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Water is fungible. It doesn't make sense to give water for almost free to farmers to grow grass for cows, then turn around and burn energy to desalinate drinkin

Water is fungible. It doesn't make sense to give water for almost free to farmers to grow grass for cows, then turn around and burn energy to desalinate drinking water. Instead, we should take the desalination plant money, buy out the farms, shut them down and take their water for drinking. Far more environmentally friendly and a lot cheaper too.

allannienhuis 5y ago
I actually agree with this in principle, but isn't California a huge source of food for much of the west coast? Where will the food be grown then?
- rmah 5y ago
  Pretty much anywhere else with sunlight, soil and water?
- ta988 5y ago
  In states with a more reasonable water usage?
- throwaway09223 5y ago
  Yes and no. There are crops which make sense to grow in California due to the climate, which we shouldn't grow elsewhere. Alfalfa isn't one of them. We export alfalfa to other countries, essentially exporting our water. Cow feed can be better grown elsewhere (and cows can be better raised elsewhere) Another problem crop in California is rice. We simply shouldn't grow rice in this state. Most rice is grown in the southern US where water is plentiful. We could stop growing rice without significant impact. More water is used in California growing rice than all of Los Angeles residential use put together. We could cut these crops significantly without appreciable impact to our food supply, using a fraction of our existing conservation budgets, and not have to worry about residential conservation for decades or longer. There's a pretty good intro to the economic breakdown here: https://slatestarcodex.com/2015/05/11/california-water-you-doing/ https://slatestarcodex.com/2015/05/11/california-water-you-d...
- FuriouslyAdrift 5y ago
  California is the #1 agriculture state in the US by dollar amount (most is dairy, almonds, and grapes/wine).
  - Robotbeat 5y ago
    If it’s so valuable, then it seems they’d be fine to pay the same amount for water as municipal utilities do.

allannienhuis 5y ago

I actually agree with this in principle, but isn't California a huge source of food for much of the west coast? Where will the food be grown then?

rmah 5y ago
Pretty much anywhere else with sunlight, soil and water?
ta988 5y ago
In states with a more reasonable water usage?
throwaway09223 5y ago
Yes and no. There are crops which make sense to grow in California due to the climate, which we shouldn't grow elsewhere. Alfalfa isn't one of them. We export alfalfa to other countries, essentially exporting our water. Cow feed can be better grown elsewhere (and cows can be better raised elsewhere) Another problem crop in California is rice. We simply shouldn't grow rice in this state. Most rice is grown in the southern US where water is plentiful. We could stop growing rice without significant impact. More water is used in California growing rice than all of Los Angeles residential use put together. We could cut these crops significantly without appreciable impact to our food supply, using a fraction of our existing conservation budgets, and not have to worry about residential conservation for decades or longer. There's a pretty good intro to the economic breakdown here: https://slatestarcodex.com/2015/05/11/california-water-you-doing/ https://slatestarcodex.com/2015/05/11/california-water-you-d...
FuriouslyAdrift 5y ago
California is the #1 agriculture state in the US by dollar amount (most is dairy, almonds, and grapes/wine).
- Robotbeat 5y ago
  If it’s so valuable, then it seems they’d be fine to pay the same amount for water as municipal utilities do.