O.C. could face water rationing next year
May 29th, 2008, 6:17 pm · 6 Comments · posted by grobbins
The agency that provides about half of the 720 billion gallons of water consumed in Orange County each year is considering issuing a water supply alert, a step toward possible water rationing.
The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California will discuss the issue during its June board meeting because the areas where it gets water remain unusually dry and the amount of runoff it can take from the Sierra Nevada could be sharply cut for environmental reasons.
The alert is the second of three steps MWD would have to take to have the right to impose rationing on the nearly 18 million people it serves in Southern California.
“A ‘water supply alert’ does not mean less water being supplied; it means that the water being supplied is severely depleting reserves, and that if water use is not cut to help balance the use of reserves, the region will more likely be in a shortage and instituting rationing,” Bob Muir, an MWD spokesman, said in an e-mail.
Muir said the agency has enough water to supply the nearly 18 million customers for the rest of the year. But the situation is less certain in 2009, partly because a federal judge says MWD must greatly reduce the water that flows from the Sierra Nevada into the Sacramento-San Joaquin delta. As Register environment editor Pat Brennan has reported, the order is meant “to protect the delta smelt during winter.”
The MWD supply system is already showing signs of stress. Diamond Valley Lake, right, near Hemet, which was built as an emergency reservoir for Southern California, has fallen to about 68 percent of capacity, and could decline to 54 percent by the end of the year.
Some of the lake’s water is distributed by members of the Municipal Water District of Orange County, which serves 2.3 million of the county’s roughly 3 million residents.
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May 30th, 2008 at 7:05 am
Not to worry global warmers, “experts” & environMENTAList activist judges, haven’t you guys heard from the few pockets of non alarmists media that;
A. There has been NO global warming since ‘97′. that it is in fact COOLING.
B. It will continue to cool for the NEXT 10 YEARS.
C. El-nino its a coming, within 2 years there will be so much water it will cause hundreds of millions in damage & disruption.(just like clockwork!)
Heres a couple ideas for the “experts”
1. Start now, designing & building huge reservoirs to capture billions of the zillions of gallons of water that is SURE to come in the next couple years.(And when the other “experts” say you can’t do that because of precious horny toad habitat, remind them that there will be billions of gallons LESS runoff fouling precious coastal waters.(the dilemma will have them debating & reeling for at leased 2 years!)
2. Demand restrictions on wasteful agricultural irrigation practices, they use 80% + of the water & just basically “dump” 1/2 of that so their allocations aren’t reduced,(this is the kind of thing that happens when government controls business), just a few % reduction & theres no shortage! which also means there is NO water shortage, its just a way to hype , raise rates & let activist judges & tree huggers “feel important”.
3. Next time you run one of these stupid articles, print the water distribution #s (in gallons) with the article so readers get a true perspective of the “shortages”.
4. Fry up a big batch of “delta smelt” & see if their really worth preserving. (ill bring the tar tar!)
May 30th, 2008 at 1:04 pm
I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW IF IN FACT WE ARE HAVING A WATER SHORTAGE. WHY ARE THEY BUILDING BIG APARTMENT COMPLEXES? PUTTING TREES AND FLOWERS IN CENTER DIVIDERS ON THE STREET THAT WILL NEED WATER TO EXIST
AND WATER FOUNTAINS IN SOME OF THE NEWLY RENOVATED MINI MALLS? DOES THIS MAKE SENCE?
June 2nd, 2008 at 3:33 pm
No global warming since ‘97? Non-alarmist media? You don’t need a weather man to know which way the wind blows, and if you just open your eyes you will see everything is melting, glaciers, the arctic, western Antarctica. You skeptics are like the people in the time of Noah, eating and drinking and having a good time, and you’ll be spouting your smug opinions right up until a flood kills millions of people, that could’ve been prevented. Today the Senate will defeat another climate bill. Tomorrow the door of the ark will close. The ark being human reason, unmired by corporate lobbyists, oil companies, and those in denial because denial makes them feel safe. There’s nothing safe. We live in a desert. Period. Stop building houses, and apartment buildings! We don’t have the water to support population growth. Families should limit themselves to 2 children per household. That will naturally reduce the population. Oh and buy a raft, because Greenland may not last much longer. Peace out.
Loki
June 6th, 2008 at 7:51 am
Just like petroleum, water is in short supply in the west. Vegas and toher cities out here are using water like there is no tomorrow. Take a look at lake Mead, when it is gone where will Vegas get their water? I just returned from a vacation in the Midwest and this problem has not escaped them. There was an front page article in the Chicago Tribune that started with the headline “Let the Water Wars Begin”, apperantly all states that border the Great Lakes and all Canadian states that border the lakes are enacting laws to prevent the water from the lakes from being piped west. So you think there is still not a problem?
June 8th, 2008 at 1:04 pm
Supply and demand. The demand keeps increasing, with development and (insert adjective) immigration. Where is the water, electricity, and natural gas going to come from? Plan ahead.