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Of course it does. Do you lie about on the ground waiting for it to rain when you're thirsty? No, you want to have freshwater stored somewhere, best in tremendo

Of course it does. Do you lie about on the ground waiting for it to rain when you're thirsty? No, you want to have freshwater stored somewhere, best in tremendous quantities, so that if it doesn't happen to rain for a while you don't die. A glib response to applied risk does not suggest you have expertise.

s1artibartfast 5y ago
As long as there is plenty of water in the ground to serve as a reserve, there is no added benefit to adding more. If the benefit is only storage, you have to ask if we are out of storage options. Our reservoirs are typically low so why would we put water in a storage place that is both expensive and carbon intensive to access?
- ssivark 5y ago
  Given the rapid depletion of ground water levels, and uncertainty about potential changes in precipitation patterns due to climate change, do we actually have “plenty of water” in the ground, compared to a reasonable desire (well thought out planning) for several-decades worth of buffer for a large number of people?
  - s1artibartfast 5y ago
    It depends on the location and it is a huge range. There are places where wells have gone dry and places that receive no rain but have hundreds of years left. In times of plenty it makes sense to put some water back in the ground if you have a short-term capacity. The idea of putting water back in just for the sake of it because that's how it was when you found it is pointless
    - stouset 5y ago
      > In times of plenty it makes sense to put some water back in the ground if you have a short-term capacity. This is literally what the article is about. Nobody's doing this because they're bored and looking for fun hobbies on the side. California's groundwater systems are being depleted rapidly and people are desperate to find solutions that don't require pulling less water out of the ground. Even with this that outcome won't be avoided.

s1artibartfast 5y ago

As long as there is plenty of water in the ground to serve as a reserve, there is no added benefit to adding more. If the benefit is only storage, you have to ask if we are out of storage options. Our reservoirs are typically low so why would we put water in a storage place that is both expensive and carbon intensive to access?

ssivark 5y ago
Given the rapid depletion of ground water levels, and uncertainty about potential changes in precipitation patterns due to climate change, do we actually have “plenty of water” in the ground, compared to a reasonable desire (well thought out planning) for several-decades worth of buffer for a large number of people?
- s1artibartfast 5y ago
  It depends on the location and it is a huge range. There are places where wells have gone dry and places that receive no rain but have hundreds of years left. In times of plenty it makes sense to put some water back in the ground if you have a short-term capacity. The idea of putting water back in just for the sake of it because that's how it was when you found it is pointless
  - stouset 5y ago
    > In times of plenty it makes sense to put some water back in the ground if you have a short-term capacity. This is literally what the article is about. Nobody's doing this because they're bored and looking for fun hobbies on the side. California's groundwater systems are being depleted rapidly and people are desperate to find solutions that don't require pulling less water out of the ground. Even with this that outcome won't be avoided.