Thank you so much for this info. We are battling a swmi conductor facility that will be built, quite literally, on top of the aquifer that provides water to much of Indiana. Some moronic official said we will refill the aquifer from Lake Michigan… except that isn't really a thing. Only precipitation feeds this ancient aquifer. It’s as stupid as Trump dumping water in Cali to fix their issues. SMH They will guzzle 4 million gallons per day, push their wastewater thru our city's over burdened wastewater system and we just pray a heavy rain doesn't result in a discharge straight to our river. We are surrounded by greed.
Hey - checking to see if you’re following what’s happening in Garden Grove in Orange County right now. I told my kids “this feels like an Erin Brokovich situation” and then we talked about you and I explained all you’ve done. Just wanted to put it on your radar.
Really appreciate the nuanced read here, credit where it's due but eyes wide open on the follow-through. Your point about agriculture's water footprint needing honest math is exactly right, and it connects to something that often gets missed: the current allocation system makes it harder to account for that footprint accurately because rights are defined by diversion rather than by how much water is actually consumed. That gap makes it nearly impossible to price or trade water in a way that reflects true scarcity. I've been working on ideas around how better market infrastructure and measurement could help close that gap in California surface water, particularly for the Central Valley. Wrote some of it up here if it's of interest: https://bilenessayas.substack.com/p/why-water-markets-keep-failing-and?r=64agr6&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Listening to one of my favorite podcasts today, TrueAnon, I heard Brace Belden and his two panelists opining about how anyone who doesn’t drink tap water is “nuts.”
I’m not nuts. But HERE’S why I don’t drink tap water where I live. I investigated and wrote this for the Nation Institute in 2000. It went nowhere:
The water crisis in CA has long been forecast with little action. Offshore oil rigs may help if they can provide gas to desalination plants onshore. Refined oil is a lost cause until CA allows refineries to be built. Modular nuclear power plants in the future may also be dedicated to desalination if the economics work out. This may be required to replenish ground water, anyway.
They gave them bottled water, which until recently I was a specific brand bragger how pristine its spring water tasted and a brand I could depend on . Until I watched a YouTube video showing different brands of bottled water you need to avoid especially if you're among the elderly population. Mine, wasn't even spring water at all and it causes kidney damage. Lovely. So EPA passing out bottles of water could be worst contaminated kind of help these people don't need..
The water issues facing San Francisco are too numerous to delineate here. Erin & Suzanne, you all should come to The Sunset (on the Pacific Ocean side of the city), there are so many issues that I would love to get your advice and perhaps help with in whatever small way you could. Anyway, thank you for this report and for all you do... John Crabtree
California is robbing wells. Since the new fracking technology, it's easy to cross-drop a line and suck wells dry. Now people don't get any water, no matter where the well is! Soon, there will be no water to test! All they do is park on land nearby and then illegally take the water. This water robbing is massive, and soon there won't be any water to truck in, never mind drill for. I don't know why they don't invest in desalination, as Israel did...it really is a smart way to go, as fresh water is running out fast! As of now, there are no 'private' wells. They are being robbed!
Thank you so much for this info. We are battling a swmi conductor facility that will be built, quite literally, on top of the aquifer that provides water to much of Indiana. Some moronic official said we will refill the aquifer from Lake Michigan… except that isn't really a thing. Only precipitation feeds this ancient aquifer. It’s as stupid as Trump dumping water in Cali to fix their issues. SMH They will guzzle 4 million gallons per day, push their wastewater thru our city's over burdened wastewater system and we just pray a heavy rain doesn't result in a discharge straight to our river. We are surrounded by greed.
Hey - checking to see if you’re following what’s happening in Garden Grove in Orange County right now. I told my kids “this feels like an Erin Brokovich situation” and then we talked about you and I explained all you’ve done. Just wanted to put it on your radar.
Really appreciate the nuanced read here, credit where it's due but eyes wide open on the follow-through. Your point about agriculture's water footprint needing honest math is exactly right, and it connects to something that often gets missed: the current allocation system makes it harder to account for that footprint accurately because rights are defined by diversion rather than by how much water is actually consumed. That gap makes it nearly impossible to price or trade water in a way that reflects true scarcity. I've been working on ideas around how better market infrastructure and measurement could help close that gap in California surface water, particularly for the Central Valley. Wrote some of it up here if it's of interest: https://bilenessayas.substack.com/p/why-water-markets-keep-failing-and?r=64agr6&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Listening to one of my favorite podcasts today, TrueAnon, I heard Brace Belden and his two panelists opining about how anyone who doesn’t drink tap water is “nuts.”
I’m not nuts. But HERE’S why I don’t drink tap water where I live. I investigated and wrote this for the Nation Institute in 2000. It went nowhere:
https://biffogram.substack.com/p/adventures-in-patakistan
The water crisis in CA has long been forecast with little action. Offshore oil rigs may help if they can provide gas to desalination plants onshore. Refined oil is a lost cause until CA allows refineries to be built. Modular nuclear power plants in the future may also be dedicated to desalination if the economics work out. This may be required to replenish ground water, anyway.
They gave them bottled water, which until recently I was a specific brand bragger how pristine its spring water tasted and a brand I could depend on . Until I watched a YouTube video showing different brands of bottled water you need to avoid especially if you're among the elderly population. Mine, wasn't even spring water at all and it causes kidney damage. Lovely. So EPA passing out bottles of water could be worst contaminated kind of help these people don't need..
No more Wonderful Company ownership of water rights.
The water issues facing San Francisco are too numerous to delineate here. Erin & Suzanne, you all should come to The Sunset (on the Pacific Ocean side of the city), there are so many issues that I would love to get your advice and perhaps help with in whatever small way you could. Anyway, thank you for this report and for all you do... John Crabtree
California is robbing wells. Since the new fracking technology, it's easy to cross-drop a line and suck wells dry. Now people don't get any water, no matter where the well is! Soon, there will be no water to test! All they do is park on land nearby and then illegally take the water. This water robbing is massive, and soon there won't be any water to truck in, never mind drill for. I don't know why they don't invest in desalination, as Israel did...it really is a smart way to go, as fresh water is running out fast! As of now, there are no 'private' wells. They are being robbed!