No, this is not another lame attempt to squeeze in a music video of one of my favorite songs. Ahhh...winter in western Oregon!
In a recent blog post Peter Gleick invokes John Steinbeck's East of Eden (among other things) in discussing what must be done about California's broken water policy.
I agree with what he says, but it's his focus on groundwater towards the end of the post really resonates strongly with me.
California water will never be managed sustainably until we bring the state’s groundwater under public management. The physical reality is that our groundwater is no different than our surface water: it is as connected to every other part of our water system as firmly as our muscles are connected to our bones and interwoven with the circulatory systems of our bodies. The political reality is different. We pretend that groundwater is something private, to be managed in the dark, outside of public view. And it is certainly in the interests of some to continue this charade. The legislature must pass, and the next Governor must sign, comprehensive statewide groundwater law. Hard? Unlikely? Sure. But absolutely necessary.
Steinbeck was right. In the dry years we forget about the rich years. And now that we’ve had a wet year, we risk losing all memory of the dry years. The legislature made some substantial progress last year at addressing water policy. That was good. They must continue to do more this year despite the rains, the full reservoirs, and the green fields, and they must — as a first step only — take control of the State’s groundwater by requiring comprehensive monitoring, measurement, and management of all groundwater basins, levels, and use.
We can move on from there.
And to that, I'll say 'Amen!'
Read Gleick's entire post.
I've addressed California's groundwater before (see here). In another post I noted:
California's groundwater overdraft has been known for well over over 40 years. When I was a youngster in graduate school in the early 1970s the Central Valley was already the poster child for unsustainable groundwater use.
The State long ago abdicated its responsibility to manage groundwater on a statewide basis. Local control is lauded, but it's tough to properly manage a resource on a local basis when the resource doesn't follow artificial boundaries.
And, for the last word, here's Steinbeck:
“And it never failed that during the dry years the people forgot about the rich years, and during the wet years they lost all memory of the dry years. It was always that way.” - John Steinbeck, East of Eden
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