“We’re in the middle of a drought, and the water commissioner drowns. Only in L.A.” From the movie “Chinatown” Water, water everywhere, and not a drop of quality craft beer to drink? That could be one unexpected outcome of California’s ongoing drought. Might it prove to be the magic elixir that finally wakes us up?
As the drought enters year four it’s worsening quickly. According to the National Drought Mitigation Center, 58 percent of California now faces “exceptional” drought, the severest category – at the beginning of this year, none of the state had yet reached that stage.
Though Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency in January and targeted a 20 percent water use reduction, we’ve only cut back by 5 percent to date. In fact, some urban areas actually increased water usage during May. This prompted California to issue new mandatory emergency regulations that carry fines up to $500 per day. Among the prohibited activities: washing down driveways and sidewalks; watering of outdoor landscapes that cause excess runoff; and using a hose to wash a car unless the hose is fitted with a shut-off nozzle.
On the day these new regulations took effect, a ruptured water main gushed 20 million gallons of water high above Sunset Boulevard and flooded parts of the UCLA campus. Only in L.A.
But the Westwood gusher wasn’t that week’s most surprising news. We also learned that an ongoing water shortage will impact the ability of California’s more than 400 craft brewers to produce high quality product, and could lead many to relocate to other states. I guess Olympia wasn’t kidding when they told us for all those years that “it’s the water”.
So as we finally wake up to the enormity of the problem, what can we do about it? The Save Our Water Campaign (www.saveourh2o. org), established by the California Department of Water Resources, offers a host of tips on how to creatively cut back.
Indoors we can:
• Use the washing machine and dishwasher only for full loads to save water and energy.
• Cut showers from 10 minutes to five, and save between12.5 and 25 gallons per shower depending on type of showerhead.
• Test our toilets for leaks at least once a year. Outdoors we can:
• Save 25 gallons each time by watering early in the morning or later in the evening.
• Plant drought-resistant trees and vegetation and save 30- 60 gallons per 1,000 square feet of watering.
TreePeople also offers Community Sustainability Workshops that help teach us to cut our outdoor water consumption, capture the rain that does fall in barrels and tanks, and plant climate- appropriate and native plants.
Their next workshop is Sept. 13. For more information visit www.treepeople. org/community-sustainability- workshops
It’s time for us to write the next chapter of Southern California’s water story by cutting back. If not for our neighbors and for the planet, let’s do it for our brew pubs. We might even save some local jobs in the process.
Everybody wins if we make sure this drought isn’t “last call” for homegrown craft beers. Only in L.A.
Michael Zucker, a writer and communications strategist, has called Culver City home for 15 years. He helps individuals, organizations and businesses tell their stories. Michael can be contacted at sustainableconversations@gmail.com.
