california drought......how bad is it really ?

#1
I wonder what a pallet of water is worth in California these days or a tanker full of water? does a gallon of water cost more than a gallon of gas ?

I see pictures of lakes dried up and read about water wars and communities that will have their water shut off rendering their homes worthless, farmers digging new wells in desperation and wonder when will it end, when will they get rain.

Sometimes I wonder if I'd like it out in California but then I think of the beautiful four seasons here and the fact that I can go 2 miles in any direction from any point and find water, if these great lakes ever dry up I'd be very sad indeed.
 

CarPlayLB

Well-Known Member
#2
You must watch Fox news!
The situation here is bad with long term implications. We have become accustomed to wasting more water than we use. At my house we make a concerted effort to use less, but I still see the city park using a LOT of water on the grass! They say the farmers will be hit the hardest, which I agree, but remember that the pics you see of people taking out orchards are the same people that would have taken them out in a monsoon year! Unfortunately we have no means to police it, so the waste will continue. The reservoirs are extremely low and the situation is reaching critical stages. I live in SoCal...which was a desert before anyone built a home here!
Altough we have only one season here, it is the good one! But it will make you thirsty!
 
#4
Lake Mead is the primary water source for many SW States including California.
The lake is at record low levels.
Las Vegas gets 90% of its water from the lake. The concern is when are Vegas's intake pipes giong to be exposed.
California grows the lions share of our countries winter vedgies.
Most of the SW was a desert before water was diverted there.

A neat show to watch is on Netflix called "How out States Were Shaped".
Most states were shaped by water in one form or another.

A SW with low water is bad for the whole country.
 
#6
:laugh: fox news, WOW, amazing how a few words spoken can tell so much about someone.

Anyway I see that NASA is saying the world’s largest underground aquifers are being depleted, I wonder if that is connected to the sink holes that pop up from time to time probably not but then there are a lot of things happening around the planet that go against the stable norms I remember as a kid.

I'd like to see a national system of pipes, pumping stations and reservoirs to take away the flood waters before they flood area's and send it to the west to help resupply the water out there. Oh yeah its a wild, crazy idea but once built it could help save lives and billions of dollars in loses.
 
#7
I actually get tired of reading about the drought in Ca. or more so the rude comments about how "stupid" we are for living in a desert and how great it is in the state that the commentor lives in and all I can think is how would that person like it if we all suddenly moved to their State and overpopulated it overnight!! Ive seen my relatively small town grow immensly over the last 10 years and just shake my head as I continue to see more housing developements pop up all over the place!! The traffic here has gotten really bad in the last 5 years considering what it used to be!! I was born and raised here and all my friends and Family are here (they all mean the world to me and would be too hard to leave behind)!! Have thought about moving many times but just too much at stake!! Job security is a big concern when the market is so unstable in most States and has been for awhile now! Just not easy to give up 17 years seniority and pack up and leave for a new job in a different State for a job that could let you go before your probation is up so they dont have to start paying benefits!! That same seniority has saved my job once already when I thought the recession wouldnt affect the school systems!! Will do whatever is needed for my Family though if it comes to that!! I do believe that ideas to help eleviate this problem need to be put into motion now unlike when they will be when its way too late!! For the record I love a nice green manicured lawn to be proud of but have done my part durring this crisis to cut way back but yet see very green lawns just down the street! :no:
Thanks for letting me rant T.C.!! :laugh:
 
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Bikerscum

Active Member
#8
I live 30 minutes from the ocean & there's no water. Standing in your dead front yard is supposed to be like a badge of honor. I say it's a mark of stupidity.

If water was $5/gallon we'd have desalination stations, and people would be saying "what's an Ipad?
 
#10
It's hard for us Michiganders to understand as we have the largest amount of fresh water in the U.S. I can't imagine what it's like to not water your grass or wash your car.

It seems to me instead of funding this stupid high speed rail California should be finding a way to remove salt from water cheap and effectively.
 
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#11
Just because I have an abundant supply of water just 30 feet under my house doesn't mean I'm going to just let it run.
I am not a lawn guy by any means and haven't watered my lawn in over twenty years unless it was a spot that was just seeded.

I do enjoy saving a buck and washing the cars in the convenience of my own driveway or yard without having to have a lookout for the water police or snitching neighbors.

Here is an interesting link.
Nation's largest ocean desalination plant goes up near San Diego; Future of the California coast? - San Jose Mercury News
 
#13
I wish we would have about a month of no rain. Every day I ask my wife if she's ready to move to the desert.
:thumbsup: What we make up for by not having irresponsible lawns, we mess up by having pools. The temp was 119F the other evening at 6:00 PM. I spend the mornings in the garage playing with MOPAR and MINI. Once the temp climbs, I remove my shirt and shorts, and hit the pool. I don't even bother with trunks. Boxers work fine.

If anyone wants to see the deal, head down to Parker Dam and watch almost the entire remains of the Colorado river get pumped over the cliff, and into the California Aquaduct.

From there it heads to SoCal where it's used for agriculture. Wouldn't want Californians to actually use their own aquifers to water the lawns on their 600K MacMansions. Of course that applies to those in Vegas as well.

We'll desalinate, or die of thirst eventually.
 

WLB

Active Member
#14
I've spent several October's wandering around in the desert areas of New Mexico and Arizona and always hated it when it was time to go home. Dave, I even spent an afternoon in Lake Havasu:smile:. I stayed several weeks in Chino Valley while I was attending Jeff Cooper's Gunsite Ranch shooting school and really like that area. That area pumps a lot of water out of the ground to raise alfalfa for horse feed. I also like the Roswell area in New Mexico. This rain every day weather pattern we are in makes me dream of the desert.
 
#15
This rain every day weather pattern we are in makes me dream of the desert.
LOL, yeah, we either love the desert, or hate it. There are a surprising number of aquifers beneath the desert in AZ.

As we're dealing with unseasonably hot weather, I keep telling myself this is the trade off for having to endure a whole month of 40F winter. 8 months out of the year, it's really nice here. But when it stays over 110 for a few months, I REALLY question what I am doing here, besides shriveling up like one of those applehead dolls. :)

Come on back. Take photos of grass and rain though. Right now, when I see green grass, I actually take note.
 
#16
I love California from top to bottom and left to right. There is an incredible diversity of geography, climate and culture. Not sure I'd want to live there, but it's nice to live close by.
 
#18
Traveled to California twice in the late 60s it was awsum..as much as i remember *_* Too much for me tho i prefer country living near a city..went out Interstate 20 out of Louisiana.Friends in Texas liked Arizona and New Mexico.The desert too dry for my humid acclimated body.Too many scorpions and rattlers. I liked rock climbing,desert is pretty at nite ...yeah..water is the next oil hope technology finds a way
 
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#20
Drought is everywhere but California is especially dry and being the nation's bread basket that's a real concern. Water is our most precious resource, my favorite fishing spot is a reservoir and is 10 foot down or more most years. The messed up thing is that a special fund set aside for improving our city widened a section of a river tributary and filled it with water for recreation. So now kayaks and canoes can be used while we are on water rationing because of the drought. I will be leaving OKC in 5yrs so it will effect me less but I'm still pissed that they used our limited supply as they did.
 
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