How LA's thirst for water is draining a California valley | Running Dry

When the first white settlers arrived in California's remote eastern Owens Valley, the name given to its indigenous tribes was Paiute - and their land was Payahuunadu or "land of flowing water" in the local language.
But for more than a century, the water in the valley has flowed in just one direction: toward Los Angeles, nearly 300 miles (480 km) away.
Director and Editor: Claudio Accheri
Reporter: Laurie Goering
Read more on: packages.trust.org/running-dr...
This story is part of the 'Running Dry' series: packages.trust.org/running-dr...
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[@r.bevantrembly3687]

How about outlawing golf courses???

[@cavemancaveman9746]

Winery (vineyards), car washes, lawns in SoCal, etc.

[@byronbuck1762]

Why them over any other economic use of water? Who's values prevail when you start picking and choosing?

[@troyb.4101]

Stop with building permits!

[@oldcountryman2795]

Yep. There is simply no willingness to do anything about water conservation in California until it runs out.

[@zainnelson4602]

I dont mean to be so off topic but does any of you know of a tool to log back into an instagram account? I somehow forgot the password. I would appreciate any tips you can give me!

[@devinmanderson]

I've spent my whole life in this area...LA should have stopped expanding decades ago.

[@geoben1810]

@@RSTI191 Maybe you could start with yourself.....

[@PeterLawrence_]

New title: How LA’s greed for water is draining the California valleys

[@dfre1769]

Amen 😔

[@tomreitano3290]

True. But then ' nobody would pay any attention...

[@hectorraigosa7149]

Almonds growers take more water than all the rest of the crops combined. stop growing almonds .. we can have enough water for fruit growers and California's population.

[@stevecole2616]

L.A. should have built desalination plants 10 years ago. Stop whining. Your dead.

[@dfre1769]

@@stevecole2616 omg Steve Your ignorance is a bit of 💩🤡

[@juhaszsc]

LA is quintessential exammple of unsustainablity.

[@robinsss]

yet it has been around for over a hundred years

[@cavemancaveman9746]

@@robinsss Only because they take water from elsewhere. How would they fare if they all of a sudden stopped receiving water from elsewhere?

[@robinsss]

@@cavemancaveman9746 they could pull water from the ocean and desalinate it where have you been? we've been saying this for years

[@cavemancaveman9746]

@@robinsss That would be fantastic if they did that. I'm afraid the radical environmentalists won't allow it. They don't want people to have water. I think there was a desal plant proposed in Huntington Beach, but I'm sure the Sierra Club will stop it.

[@christianjohnson8838]

See also Phoenix, Arizona

[@serealbasar9489]

This is very sad. LA's greed and environmental carelessness will doom the entire State of California.

[@cavemancaveman9746]

Yes, they must become water independent. They are a burden to so many other watersheds.

[@avmail7097]

So if all the LA residents abandon the city and move to Vegas, Phoenix, San Francisco, those cities won't run out of water too? what if all of the southwest moves to the PNW, will they have enough water for everyone?

[@cavemancaveman9746]

@@avmail7097 I don't know, let's find out. The problem is that SoCal is a desert. It may look like a rainforest in most areas, but it is suppose to look like a desert because it is a desert. When you live in a desert and you don't have a water source of your own, you have to take from others. That's not a good thing. SoCal has taken water from elsewhere for decades and what they have done with it is turn their desert into a rainforest. SoCal should work on becoming water independent. Then to add insult to injury SoCal continues to develop and develop as if they have all the water in the world. When you don't have water and you have to take water from elsewhere, you should NOT continue to build, grow, develop. Doing this is irresponsible, selfish, greedy, entitled, etc... There should be no more development in SoCal until they are water independent.

[@avmail7097]

@@cavemancaveman9746 I guess I'm doing the math wrong. Wouldn't those same people (currently in LA) use the same amount of water if they lived closer to where the water is? Are we losing a net amount of water transporting it? If you are saying they should live totally differently and not use as much water per capita, then sure I understand. But that's a different point.

[@cavemancaveman9746]

@@avmail7097 Yes, your math is off just a little. The aqueduct is not efficient. A lot of water evaporates during transport. It takes a lot of electrical power and money to operate the aqueduct. Depending where you reside will have an impact on how much water you use. People that live in SF should use a lot less water than someone that lives out in the valley on a larger lot. There is also a huge climate difference. SF is almost cool year round. The valley gets (well today the valley is seeing 110 degree temps). The point is that if you chose to live in a desert, you should embrace the desert. What SoCal has done in a large part is they have used up so much water that comes from "elsewhere" transforming their desert into a rainforest. This is selfish, greedy, and irresponsible. Just look at Beverly Hills. Stewart Resnick and his Paramount empire. That one SoCal resident uses more water than some mid-sized cities. SoCal does not look like a desert in most areas, it actually resembles a rainforest. Am I getting my terms (desert vs rainforest) wrong? There are green lawns, exotic plants, non-native trees everywhere you look.

[@leechurchill1965]

LA is an enigma. Much like Vegas and Dubai. All metropolises that live way beyond their means.

[@LiterallyGod]

It was much worse years ago.

[@aztec3r890]

thats 100% true

[@kirstinstrand6292]

@@LiterallyGod that's a nothing statement...

[@robinsss]

they are near the ocean so what's the big deal? dip your cup into the ocean and get all the water that you want

[@LiterallyGod]

@@kirstinstrand6292 how

[@fritzwilhelm8258]

Everybody's living in a roaring desert, but nobody wants to live as if they are.

[@oneshothunter9877]

Is it really a matter of "nobody wants to" or is it a matter of a kind of "unconsciousness" so to say...? Lots of people seems to be sleepwalking throughout their life.

[@fritzwilhelm8258]

@@oneshothunter9877 Sleepwalkers or not. It's a conscious choice to have a front lawn.

[@oneshothunter9877]

@@fritzwilhelm8258 Absolutely, you're right! I agree. 💯 But, you know, people don't - as you wrote - want to realize that they actually live in an area that was desert just 100 years ago.

[@cavemancaveman9746]

Every time I'm in SoCal, I feel like I'm in a rainforest rather than a desert.

[@mattk7865]

Lol. Phoenix shouldn’t even exist for this very reason.

[@ambersgrace1]

I live in in the Easter Sierra, there is a lot of resentment towards DWP for draining our valley. At the same time many people feel it’s a blessing in disguise that DWP owns most of the land because it would be much more populated otherwise. This place is incredibly special.

[@robertkillackey8078]

When are societies going to stop promoting population growth with tax breaks and growth economies? More people means more water used.

[@lordofthewoods]

Right when we have the HIGHEST LEVEL of "undocumented immigrants" EVER. Surely just coincidence... I mean, they don't bathe... right?

[@tomreitano3290]

@@lordofthewoods All humans apply here. LA and Inland Empire are not sustainable.

[@michellebeckstrom6110]

Yeah people need to start using more birth control or at least stop screwing anything that is living so indiscriminatley but that aint' gonna happen. I learned and stopped having children after 1. Not saying everyone should only have one but for the love of a good life I'll never understand why so many people allow themselves to be saddled down by 3-4 or more kids esp before age 25.

[@leonardkudrecki8370]

@@michellebeckstrom6110 In 1950 the population was around 2 billion people and today we're looking at almost 8 billion.

[@asajayunknown6290]

Similar issues abound on the Colorado Front Range. The constant building of additional housing developments ignores the fact that there is a carrying capacity to the land.

[@pavanatanaya]

It is important to examine the fraud that Mulholland perpetrated in order to steal the properties adjacent to the river. LA needs to repair the damage they did. They also need to establish sustainable lifestyles in a desert.

[@byronbuck1762]

No fraud. Subterfuge maybe. They bought the properties from willing sellers. Nothing stolen.

[@dethray1000]

@@byronbuck1762 not true--the encircle the unwilling sellers and cut them off--the courts have already ruled--nothing will change

[@timjones3428]

@@byronbuck1762 Read the book Cadillac Desert.

[@byronbuck1762]

@@timjones3428 I've read it. Twice. The author, Marc Reisner and I appeared together on a number of water industry panels back when he was alive. Passed far to young.

[@jacquelinekemp4074]

should reflood Owens Lake

[@stevenbrooks1243]

Need that big San Andreas split

[@MavicProMelbourne]

In Melbourne Australia I grew up in a twenty year long drought, now we have drought proof policy, desalination plant that is only to comes online when we need it... it’s not about understanding clean water is a limited resource, it’s about knowing you need to establish your self a supply where you no longer need to limit your supply as long as you can afford your monthly water bill that goes to paying for the method used to supply you with your water used!

[@Ncloud]

Learn to purify your own water and you'll never be in a drought

[@jacquelinekemp4074]

California rejected desalination plant - wrong call

[@randygonzalez5758]

This is a really great video. I hope more ppl tune in and learn about what’s going on. Change is needed

[@ramonsmediablog]

People should protest for things that really need to change. The majority of people are very uneducated.

[@tenminutetokyo2643]

Bring in more people we don’t have resources for.

[@olderbutyoung7959]

Turn off the spigot to Los Angeles.

[@Mrbfgray]

If you reside in Owens Valley you might choose to export the water instead of importing excess population. We LIKE it low RURAL, low population.

[@whatabouttheearth]

That would be rediculous now because so many peoples lives, in the city and out, depend on that infrastructure and those markets. The displacement of all those people would add a secondary pressure on more places when they are dispersed by putting pressure on those places by rapidly growing their population and strain on their resources. They also want to take more from the San Joaquin delta which would hurt those eco systems/food webs and farmers even more....but whats happening it large monied interests in southern California have been given that water by the corrupt government down there and then those super rich entities are selling the water back to the government for profit.

[@alicehallam8247]

Ninety percent of immigration needs to stop. We don't live in the 1800's anymore.

[@byronbuck1762]

@@alicehallam8247 To the contrary, our native born population is reproducing at less than 1.7 per mother. It needs to be 2.1 to replace us. We need immigration or we decay and decline as a nation. The last five Nobel Prize winners in the US were all immigrants.

[@alicehallam8247]

@@byronbuck1762 We don't need to 'replace' anyone. Human overpopulation on various parts of the globe is fueling this over the past century. You may want to look up how some countries and organizations are greatly improving the lives of their female citizens by offering family planning services to them, mainly to poor women, where they were previously not available. This creates families that are stable and produce stable, educated and productive people whose lives benefit everyone in their country and worldwide.

[@Me97202]

This is what you get when you build big cities in places without the resources to support them.

[@J.B179]

No this is what you get when you think you could take everything from the people who takes care of the earth

[@cadilacdesert]

The Cadillac Desert!! The Owens Valley people stood up against The LA water Authority. Owens people did some demo work on the spillway.

[@jaydaytoday3548]

Desalination plants are what California needs. Also the drought is most of the western half of the US. Also LA or Urban communities aren't the biggest users if water. It's the massive farms growing things like alfalfa feed in desserts that are the problem.

[@garbinator09]

Oh? Then take a look at the Los Angeles Power and Water development first launch in 1902. Bishop California. Electricity? Drinking water? Ag use? Dairy farms? LA doesn’t use that much? Seriously? And exactly where does L.A. tanker truck its sludge too? Kern County! Where does L.A.’s criminals go? Kern County! Need I go on?

[@wynnschaible]

Sydney did it, so can LA! And while you're at it, stop growing tomatoes in a desert and give Las Vegas back to the desert, move the casinos to Atlantic City!

[@charleslane1086]

it wasn't transformed into a desert. It was a desert that mankind has tried to transform into an oasis

[@tasteslikeawesome]

We got rid of one of top ten biggest lakes in America last century, and now we’re paying for it. Corcoran should be under water.

[@Zkullz69]

"I drink your milkshake" Daniel Plainview

[@bookbeing]

A city must grow according to it's local resources. Population must be limited to local water supply. If anyone deserves water rights in a particular area it must be the local tribes first as they seem to be a lot better stewards to the land!

[@byronbuck1762]

A pretty stilted notion. We import all manner of things in modern society. Water need not be any different

[@blkcoupequattro]

That Valley is probably the one of the most over looked strips of land in California, there is so much potential for it to be productive yet a resource for everyone of need. It's locked in a 1930's mentality.

[@ashforkdan]

Accually it was finestien and boxer who cut off the water supply to the valley and destroyed the dams for a 2 inch mini.

[@Mrbfgray]

Born and raised in Owens Valley myself it's complicated. Residents have the option of rural (as they like it) or over populated--export the water or import the people. Which would you choose?

[@blkcoupequattro]

@@Mrbfgray I'd choose for more surface water there similar to those that were once there in place prior to the water grab from the south. It needs better management, the south needs to start a desalination project, it just does not make sense for them to moving that water all that distance. I'd rather not see the people come there for water, or move there, but surprisingly seems like people might find there way there for many reasons anyway.

[@Mrbfgray]

@@blkcoupequattro Desal should be the ultimate solution but if you live in Owens the fact that LADWP owns the most of the land makes the quality of life better in Owens. It caps the population. It doesn't mean LA get's to destroy the place thru excess pumping and taking the inlets to Mono Lake and courts have ruled as such in recent decades. You are not going to get more surface water, it's on the surface already.

[@kirstinstrand6292]

@@Mrbfgray I am under the impression the water is going to Corporate America for wine production, etc. 🤨🤔

[@jigold22571]

ThankU for sharing.

[@whatabouttheearth]

Early Los Angeles had their own water but the population growed. Population growth, especially consolidated population growth in "heat engines" (what didnt used to be but what becomes a major a metropolis) where resources have to be imported are a huge global problem. Back in the day all the major cities had their own water sources and local food sources, LA, San Francisco, New York, Chicago, etc, but as time goes on and population increases (not just through people moving there but also through reproduction patterns) the resource base for a city becomes more and more externalized and everything has to get trucked in or pumped in which is resource intensive. If this process continues this way the eventual outcome would be systems collapse. Because you are increasing the burning of energy into thin air other than for the importation itself. That is not sustainable, the resource strain due to importation would increase proportional to population increase, and even in the case of mitigating normal trends of population growth (1800: 1 billion globally, 1900: 2 billion globally, 2021: around 8 billion globally) the obsession with "development" and sprawl would still increase the unsustainable resource strain. Its unsustainable because the baseline natural resource capacity of any given location does not get larger, nor does earth itself grow. But people fleeing urban areas like LA which require heavy importation of basic necessities such as water would be rediculous now because so many peoples lives, in the city and out, depend on that infrastructure and those markets. The displacement of all those people would add extra pressure on more places by rapidly growing their populations and straining their resources further. The souther California water system also wants to take more from the San Joaquin delta in northern California which would hurt those northern eco systems/food webs and farmers in the Central Valley even more (this is important to all Americans because that specific Norcal water redistribution system waters farms that create 50% of US domestic produce) ....but what's also happening is large monied interests in southern California have been given that water by the corrupt government down there and then those super rich entities are selling the water back to the government for profit. Which is ludicrous. A never ending growth of the import/export infrastructure to those places which do not produce the first level necessities, such as food and water is not sustainable, and maintaining current rates of environmental degradation is also unsustainable. As in, the system would have to collapse. And population overshoot to carrying capacity would lead to not only regularized starvation but also increased strain on resource bases, as in over re-use of forrests, plant life and agricultural soils and that would cause mass global extinction. Going by the current trajectory amd patterns.

[@rokobasilik4877]

Excellent documentary

[@bookbeing]

The same thing is happening now in lake Hughes which was one of only a few natural lakes in southern California. Los Angeles has been diverting and rerouting every drop of storm water, Creek water, spring water, that once fed this thriving lake ecosystem. They are relentless in their maneuvers to fast track the life giving water out of our forrest's and into castaic reservoir. To add insult to injury once the reservoir is filled they just let the diverted water overflow and run out into the ocean. These sorts of practices are dewatering the entire state. In a forest with no water the landscape turns into a fuel source that perpetuates the exponentially damaging and ever-increasing wildfires. If the water were allowed to flow to these high elevation mountain lakes to percolate into the soil and replenish the water table we would likely see a reduction in the numbers of tree deaths and bark beetle instances because this all stems from the trees being stressed from drought like conditions that are man-made. Los Angeles needs to take their water out of the ocean instead of fast piping it out of inland and mountain areas.

[@jacquelinekemp4074]

agreed

[@SamruaiKiwi]

incredible video. thanks so much for putting this on youtube!

[@cavemancaveman9746]

The Bay Area and LA need to be water independent through desalination NOW! This would solve most of California's water issues. It would allow us to keep our reservoirs at a decent level and help during dry drought years. Their water bill would increase less than $10 a month. Use solar, wind, wave energy to help power the desalination plants. Do it! Do it now!

[@byronbuck1762]

Nonsense. If we went to full desalination water bills would be nearly $1000 a month at current usage. There is not enough power, the transmission lines nor an environmentally sound way to deal with the brine. This has been studied seven ways to Sunday in all the local water delivery agency integrated resources plans. Desal is a very small slice of the future

[@AntonioCostaRealEstate]

I am sure you figured out what to do with the brine that comes out of desalinization. Yeah right , dump into the ocean. Somebody else’s problem isn’t ?

[@bmogs1720]

California needs a desalination plant on the ocean and a pipeline back to LA so it can have drinking water. Easy.

[@MountainFisher]

But they won't allow anyone to build a nuclear power plant to power the desalination plant. Despite melt down proof reactors they still won't allow a nuclear power plant because they are Californians and are irrationally afraid of that word nuclear. Did you know that now they can burn up the old nuclear waste kept in storage at Nevada's Yucca Mountain?

[@bmogs1720]

@@MountainFisher Desalination plants can be fossil fueled. There is nothing that says it HAS to be nuclear. Hmmm this seems to be a bigger issue.

[@classiclife7204]

@@bmogs1720 Geothermal power is promising. I know some pie-in-the-sky folks are thinking they can run desalination plants right in the area of the Salton Sea, which has high geothermal activity. Of course, by the time that's all figured out, the Salton will have evaporated completely, LOL

[@byronbuck1762]

There are actually experts in this stuff that send their entire professional lives devoted to providing reliable water supplies. Desal is not a practical solution. Environmentally problematic and 10-25 times as expensive as current supplies.

[@robinsss]

@@byronbuck1762 but the current supplies aren't providing enough water for the people in these areas the cost passed on to residents in San Diego is about 6 dollars a month or desal that's not a large increase to be able to use water without restrictions

[@alexciocca4451]

There are places should not be if you take water form one place for another you will create another dry spot somewhere else where mother didn’t intend

[@johnpapa8681]

L A is sitting next to the biggest body of water in the world.

[@jareddoran6605]

LA doesn't care about California

[@johnpapa8681]

@@jareddoran6605 Maybe it's time for California to stop caring about LA and keep their water.

[@jareddoran6605]

@@johnpapa8681 that's what we've been fighting for for the past 100 years. The problem is, LA's population pretty much guarantees them anyone they vote for to hold office, and pass any law they want, at the expense of those of us who have no affiliation with LA

[@jonathanprime1507]

I live in Bakersfield CA its like the guy said a manufactured desert used to be close to the 7 th i believe largest lake in the world but it was all drained and ive seen clouds for only 2 days in the past month its September still 100+ everyday here before it would only be 100 for 1 week in the summer and by this time it would 60s its kinda scary seeing the change.

[@Emily-cd4je]

We live nearby there. I feel ya!

[@labrat748]

This is what results from bad planning on all fronts.

[@lordofthewoods]

Easily solved by open borders, though (smh)

[@labrat748]

@@lordofthewoods NO to open borders! The US already has enough problems.

[@lordofthewoods]

@@labrat748: Yep...

[@ng-marc]

Question: why isn't California installing Grid Solar? Or heavily subsiding solar installation? Free power is falling on roof tops daily. Just use it???

[@ng-marc]

@@imd1b4u Agreed! It looks like this maybe an opportunity to supersize what is working.

[@lynnkush6122]

There should be less people where there is less water. It's just that simple.

[@jezalb2710]

Fewer people.

[@rogerwilco2]

I don't understand how you can sign away water rights away for ever. That makes no sense.

[@markman63]

LA is next to trillions of gallons of water just lying around. When is CA starting to build desalination plants?

[@jamram9924]

They’re more worried about dumping too much brine back into the worlds largest ocean. They have seen Israel or Saudi Arabia’s enormous desalination process. Absolutely ridiculous!

[@cavemancaveman9746]

@@jamram9924 What is even more absolutely ridiculous is that there is STILL building and developing going on in the desert of SoCal. SoCal doesn't have their own water supply. They are dependent on getting water from elsewhere. They are destroying ecosystems and watersheds all over the West. They refuse to slow / stop their growth. They have taken water from elsewhere and transformed their desert into a rainforest to add insult to injury. Moratorium on SoCal development immediately!!!!

[@carltonlaclair5071]

That would take to much money out of the politician's pockets

[@telefunkenyou47]

We built an oil refinery but we pay more for gas than any other state.

[@johnkoziel789]

Might sound cynical, but history has shown, if the water doesn’t come to the people, the people will go to the water. It may be that the Owens Valley is worse off, but would the Valley rather have 10 million people? It may be worse off, but I think it’s beautiful now, because that is the only way I know the Owens Valley. I would not feel that way if 10 million people lived there.

[@arguitnick7943]

10:12...”Now we realize...” . What a wit!

[@hamidahlouch7727]

This is an international catastrophe . The city of Marrakesh in the south of Morocco used to be surounded by a huge palm trees ; olive and pomegranade grove planted by the first dynasty that ruled north africa and the south of Spain about 1000 years ago . Nowadays it is dry desert all what remains is some dieing old palm trees .

[@tea5092]

Why don't they do ocean water desalination? Why depend on fresh water? Yes it's cheaper but it won't last long.

[@classiclife7204]

Requires incredible amount of power, either nuclear or new-tech geothermal. Also: billions of tons of salt waste. Where does one put it?

[@tea5092]

@@classiclife7204 they could use the salt. A gallon of seawater makes a tablespoon of salt.

[@classiclife7204]

@@tea5092 Well, you're optimistic. I'm not. I don't really see Americans from any state, let alone Cali, doing massive projects anymore, so - ehhhh.

[@robinsss]

@@classiclife7204 it doesn't require nuclear or geothermal electricity is working fine in the middle east

[@classiclife7204]

@@robinsss The Middle East is on the rise. The USA is in decline. We ain't up for "big projects" anymore

[@vinm7090]

There is no water problem, we live next to the ocean. The way I see it you can desalinate ocean water or purify it so you can drink it!

[@BoxCarBoy12]

Unfortunately desalination is a very inefficient and wasteful process. If we turn to it we may get more water, but power demand and waste issues will surface. It's not a good solution unless someone finds a way to make it a more efficient process.

[@vinm7090]

Interestingly enough in Australia they use desalinated water quite effectively, not to mention their treatment plants are highly efficient, and environmentally sound.

[@CT-vm4gf]

@@vinm7090 I live in a part of Australia that relies pretty much entirely on desalination, it’s not really that expensive considering the benefits. Also, we get a lot of sunlight so solar power can help run the system.

[@Rune__]

@@CT-vm4gf What do you do in Australia with the brine waste produced from desalination?

[@byronbuck1762]

@@vinm7090 That is nonsense. They shut them down as soon as the rains returned. Horrendously expensive

[@michaelmontoya5850]

In 1956 John Isaacs UC San Diego came up with the idea of towing an Ice berg. In 1969 two American scientists worked out some figures and said it could be done. My guess is that it started to rain and everyone forgot about the drought until - now.

[@therusfosterson238]

California needs to use desalinated 💦. They have access to unlimited water 💦 if they do this.

[@MojaveDan]

Desalination is still very expensive. However, I agree LA should have headed in this direction instead of permanently destroying an ecosphere as Muholland has done.

[@jakebrakebill]

I watched a video were they want to start trading water on the Stock Exchange. As if it isn't bad enough now. God help us then.

[@outdoorsbeyondnature1980]

Tulare lake San Joaquin River no more "the eurpean man" took the land and water from nature. The San Joaquin Valley was a sea they called it Port of Ivory 1949.

[@jakebrakebill]

Can't wait to see how they ruin Mars when they get there.

[@outdoorsbeyondnature1980]

@@jakebrakebill How can they ruin Mars if we can't live there because of a big problem like gravity and oxygen?

[@jakebrakebill]

@@outdoorsbeyondnature1980 Never mind, sorry to of bothered you

[@outdoorsbeyondnature1980]

@@jakebrakebill what does Mars have to do with this video? Sorry to have bothered you

[@jakebrakebill]

@@outdoorsbeyondnature1980 Lol.....I guess you don't understand and I'll leave it that way.

[@troy204]

Karma is coming, What will LA do when the snow stops falling in the Sierra's ? Excellent video

[@whatabouttheearth]

If the snow stopped falling in the Sierras it wouldn't just be LA thats screwed, that water is how 50% of the nation gets it's domestic produce. This issue is a national, and so therefore even a global issue.

[@outinthesticks1035]

From what I understand , the snow has already stopped falling in the sierras

[@richardattemborg2823]

The need for strict water regulation is now.

[@offpiste312]

No….., it was millenniums ago. Now, there is no good solution other than mass exodus from LA or Desalination.

[@FINSuojeluskunta]

Hey everyone lets move to a desert and raise some of the most water-intensive crops and animals, maybe we can build some massive urban sprawl while we're at it.

[@andredeketeleastutecomplex]

An other thing is farmer's water rights, if they use less they will get reduced water rights, so they just dump water or grow rice with it. Pretty dumb arrangement.

[@Willburys]

This a Dokumentation must be see all Kids in Schools

[@charliechamberlain6624]

LA's the only one with full reservoirs right now

[@hasanchoudhury5401]

California may think about getting some of the excess water resources from the upper Midwest states? Massive infrastructure projects pipelines have to be built soon before it is too late.

[@teruotsujinaka5593]

in 1975 I was traveling in california and i saw "green painted"on people's front lawn. Many Car Wash shop was closee. 🤔

[@AlX_-vj9io]

the background music at 2:40 sounds like the intro to dark necessities by red hot chili peppers.

[@benjaminvega7186]

I watched this, thinking it was posted a month ago. Imagine my horror

[@betadoctor]

And here we are in 2021 ...

[@williamemrich9349]

🤔You have the biggest source sitting next to you. Discover the best use of desalination & Reverse electrolytes from the ocean.

[@WilmerCook]

I was born in LA in 1947, lived in so. Cal., started checking out in 1976. Left for good in 1980. Been living in the NW for 40yrs, Now Californians are all moving up here in droves! They are turning the NW USA into little Calif. O BOY!!!!! BEND OR. was the Undiscovered Country there bringing there money, buying every thing up. We are in a drought here in OREGON, could it be global warming? So 2,000 new people a month is just wonderful.

[@________________6749]

If I were governor in CA, building Desalination Plants across the state to purify water from the ocean would be the first priority on the list. The desalinated purified water would be sent back to Owens Valley and other dryed areas of CA. I would of sent the extra water to other states that need water too. I applaud 👏🏼👏🏼 Saudi Arabia for having the balls to build numerous Desalination Plants all over their country to minimize their water issues while other countries are laughing at us for not even trying to promote desalination. Now, The rest of the world thinks we're a bunch of scared rabbits. Build those desalinating plants, no excuses.

[@danfenske1067]

The early people of Owens Valley were "slowing the water" and allowing it to sink and water the lands with some of that water refilling underground water storage. Practicing "Permaculture" long before the word was phrased. I'd like to see the water from Owens Valley used that way again and see the results. Having grown up in Southern California, I see the waste of water there, is endless. There will never be enough water to satisfy the wants and needs of the ever growing Southern California.

[@dethray1000]

my father in law was inyo county boss for 33 years- he also owned 2 LA leased ranches-fought LA many times in court as they tried to dry up the valley and send all water to LA--they wanted to dry up the white man's ranches and leave the valley dry--when we won a couple of court cases after losing many LA started to get worried and started to make some deals---it is beyond a native issue,way beyond--if you only wanted to have native ways go live in a teepee--we are all in this together,stop whining and live a moral decent life--in past life when a drought hit the people moved....

[@AntonioCostaRealEstate]

I guess Paiutes are no longer nomadic. Or never where in the first place.

[@swrtsolutionsinc.1092]

Plants free of water deficit events more efficiently absorb available plant nutrients enabling plants to achieve their maximum genetic potential. SWRT membranes installed below plant root systems retain water where it falls, providing continuous delivery of drought-free periods up to 3 times longer than intensely irrigated control sands without root zone water retention membranes (Guber et al, 2016).

[@jonathanprime1507]

Why not setting up desalination plants?

[@vincegolder4560]

They have "water rights", but from who? Who gave them the right?

[@outdoorsbeyondnature1980]

Wealthiest people took the rights and said it's for humanity, what they know is those rights belong to nature. They will find out but I'm afraid it's too late. The elements in these place are already gone. They are growing in ways that will end humanity.

[@Rune__]

Money gave them the rights

[@mrmustangman]

the devil.....

[@byronbuck1762]

Surface water is owned by the people of the state of California. The state has granted water rights under doctrines of highest and best use, now tempered by the need to protect public trust resources.

[@geoben1810]

Watch, states are going to start considering dismantling the dams. But that presents another problem. And who gains and who loses? And who fires the first shot? 🤤

[@patdino222]

people only understands after the fact and not before. when never and whatever goes wrong, then we ask why.

[@denabergman6543]

Greedy Los Angeles developers do not care about water and electricity usage rights as long as their projects get done. How do you stop corruption on that scale?

[@craigeastunder3660]

We need more people to live here. we dont need water.

[@johnnytuttleii3242]

Since the 80s a huge underground military complex has been growing and so has the consumption of water. Lake mead is obviously being sourced for the large numbers of military under the entire length of the grand canyon from the four corners north towards dulce

[@farmerdude3578]

At 3:33 the answer is big Government.

[@johnwilbanks3885]

“Recycled water”: aka drink toilet water…yea but the weather’s nice!

[@apopope72]

I'm so ready to watch the giant fall... unfortunately it's gonna make a lot of noise and damage.

[@geoben1810]

Yeah, remarkable feat of engineering....without a single thought to the next 100 years..... 💀

[@alexandervanwyk7669]

At least one day (soooon) their will be payback time....for a thousand years.

[@AntonioCostaRealEstate]

It is already becoming. They took California from Mexico. Since they can’t reclaim it, they started invading it.

[@AntonioCostaRealEstate]

It is already becoming. Americans took California from Mexico. Since the Mexican Government can’t reclaim it, Mexicans themselves started invading California. A long while ago.

[@kirstinstrand6292]

People are waking up; water use priorities goes to Corporations for their PROFIT via product growth, be it nuts or wine.

[@forcesightknight]

Your right, and if your an independent farmer or rancher, you are not a priority.

[@jacksek12]

They needed to out a cap on the population a long time ago

[@peterjaniceforan3080]

California must take action. Let Las Vegas drink champagne.

[@christopherursino4281]

July in a desert, no more robbery from the rest of California should be allowed. Water needs to be returned to the central valley. No drilling/wells should be allowed, unless you can refill the deep aquifers.

[@spignetti]

This is the way of LA and soon will be the way of Texas - moving into monstrous homes, having large pools and gardens, forgetting that water is not a sustainable thing to just be abused...so sad to think of this...

[@jeanierides2232]

De Sal is the only answer, read the Cadillac Desert there is the answer. Make LA PAY FOR THEIR GREED

[@joemartin9904]

I guess the thing to be taken from it is "you can't fight progress.

[@karenblackwood5883]

Greed is ruin of ourselves

[@Starfish2145]

Read Cadillac Desert by Mark Reisner

[@TheLegendaryLinx]

Water bill coming into effect 2025 in California , each person is allowed 55 gallons a day. If you go over you will get penalized.

[@1copperfly]

The rich will continue to waste because they can just pay for it. 55 gallons is a lot of water.

[@xartimus18]

Alternative facts! It’s 2023 bee-yatch! Check your lake again, bruh!

[@Mrbfgray]

It was always mostly a desert with the brief interval when ranchers spread the water otherwise naturally channeled in creeks and river. It's a desert by definition of low rainfall but happens to have high levels of mountain runoff. Best of both worlds, plenty of water but not falling on your head. The valley could have imported the people but most would rather export the water instead and keep it rural.

[@whatabouttheearth]

Early Los Angeles had their own water but the population growed. Population growth, especially consolidated population growth in "heat engines" (what didnt used to be but what becomes a major a metropolis) where resources have to be imported are a huge global problem. Back in the day all the major cities had their own water sources and local food sources, LA, San Francisco, New York, Chicago, etc, but as time goes on and population increases (not just through people moving there but also through reproduction patterns) the resource base for a city becomes more and more externalized and everything has to get trucked in or pumped in which is resource intensive. If this process continues this way the eventual outcome would be systems collapse. Because you are increasing the burning of energy into thin air other than for the importation itself. That is not sustainable, the resource strain due to importation would increase proportional to population increase, and even in the case of mitigating normal trends of population growth (1800: 1 billion globally, 1900: 2 billion globally, 2021: around 8 billion globally) the obsession with "development" and sprawl would still increase the unsustainable resource strain. Its unsustainable because the baseline natural resource capacity of any given location does not get larger, nor does earth itself grow.

[@alanwilson2073]

Geez, look at all that snow and the potential snowmelt! Why isn't a better job being done in reclaiming THAT water, there'd be plenty for the reservations AND the cities!!! Reservoirs and pumping stations baby, get a move on it!!!

[@cavemancaveman9746]

That's right Alan. So much runoff flows out to see without getting captured. What is it like 85%? Such a waste. I think it's the extreme environmentalists that won't allow reservoirs. No new reservoirs in Cali since the 70s yet population has grown over 20 million. We need more reservoir throughout the state and LA needs to desalinate. Desalinating LA would help tremendously during the droughts.

[@spignetti]

He who controls the water, controls the people, controls the economy, has ultimate control. There are a ton of stuff that could be done and when it gets down to the people demanding it, then the control issue will kick into high gear....Fortunately i wont be around for that...

[@dukeysnider]

As far as the drought in the Southwest, there may be a solution. As everyone knows, almost every year the Missouri and Mississippi rivers flood farms and towns all across the mid-west. What if several large pipelines were built to remove that excess water and pump it to the Southwest? It would solve two problems and also put many people to work.

[@joberk3]

Considering the logistics of transporting the excess water, establishing an efficient way to transport over 1000+ miles and you reduce the effectiveness.

[@harishrv]

Sitting on a huge land mass, without sustainable system, there cannot be abundance. America should lead by example not by the books of law. On the contrary, India with it's fragile ecosystem and huge population has managed well in terms of sustainability.

[@AntonioCostaRealEstate]

And lack of clean water. The war against Coca Cola sticks on my mind.

[@johnaislabie3037]

Just a thought... does the Owen Valley get foggy? Has anybody considered installing fog nets?

[@tylee2024]

nope, i was born here and raised in lone pine ca. which is right below mt whitney. never see fog, barely see rain

[@talldude5841]

Another big California 'up. I was raised in the midwest, and was taught in high school 40 years ago that this was going to happen in all of Southwest US. Did

[@talldude5841]

You all out west didnt care. Just another huge problem there. Tell you one thing, don't even thing about taking any of our water from the great lakes to help you. You made your grave, now go dry in it.

[@mark.mcghie3065]

who gives you the authority to own life .. no truer words said ....

[@DavidElzeitsinfill]

Political will is the biggest hurdle to accomplishing big projects. Especially in California and after blowing $100 billion on a high speed train to nowhere. I think it is obvious to most people that something drastic needs to be done to solve the water problem and that conservation only goes so fare. I would propose to fund the tunneling part of this solution with a system similar to the Permanent Wyoming Mineral Trust Fund is a type of permanent fund called a sovereign wealth fund (SWF). SWFs are typical government funding tools. They consist of investments and assets that the government is not allowed to cash out or deplete. However, while it can't touch the principal, the government normally has the right to spend any revenue these investments generate on appropriate functions and expenses. Each state, California, Nevada and Arizona and on to Utah, New Mexico, Colorado and of course Wyoming could place a small 2% tax on the energy sector and use those funds to invest in Geothermal energy projects and eventually the aqueduct can link up to those projects. There are already over 800 geothermal energy projects in California alone. The equation for my big solution is (ocean water brought inland through large underground aqueducts + combination geothermal and desalination plants = clean water and clean energy).

[@rolandorodriguez6467]

california need another Charles Hatfied a rainmaker

[@ryananthony7115]

And my ass is buying 2.5 acres in palmdale. Now i know where to pump water thats already being pumped.

[@nourestani]

I really don't understand what seems to be the issue. Nothing will stay the same in America. The land was taken away from Natives with everything else and now the same thing is happening to settlers and they are wondering why...