Facing an epic drought of Dust Bowl proportions, California is, in AP’s words, “sparing fewer and fewer users in the push to cut back on water usage.” Earlier this week we reported [3] that, for the first time in decades, the state is imposing mandatory cuts for senior water rights holders. “The order applies to farmers and others whose rights to water were staked more than a century ago,” AP noted, adding that “many farmers holding those senior-water rights contend the state has no authority to order cuts.”
This of course comes on the heels of an executive order from Governor Jerry Brown which went into effect on June 1 and calls for cities and municipalities to cut consumption by between 25% and 36%, cuts which, while feasible for the likes of Santa Rosa, which can afford to give away 50,000 low-flow toilets, are unrealistic for other, more fiscally challenged locales. And while some good samaritans are willing to sacrifice their lawns [4] (albeit with the help of taxpayer subsidies) for the good of the state, other, more affluent Californians contend that while money may not be able to buy happiness, it should damn sure be able to buy water. The Washington Post has more [5]:
Drought or no drought, Steve Yuhas resents the idea that it is somehow shameful to be a water hog. If you can pay for it, he argues, you should get your water.
People “should not be forced to live on property with brown lawns, golf on brown courses or apologize for wanting their gardens to be beautiful,” Yuhas fumed recently on social media. “We pay significant property taxes based on where we live,” he added in an interview. “And, no, we’re not all equal when it comes to water.”
Yuhas lives in the ultra-wealthy enclave of Rancho Santa Fe, a bucolic Southern California hamlet of ranches, gated communities and country clubs that guzzles five times more water per capita than the statewide average. In April, after Gov. Jerry Brown (D) called for a 25 percent reduction in water use, consumption in Rancho Santa Fe went up by 9 percent.
So far, the community’s 3,100 residents have not felt the wrath of the water police. Authorities have issued only three citations for violations of a first round of rather mild water restrictions announced last fall. In a place where the median income is $189,000, where PGA legend Phil Mickelson once requested a separate water meter for his chipping greens, where financier Ralph Whitworth last month paid the Rolling Stones $2 million to play at a local bar, the fine, at $100, was less than intimidating.
All that is about to change, however. Under the new rules, each household will be assigned an essential allotment for basic indoor needs. Any additional usage — sprinklers, fountains, swimming pools — must be slashed by nearly half for the district to meet state-mandated targets.
Residents who exceed their allotment could see their already sky-high water bills triple. And for ultra-wealthy customers undeterred by financial penalties, the district reserves the right to install flow restrictors — quarter-size disks that make it difficult to, say, shower and do a load of laundry at the same time.
In extreme cases, the district could shut off the tap altogether.
That’s right. Soon, residents of Rancho Santa Fe may be forced to stop watering their personal chipping greens or worse still, could find themselves standing in a brown fairway. And while some might argue that asking the community to cut back by 36% is reasonable, especially considering the hamlet uses 400% more water per capita than the state average, others, like resident Gay Butler (who enjoys trail rides on her show horse and whose water bill averages around $800/month according to WaPo) are outraged:
"What are we supposed to do, just have dirt around our house on four acres?"
[6]
(Gay Butler)
Here's a look at what's at stake should California decide to apply the same rules to rich people as they do to everyone else:
[7]
[8]
Before anyone loses sleep over what those scenic views would look like if everything that's green were to suddenly turn brown, rest assured that some wealthy Californians are prepared to take the fight to the bitter end to protect their lawns and fairways and on that note, we'll close with a quote from Yorba City's Brett Barbre who, when asked about the possibility that the state could compel him to put down his watering hose, said the following:
"They'll have to pry it from my cold, dead hands."
