Politics

December 3, 2015

New Poll: 89% of Californians Think That the California Water Shortage Is Serious

How Serious Is The California Water Shortage?

The drought definitely has the attention of all Californians. Although people support the Governor’s urban water reduction plan 3 to 1, many homeowners say it will be difficult for their households to cut back on their own water use. In fact, 89% of Californians think that the California water shortage is serious. The latest multiethnic Field Poll released Tuesday, May 19, 2015, surveyed 1,664 California adults by telephone in 6 languages to assess the public’s views about the state’s ongoing drought.

Nearly all Californians (9 in 10, 89%) believe the current water situation is serious and 67% say the situation is extremely serious. Governor Jerry Brown’s water reduction plan is broadly supported by 2 in 3 Californians (65%), and calls to require urban water districts to reduce their water use by an average of 25% or be subject to a fine. 23% of the state’s adults are opposed, while 12% have no opinion.

Although the public has broad support for the Governor’s plan, more than 44% of the people surveyed said that it would be very difficult for their household to cut back on their water use if asked to do so by their local water district. Among homeowners with annual household incomes of $100,000 or more who, as a group, are the largest per capita residential consumers of the state’s water, this increases to 48%.

70% of homeowners in the state declared that if their local water district were to increase their water bill by 15% or 25%, this could cause them a serious problem. Upper-income homeowners are much less sensitive to rate increases of this magnitude. Regarding water use in the agriculture sector, 6 in 10 Californians believe agricultural users can reduce their water usage without causing real hardships.

California drought has been driving food prices up due to the freeze in January, combined with the unpredictable weather. Farmers said they either have to cut back on crops or just not plant at all and in response, grocers will have to import the produce, which comes at a cost. Limes, for example, used to sell for 33 cents but now they are 70 cents.

So we’re paying over a $150 per box of limes and we’re mainly only able to get those out of Mexico right now because we have nothing really here in California.Carol Benevidez of Windmill Farms, San Ramon

Saving Water Is No reverse osmosiscket Science, You Too Can Do It!

Our aquifers and reservoirs cannot refill alone in a relatively short period of time without our help. Change starts with each one of us and NOW is a good time to start working on it to provide a better future for the next generation. While some storms during the year leave houses flooded and families searching for Water Damage Restoration San Bernardino services, this overflow of water causes unnecessary damage and does not do anything to mitigate the water shortage as the water is removed and finally ends up unusable. 2014 has been the worst year since the drought has re-taken over California, and, according to a recently issued report by The Journal of the American Geophysical Union, the last 3 years of drought have been the worse experienced in 1,200 years!

There are a number of ways to save water, and they all start with you. Here are 18 tips from the Water Use It Wisely website:

When you give your pet fresh water, don’t throw the old water down the drain. Use it to water your trees or shrubs.
Use drip irrigation for shrubs and trees to apply water directly to the reverse osmosisots, where it’s needed.
Collect water from your reverse osmosisof by installing gutters and downspouts. Use gutter covers from places like https://www.mastershieldatl.com/ to keep the water clean so that you can use it in the home, or direct the runoff to plants and trees. While on the topic of gutters, keep a close eye on the quality of your gutter system. If need be, get it checked by professionals similar to Clean Pro Gutter Cleaning, on a regular basis to avoid any future problems.
When shopping for a new washing machine, compare resource savings among Energy Star models. Some can save up to 20 gallons of water per load.
Plant species native to your region.
Run your washer and dishwasher only when they are full. You can save up to 1,000 gallons a month.
If you have an evaporative cooler, direct the water drain to plants in your landscape.
Put food coloring in your toilet tank. If it seeps into the bowl without flushing, there’s a leak.
If your toilet was installed before 1992, purchasing a WaterSense ® labeled toilet can reduce the amount of water used for each flush.
When shopping for a new dishwasher, use the Consortium for Energy Efficiency website to compare water use between models.
Shorten your shower by a minute or two and you’ll save up to 150 gallons per month.
Avoid recreational water toys that require a constant flow of water.
Use 2 to 4 inches of organic mulch around plants to reduce evaporation.
Use a hose nozzle or turn off the water while you wash your car. You’ll save up to 100 gallons every time.
Make suggestions to your employer or school about ways to save water and money.
Be a leak detective! Check all hoses, connectors, and faucets regularly for leaks. If you find any leaks, call plumbers in Westwood, or within your vicinity for a repair.
Cook food in as little water as possible. This also helps it retain more nutrients.
Don’t forget hidden water use costs, like energy for pumping, heating and cooling, chemical treatment, and damage and sewer expenses.

At Dime Water Inc., our engineers are always prepared to help you choose the right water treatment technology to meet your needs. We can help you save precious water! Contact us at 760.734.5787!

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April 7, 2015

Cast Your Vote: What You Need to Know about California Proposition 1

California Proposition 1, or the Water Bond, is a legislatively-referred bond act and replaces a previous measure known as Proposition 43. Upon voter approval, the measure would enact the Water Quality, Supply, and Infrastructure Improvement Act of 2014 and will allow California to issue bonds to pay for water infrastructure projects. Coming up in the 4th of November 2014 elections, Prop 1 would allow California to issue $7.12 billion in general obligation bonds.

The money raised from the bonds would be used for a litany of water-related infrastructure projects if the majority votes “YES”. Also, it would require that money from the general fund be used to pay off the bonds. Certain water projects will be required to find 3rd party non-state sources to match the money they would receive from Proposition 1.

California Proposition: Yes or No?

I personally believe we should vote “YES” on Prop 1 because water is precious and we desperately need it. But whether you vote for or against it, one of the most important things is to start using water more responsibly. The way we use water is very important and I believe that we need to eliminate the use of the water that has been treated to drinking water, for doing nothing more than watering grass, plants and shrubs. Irrigation water needs to be used more wisely to and another important step would be to produce more water with the help of sea water desalination systems on the coast and capture more water with building reservoirs and dams.

Other PRO arguments include:

Proposition 1 will help California prepare for droughts by enhancing local water supplies and increasing our ability to store water so it is available when we need it
Proposition 1 will ensure reliable water for farms
Proposition 1 will clean up contamination of drinking water by removing pollutants from streams and rivers
Proposition 1 will protect against the collapse of our water system in an earthquake
Proposition 1 will repair the Delta, one of the most important ecosystems on the West Coast
Proposition 1 will fix vital infrastructure and create jobs
Proposition 1 will NOT increase taxes, as it is funded through existing funds
Proposition 1 will protect tax payers with strong fiscal safeguards

However, there is a campaign against the measure led by Vote NO on Proposition 1. The California Sportfishing Protection Alliance issued a “statement of opposition” to Prop 1 and provided 14 reasons to vote against the proposition. The following are just a few of those reasons:

Proposition 1 undermines the public trust doctrine
Proposition 1 undermines the principle of beneficiary pays
Proposition 1 crowds out other critical investments
Proposition 1 ushers in a new era of big dams
Proposition 1 undermines the principle that projects should mitigate adverse impacts
Proposition 1 is fiscally irresponsible
Proposition 1 sabotages efforts to meaningfully resolve California’s continuing water crisis

California’s Water and Prop 1’s Objectives

Most of the state’s water supply comes from northern Californian rivers, snow in the Sierra Nevada mountains and groundwater. The main objective is to provide water throughout the state, while supporting and maintaining the environment. To do so, we often use:

pipelines
watersheds
irrigation systems
pumping stations
dams and canals
waste management plants

The state of California’s primary water-related responsibilities are to conserve, store and transport water around the state, protect water quality, fish and wildlife habitats and to provide flood control. The objectives of Proposition 1 would be to increase water supplies and flood protection, improve water quality, and protect and restore watersheds. Specific spending proposals in the Proposition are shown in the figure below.

The fiscal impact of Prop 1 would be an added $7.1 billion of debt to California, which will be in the form of general obligation bonds that the state would issue. It would take around $360 million each year for about 40 years to pay off!

I think the time has come that, either through legislation or through some changes in infrastructure, we get rid of lawn watering and watering of shrubs with water that has been treated to the point that it is good for drinking water. It just seems to be a very expensive thing to do; we should give people tax credits or whatever to get rid of the lawns for something that does not require watering. We all are part of this and we have to use water a lot more judiciously. Vote “Yes” but keep your eye on how the money is being spent.

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