Newsletter: Water and Power: California’s drought means smaller pumpkins for Halloween

Your guide to the California drought from the Los Angeles Times.

NEWS AND POLICY

Wasting water: The search is on in Bel-Air for the homeowner who used 11.8 million gallons of water. Everyone, from neighbors to Times readers, seems to have a theory on whom the mysterious water guzzler may be. Folks are even using Google Maps and drones to find the culprit. “We're going to get you sooner or later, so why not make this easy on yourself? Drop the hose, drain the fountains and step out of the shadows,” writes columnist Steve Lopez.

Water prices: Is Gov. Jerry Brown taking steps to change the way Californians pay for their water use? Proposition 218 restricts governments from charging more for a service than it costs to provide, and it’s the reason courts have invalidated tiered pricing structures. “Proposition 218 serves as the biggest impediment to public water systems being able to establish low-income rate assistance programs,” Brown said.

Leaky pipes: A new bill will require water agencies to audit their pipes and report their annual water losses beginning in 2017. The information will be posted to the Department of Water Resources. One study by the California Public Utilities Commission estimated that 10% of water used by urban customers is lost to leaks. “The fastest and cheapest way to save water is to identify and recover the water lost on a daily basis in our urban areas,” said state Sen. Lois Wolk, who authored SB 555.

ON THE GROUND

Paper and plastic: Fort Bragg city leaders want restaurants to save water by using disposable plates and cups instead of ones that need to go into the dishwasher. Restaurant owners say that would add a huge expense to their books. And, do customers really want to cut a steak with a plastic knife?

Craft beers: It takes about seven gallons of water to make one gallon of beer. With the explosion of breweries in California, that’s adding up to a lot of water. Officials want brewers to cut back, but it’s a challenge. “We wouldn't consider moving outside of Fallbrook. We'll just pray for rain — maybe hire a rain dancer,” said Chuck McLaughlin of Fallbrook Brewing Co.

OFFBEAT

Small pumpkins: The drought and the heat are leading to smaller pumpkins this year. Last year, farmer John Hawkley won the Half Moon Safeway World Championship with a 2,058-pound pumpkin. This year, his entry came in at just 1,447 pounds. In Northern California, where there’s a shortage of medium- and large-sized pumpkins, growers have started importing gourds from Oregon.

Importing resources: Could Californians soon be drinking pure Alaskan water? One man wants to bring water from Blue Lake in Sitka, Alaska, to California. Rep. Janice Hahn appears interested. Her congressional district includes the Port of Los Angeles. Plus, her father, the late county Supervisor Kenneth Hahn, did float the idea of a pipeline from Alaska to California back in the 1980s.

BIG IDEAS

“The cannabis industry says they’re being picked on, but in wine country we spent a lot of time with vineyards permitting water use and getting them to store water. If the growers were to capture water in the wintertime and store it, one of the biggest water issues would be dealt with.”

-- Scott Bauer, senior environmental scientist at the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, on regulating how marijuana is grown.

"The land is half and half here. Half dry, half alive."

--Central Valley resident, on the inequity of running out of water.

DROUGHT SNAPSHOT

As the Salton Sea has shrunk, exposing previously submerged areas, toxic dust storms have increased in the Coachella and Imperial valleys, and a rotten-egg smell has drifted to much of coastal Southern California.

(Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)

As the Salton Sea has shrunk, exposing previously submerged areas, toxic dust storms have increased in the Coachella and Imperial valleys, and a rotten-egg smell has drifted to much of coastal Southern California. (Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times)p>

DAILY TIP

This video from the Metropolitan Water District offers up 10 tips for saving water at home.

LOOKING AHEAD

Tuesday: The Metropolitan Water District will meet in downtown Los Angeles; the Fort Bragg City Council will consider changes to its restriction on china in restaurants.

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