🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1992Feb12.025047.8915@kronos.arc.nasa.gov> chucko@kronos.arc.nasa.gov (Chuck Fry) writes:
>In article <1992Feb11.173055.19821@pbhya.PacBell.COM> whheydt@PacBell.COM (Wilson Heydt) writes:
>
> ... Need I point out that, even now, most of Sacramento has *no* water
> meters?...

Sacramento County's not having water meters has nothing to do with Southern
California's water supply.

First, Sacramento and Yolo Counties get all of their water from the local
ground table and the three rivers that feed it, and don't import water from
anywhere.  Some 400,000 (?) acres of rice went unplanted last year because
the local ground table is starting to get depleted and the water districts of
Sacramento and Yolo Counties aren't getting water from anywhere else.  Sacra-
mento and Yolo Counties have nothing to do with how much or how little water
Southern California imports.

Second, after an attempt at water husbandry that failed ludicrously (descrip-
tion follows), Sacramento County is having water meters installed in all new
construction and in all houses that change hands as of last year sometime.
This is not as lame as it sounds:  Sac County's real estate market is dis-
tinctly more lively these days than it is elsewhere in California.  In Wood-
land (Yolo County), the water people tried to encourage water rationing by
allowing odd-numbered houses to water lawns, etc., on Tuesdays, Thursdays,
and Saturdays only, and even-numbered houses to water on Wednesdays, Fridays,
and Sundays.  It failed miserably because 1.  people who paid attention to
the "rationing" merely watered twice as much on alternate days as they had in
previous years when they watered daily; and 2. there was no enforcement or
penalty that I could see.  There were quite blatant examples of people and
organizations watering on Mondays, puddles in the streets, etc.  If the
drought continues, I suppose they will try the same regulations this summer
but put teeth in them for watering on the wrong days; and when that also
fails to lower water consumption, in 1993 they'll decide that they should 
take water meters seriously.  So, if the drought continues, even poverty-
stricken little Yolo County might have water meters by 2000.


Carrie		ceb@dbrus.unify.com	x6244
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