, and now I get to play in the rain!! California is pretty awesome, and I'm glad I get to bounce across the border from my compound in Nevada to enjoy it.

I would keep quiet about bouncing back and forth, lest They find a way to tax that.

[Love Life]

I would keep quiet about bouncing back and forth, lest They find a way to tax that.

Correction. I hate California and I look at it from my front porch (I can literally see California from my porch) with malice. I would never spend one cent in that terrible state with it's awesome mountains, awesome beaches, legit cities, great shooting ranges, great fishing, and oh so good fish tacos.

Hehehehe.

[lka]

Some of us started out here, when things were not nearly this bad. And some of us had family here we felt we should stay for. but most of the family here has done me wrong for the last time, leaving only my son and his family to worry about. And the laws have gone from bad to terrible. So let my mortgage situation stabilize, and get some few repairs and painting done, I am planning to head out of here.

my tagline is coming to pass ...

I was born here, have family (all my wife's and my family) and a business, It's scary to pack up and move a business, but it's getting hard (mentally) paying all the BS fees fines higher payroll taxes, higher comp, the list goes on and on. I honestly don't think the state cares if I go, it would leave my Emploiee's jobless and dependent on the government possibly making new little liberal voters. In all realness most of them could probably find work they are good guys and gales, but ya never know out here..

[OeldeWolf]

depending on the business, maybe you could move them with you?

[lka]

I'm not sure they would, they are all born Californians as well. My wife and I have been talking pretty seriously about it for the last year or two, I actually emailed rick perry about it, told him I was tired of the taxes regs and gun laws and a woman actually called me back to give me info and said they will always welcome productive Americans, lol. I just wish I moved from here before starting the business. the sheriffs rule here but all other government is terrible, I find it hard to fathom this many people are ok with this. Just buying a gun is a big pain in the butt and I hold a ca CCW. The weather is nice tho lol...

[opos]

It often seems that any discussion of California no matter what the OP has in mind get's around to politics and the business environment here and also the "nut folks" that live here...so Dad needs to brag just a little bit...we are a California family...all the generations are here...we are in our mid 70's...Kids in their 50's ... Grand kids in their late 20's and 30's and great grandkids in the young kiddy stage.

Our oldest Son is the hands down authority of big game salt water fishing here...he is managing partner in the largest sport fishing operation in San Diego and Southern California...he's never once slowed down or looked back....fishing has been good and bad...the economy has been up and down...the Government has been all over the map...the Port District controls their operation and takes a fat cut off the top...The Mexican Government has been difficult at times (almost all of the long range fishing is done deep into the areas below Baja)...I guess he could have many reasons to complain and could have done like many other folks his age..just bailed out.. but he's been doing this for over 25 years and just keeps on trucking...hires many good solid citizens to work for him...pays plenty...get's it all in return from loyal workers...in short a full on success story...all without Dad and Mom's help.

Daughter is 54...in Roseville east of Sacramento...raised her son to 20...her family broke up and she set out on her own....began a special event (weddings, funerals, corporate functions and casino special events) floral business...has plowed through he damndest economy for he past 12 years....she never looked back....grew her business...hired folks when everyone else was whining and cutting back...she has been florist of the year in her area 4 or 5 times during the past 10 years or so....featured in most of the national bride and floral magazines....hires 4 full timers and pays a good wage..hires many 'extras" like now at Valentines day, etc..pays her taxes...does not complain and doesn't come to us for "help"...never even thought of "coming home" when the divorce happened "back then"...just got busy.

Youngest Son is a 52 year old middle manager with a big IT company...very precarious place to be at his age in this economy....raising a daughter....never a whimper....head down and forges ahead....His wife has spent the last 5 years developing a "blog" (I have no idea how that works) and now has 113,000 "members"...she works from home..many long hours....has been featured with Pillsbury, Duncan Hines, Rachael Rae, Marie Calender and several other companies....has a solid book deal (she is publishing a cook book) with Unicorn publishing....been tough on she and he family....none of them whimpered...nobody bitched..just kept going.

Point is that even in nutty ville out here stupid laws, bad weather from time to time, earthquakes now and then, etc.. there is wonderful opportunity....I think much of the rest of the U.S. measures us on what they see and hear concerning folks like Feinstein, Pelosi and Boxer...but while they are public and a real thorn in our sides...they aren't the end all...we would not live anywhere else...I won't bore you with weather...it's dry right now..it is in lots of places in the U. S. and it will rain and snow again...we had major fires and we do have earth quakes but we recover and move on....We love it here...we wouldn't leave for anything...

The folks that say they don't want to do business with us are fine with us....there are lines of folks waiting that are willing to find out what it takes and they move into place to fill huge needs...we have to adapt to rediculous seeming laws on occasion but we are not alone and as with my kids...it's all a matter of attitude....I bought 2 more handguns during the past week and shot twice at a great range (one of 4 near my home)..Sure there are some restrictions but my shooting sports are proceeding just fine as they have for a very long time.

So those that don't like us....fine ... we will try and survive...those that move here are welcome but unless you are prepared it can be a huge culture shock...but where else can you live in 70 degree weather...10 miles from the ocean..30 miles from the mountains...etc, etc..We are here for the remainder of our lives, the wife and I...and I'd bet the rest of the clan is pretty tightly embeded here as well and any of us could have cut an run at any time...

Come see us...if you like us stick around...There is an old saying here if you don't like us...go home (but leave your daughters)..

opos

[Moondawg]

Just after the civil war, Union General Sheridan said of Texas: " If I owned Texas and Hell, I would live in Hell and rent out Texas". Others have said of Texas that "everything that grows there wants to bite, sting, puncture, or poison you". What with the high heat, humidity and frequent droughts, life in Texas isn't always easy, but it's home, full of friendly helpful folks and we love it here. Also keep in mind that those folks that said bad things about Texas were not Texans.

[762 shooter]

A golf course is the willful and deliberate misuse of a perfectly good rifle range. Bill O'Connor

762

[10x]

A very large volume of water in California is tied up in swimming pools. A hot windy day can take a 1/2 inch of water out of a pool. Bottom line - more children drown in swimming pools than are injured and killed by bullets - ban swimming pools for the children....

[10x]

A golf course is the willful and deliberate misuse of a perfectly good rifle range. Bill O'Connor

762
A golf course is a complete and total waste of a gun range....

[Grumpy Joe]

A lot of great ideas here but I told my representatives I will drop use when the grass is brown infront of government offices, ball fields and golf courses are brown and I see no water running in the gutter in front of big business. As long as we continue to waste water in government and business areas the little water the public uses will make no difference. Show me dead lawns. I played ball in a dirt field so can todays kids.

[cbrick]

When it is really a shortage they will shut down watering golf courses.

If it will make you feel better about golf courses, many in SoCal today along with freeways etc. are watered with reclaimed water. When you flush your commode it goes straight to the golf course. :mrgreen:

Ok, not straight to the golf course, it does go through a treatment plant where they remove the lumps & then off to the golf course.

Anywhere in SoCal where you see a water spigot with a sign that says "NOT FOR DRINKING" . . . . . . Believe it!

Rick

[MUSTANG]

If it will make you feel better about golf courses, many in SoCal today along with freeways etc. are watered with reclaimed water. When you flush your commode it goes straight to the golf course. :mrgreen:

Ok, not straight to the golf course, it does go through a treatment plant where they remove the lumps & then off to the golf course.

Anywhere in SoCal where you see a water spigot with a sign that says "NOT FOR DRINKING" . . . . . . Believe it!

Rick

Let's face it. Unless you are where the Spring Starts that feeds the rivlet, creek, stream, river, ocean - then your simply drinking the water from where someone else ShXX or Pixxed. maybe a little Chlorine. Good for the Golf Courses, except for the Chlorine.

[Grumpy Joe]

Here in Big Bear we pump our recycled water to the desert for a sod farm and hay/alfalpha. Still too many buildings have lush lawns without recycled water use and too many have water running down the gutter.

The wife and I use little water but still pay enormous fees. We will reduce when the big ones do.

BTW most cooling towers, power plants and large industry also use reclaim water where it is a closed system.

[snowwolfe]

Just curious, what are you California guys typically paying for water every month?

Here where I live in Colorado water fee's are tied to the HOA fee's and we are permitted up to 5,000 gallons per month for "no charge" but I am sure the cost is factored in with the HOA fee's. Once we go over that it costs about $3 per extra 1,000 gallons used. But we only went over the 5,000 gallons once in a year and that was with a lot of lawn watering.

[SciFiJim]

Just curious, what are you California guys typically paying for water every month?

Here where I live in Colorado water fee's are tied to the HOA fee's and we are permitted up to 5,000 gallons per month for "no charge" but I am sure the cost is factored in with the HOA fee's. Once we go over that it costs about $3 per extra 1,000 gallons used. But we only went over the 5,000 gallons once in a year and that was with a lot of lawn watering.


I pay for water as part of my city bill (includes sewage and refuse as well). I checked my December bill. I used about 4500 gallons. I didn't need to water my lawn in December. The cost was $9.32. Seems pretty cheap to me. I already use drip irrigation for my trees and garden.

[Bad Water Bill]

Here in the Chiraq area I just paid my last 3 months bill. $46.75 for a total 1,600 gal of water, sewage etc. Yes I live near Lake Michigan where water is available am single never have watered my grass in 40+ years and the trees get what mother nature gives them.

If I used water like you do I could never afford gas for my car let alone trips to the range.

[MT Gianni]

I have been on private wells since 1988. I bought a pressure tank last year for $350. I water 1/2 acre in the summer and my elec goes up $12 a month. Town water is metered and averages $75 a month for my daughter on a small lot coupled with sewer and garbage.

[pressonregardless]

When it is really a shortage they will shut down watering golf courses.

I've thought the same thing for years, but they still keep building them.

[Just Duke]

Better find out if you can have a rain barrel or not. Some states it is almost as bad as a felony if caught collecting rainwater.

CA condones it and you don't have to pay tax on rain barrels.

[Just Duke]

The only state I have ever heard with that law, or at least enforcing it is Colorado.

Prescott AZ also.

[Wis. Tom]

It took Al Gore to say you are going into the next dust bowl, to get downpour rains. He is to global warming as Obama is to gun sales. LOL. Hang on as this is rain, but it sounds like it will be coming down in buckets.

[10x]

It took Al Gore to say you are going into the next dust bowl, to get downpour rains. He is to global warming as Obama is to gun sales. LOL. Hang on as this is rain, but it sounds like it will be coming down in buckets.

Liberals and Democrats, Seldom right but never in doubt...

[Duckiller]

California is getting a major storm right now. Not enough to break the drought but probably enough for all residents to take showers and brush our teeth for the rest of the year. Sierras are getting snow but So. Cal news won't tell us how much.

[jaystuw]

Yes, I visited Santa Barbara today. Rained like crazy. They say there is more to come. Jay

[Hickory]

It took Al Gore to say you are going into the next dust bowl, to get downpour rains. Hang on as this is rain, but it sounds like it will be coming down in buckets.

Looks like God exposing the foolish again.

[perotter]

Looks like God exposing the foolish again.

That was about what I thought when read about the rain in So Cal.

[Old Dawg]

One can not save or store water that does not exist. Almost every possible storage site in the state is already damned. Water tables have dropped by more than 600 feet in some areas. For example Santa Clara Valley (San Jose, et al) originally had more than 400 year around springs. I doubt there are any left now.

80-90% of California water use is for agriculture. Despite, and because of, its aridity California is this country's #1 agricultural state especially in fruits, vegetables, dairy. It is for all practical purposes our only domestic supplier of many crops. Orchards are being torn out, some of the most fertile land in the nation is going fallow. NO federal water is available for agriculture this year. The water shortage is appearing everywhere across this nation. There are simply TOO MANY DAMN PEOPLE. It is the same cause as air pollution, water pollution, etc.

[skeettx]

Let's put this in perspective
Amarillo, Texas

Yearly Precipitation Totals 2001-2013
2001....18.69
2002....18.25
2003....13.42
2004....26.31
2005....15.00
2006....21.88
2007....22.50
2008....22.44
2009....21.13
2010....26.54
2011....7.01
2012....12.33
2013....15.20

[jmort]

Exactly, up/down. We just had a real decent storm with rare tornado warnings in LA. A couple years from now, we will have "record" snow pack and no water shortage.

[Blammer]

The water is so short in CA.

"how short is it..."

it's so short that the legislature passed a law against short jokes!

[Just Duke]

Btt.............

[Bad Water Bill]

When you ask for a glass of water in a restaurant it is served in a shot glass.

[dragon813gt]

I don't see it in the news anymore so the drought must be over. All the fuss and it rained enough to fix the drought by June. Talk about a Chicken Little story.

[texassako]

Around here they have started talking about small towns with less than 90 days of water left. You probably don't see it much on national news since it is just Texas, between the 2 coasts and wrong political affiliation to be news worthy. A couple of larger places have started talking or working on projects to recycle waste water into drinking water, and that means less water being discharged into the rivers to go downstream.

[Superfly]

I have thought about renting a potable water trailer and hauling water to a drought area and selling it Wonder if it would be profitable?????

[starmac]

Cali never had a water problem, they have a population problem.

[Uncle Jimbo]

Cali never had a water problem, they have a population problem.

Amen to that! But that is the problem in all states.Water is a limited resource and should be treated as such. And I know I will catch hell for this next comment, but, this country needs to start practicing people control. Just because you can make more babies, doesn't mean you should. :groner:

[Bad Water Bill]

Unfortunately the PROSTITUTES in many states are rewarded very handsomely for each illegitimate whelp they can produce.

In certain communities in Chiraq that birth rate is 87%.

[Smoke4320]

yes we need to quit rewarding those making more babies on the dole ! start reducing benefits for each new baby and it would turn around quickly

[Bad Water Bill]

Benefit of doubt on the first one.

Second one gets a warning.

After that you are on your own,no food stamps or anything else.

I am sick and tired of seeing these prostitutes shopping at 0300 with 5-8 git on a school day then using food stamps to get food I could never afford at any time in my life.

[montana_charlie]

The water shortage in California has not ended, and it will get worse.
Part of the problem is marijuana ...
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/marijuana-grow-ops-are-drying-out-californias-water-supply-180951125/?no-ist

[dragon813gt]

I have to laugh at that article. Cannabis doesn't require that much water. Most of the growing in the Emerald Triangle is done outdoors. Not in grow ops. Grow ops typically grow indoor hydroponically which is extremely efficient. Just more lies. How much water do you think the vineyards use?

[Bad Water Bill]

If it really took 9 gal per corn plant per day Lake Michigan would be pumped dry just watering Illinois crops.

[dakotashooter2]

There is a reason few people live in the desert. I guess most of the people in California still haven't figured that out.............. You can TRY turn a desert into an oasis but eventually nature will take it back.

[lylejb]

The only state I have ever heard with that law, or at least enforcing it is Colorado.

Believe it or not, Oregon.

Yes, the rainy state of Oregon where all water is "publicly owned"

http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/oregon-man-sentenced-30-days-jail-collecting-rainwater-his-property

[Just Duke]

Believe it or not, Oregon.

Yes, the rainy state of Oregon where all water is "publicly owned"

http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/oregon-man-sentenced-30-days-jail-collecting-rainwater-his-property

That is a one side of the story fabrication of a huge landowner that cut off water to other. He is a robber baron and is not like down that way.

[searcher4851]

I don't know if 170 acres qualifies him as a huge land owner. Around here (Northern Illinois) it's a farm. Personally, collecting rainwater and snow melt seem to be just good sense. Building a dam on a stream to stop the natural flow of water to other land is where the line should be drawn. JMHO

[MtGun44]

In KS, 170 acres is a SMALL farm. I had a friend that used to farm 80,000 acres - half
owned and half leased. Finally sold out. No need to work after that.

I loved the story about shooting rifles on his range. He had an old house trailer that he
used for reloading. When asked what directions were safe to shoot in - with an absence
of any berms or real hills - he said "Don't hit the trailer. You can't get a bullet off my land
no matter what you do."

Bill

[abunaitoo]

Believe it or not, we sometimes have a water shortage here in Hawaii.
Cannot water the yard or wash the car.
Like kalafornicate, here in Hawaii we also have a shortage of comon sense.

[quilbilly]

The good news is that El Nino's bring flooding rains to Kalifornia in the fall. The current one is the strongest since the mid-1990's. Stand by for complaints about too much rain in October if this weather pattern holds.