Conservation may help, but we’ll need to produce more water to conquer the drought
By William Hicks
New ideas for water production can keep taps from running dry
“You’re gonna need a bigger boat.”
Most of us are familiar with that famous line from “Jaws.” It came to mind the other day as I walked along the marina and thought about our water crisis and our plan to address it.
We’re gonna need a bigger plan.
The drought is indeed like a massive, dangerous shark that lurks just below conscious awareness and is not at all concerned about whether we have enough water to live.
As taxpayers are being asked to cut back on water, the county is partnering with developers to increase the number of rental units in the marina.
The L.A. County Dept. of Public Works, which serves unincorporated areas of the county such as Marina del Rey and Malibu-Topanga, plans to meet state water conservation goals by calculating average water use for each area and increasing prices for users who exceed the norm. Overages up to 15% would cost double, and over that triple the normal rate, department Deputy Director Gary Hildebrand recently told NBC 4’s Patrick Healy.
It’s just not a big enough plan.
Back in the 1930s, we lined the L.A. River with concrete because it would flood. At the same time, this also put a lot of people to work during the Great Depression. But the last time I checked, this isn’t the ‘30s (though the economy has been about the same), when there weren’t 10 million thirsty Angelenos.
As my sister-in-law put it, “They should break open the bottom of the L.A. River so that the water can absorb into the ground instead of running off into the ocean.”
I would take this plan a step further and propose that we divert the water before it reaches the ocean. We should be able to run a pipe to DWP facilities that can filter and distribute that water. There are currently plans to put in a new sewage pipe to replace the old one that runs under Marina del Rey, so why not add a new water pipe while the ground is open?
Another thought is to build an L.A. desalination plant.
Poseidon Water has plans to open one of the largest desalination plants in the country next year in Carlsbad.
“Obviously we’ve done tons in conservation, but we have to have enough water,” Sandy Kerl, deputy general manager of the San Diego County Water Authority, which is buying the water from the Carlsbad desalination plant, told The Desert Sun. “You can’t conserve what you don’t have.”
Environmentalists say that intake pipes can be built beneath the ocean floor, using the sand as a natural filter to keep out marine life, and brine can be mixed with less-salty water from a wastewater treatment plant before returning it to the ocean.
As far as the cost, L.A. is one of the wealthiest cities in the world, so surely it can afford to spend part of that on water. After all, water is non-negotiable.
As far as the energy required, we live in a very sunny place with some of the greatest minds in the world. If we don’t have the wherewithal to capture enough energy from the biggest power source in the solar system, something is drastically wrong.
There are already close to 15,000 desalination plants worldwide. In this day and age, I think it is irresponsible for any large city along a coastline not to build one.
There are other technologies that can produce more water to meet our growing needs, such as graywater recycling and rain-capturing systems. I have to commend L.A. city officials for requiring new construction projects to include rain gutters and rain barrels.
We shouldn’t have to rely on water that the farmers up north need to grow our country’s produce. California produces a majority of American fruits, veggies and nuts: 99% of artichokes and walnuts, 97% of kiwis and plums, 95% of celery and garlic, 89% of cauliflower, 71% of spinach and 69% of carrots, according to a Slate article.
We and our leaders must work together to better manage our resources. Water, clean air, food and shelter are all non-negotiable needs.
As the saying goes, “There is enough food to end world hunger but not enough money to pay for it.”
Except that there is enough currency, but just like our water supply, it needs to be managed and circulated effectively and efficiently.
Contact the author at williamhicks.columnist@gmail.com.
This is a very thoughtful and great article that Los Angeles really needs to consider, thanks for this informative article, I will be sharing.
Thanks, Sandie….get the word out!
Agreed on all points. And there’s one more, something I’ve been screaming about for decades: STOP THE GROWTH! I know, I know, it’s all about profit, “follow the money,” politics, etc. There’s BIG money in building and selling to an ever-increasing population, and we are told that apparently there is nothing that sensible, intelligent people can do to stop it. Shrug. But when the rest of us are asked to skip showers and let our lawns go brown, enough is enough. I’m tired of being told, every time there’s another drought, that I need to cut back on bathing and can’t wash my car because there is too much demand on our water resources.
Until we have effective desalination plants providing ample water, we need to simply stop the insidious growth. As much as developers will whine, complain and lobby, it’s common sense. Smart, fair-minded people need to prevail. There needs to be a moratorium on growth until the infrastructure is there to more than satisfy the L.A. region’s water needs.
William, as always, a great article. The DWP should hire you as an advisor.
what a well-researched, passionate and erudite column. Well done!!
Once again — Excellent, William. “A bigger plan”, indeed! Does CA have strong leaders who have the capacity for the vision, courage and stamina — needed for embracing, moving forward an implementing yours and others’ outstanding suggestions. . . ?
Thanks to the Argonaut for running this column from a voice of reason…it should be required reading for the DWP, the County Commissioners, LA City Council and the Department of Beaches and Harbors. William is one voice for so many people who are in agreement with his “Opinions”. Rather than whine and complain, William offers insightful ideas for solutions. Way to go!
Well said, Catherine!
Yes, Thank you Argonaut for making a place for Williams voice of reasoned big boat thinking in every area you’re shining your light on so we can see a way forward more clearly. What I really notice about your column, is that you have the gift of rising out of the endless loop of debate and instead take us with you into the bigger picture. From here, it’s now possible to see the the potential we have right now to innovate locally with successful technologies that actually are sustainable. I appreciate that you are not feeding the me-versus-them mentality which traps us in endless debates about fairness and whose to blame.. in this case, the growers versus the cities and individual. These kind of debates actually block creative thinking and innovation.
The best thing is that these innovations, opening up the bottom (in parts perhaps) of the LA River to return water to our groundwater system, and simple capture methods like rain spouts and water barrels, integrated into a soaker hose system and greywater capture of water from laundry and showers recirculated into water for thirsty trees, landscapes and gardens, are all within reach. It just takes the public will coming together around these ideas. Solar on a large scale and desalinization are bigger projects but with public will it can become an issue that both parties and office holders would be required to embrace.
Let’s start with the fall. We are hearing that El Nino conditions might give us a wet fall this year. If it does, let’s urge the County and city, apartment house owners, Individual homeowners, businesses, county and city buildings add gutters and rain barrels, distributing water via soaker hoses to water our thirsty trees and plants.
It simply takes US who embrace these common sense solutions to come together, lobby and let our representatives and agencies and owners of our buildings and the public trust know that we support this big boat approach.
Bravo William for giving this voice. Everything begins with a great vision and idea. Thank you for your capacity to “see” what’s possible and call us to it.
Thanks for your thoughts, Lina! All of us have the opportunity to make a difference in our own way, and we shouldn’t leave important issues such as water supply up to somebody else to handle.