Overuse of Water Continues Amid California Drought

California is in the middle of a long, seemingly unending drought, but that does not stop the widespread abuse of water restriction policies that are currently in place. Not only are private citizens being cited for watering lawns and otherwise overusing water, but the city of Los Angles recently made headlines for watering fake grass.


According to an article in CBS news, the Los Ángeles Department of Water and Power, which makes many of the rules regarding local water restrictions, appears to be violating some of its own policies. The DWP installed fake grass on their lawn in order to reduce the amount of water that they use so that they can stay within their own departmental policies. They are also looked up to as an example for the appropriate way to behave during a drought.


But CBS Los Angeles investigated and discovered that the DWP is watering this grass for a few minutes each week, which not only is a potential waste of water, but also causes gray water to run off into the very limited supply of drinking water. The drought in California causing serious problems for people in some parts of California, who are finding they do not have enough clean water for drinking or bathing. The report also angered neighbors because they have been following the stricter water restrictions that the DWP has created.


For it’s part, the DWP says that they are simply trying to keep the fake grass clean. They insist that they are trying to wash off dog pee. While this seems like it could be a legitimate concern, as there is no reason to keep watering grass that does not grow, it begs another question. It seems like there must be some other way for the fake grass to stay clean without causing water to run off and be wasted, even if it takes longer and is a little more work.


Using as little extra water is incredibly important in California where droughts have plagued the state for decades. The population continues to grow, taxing the limited natural resources the state has. Environmental problems also contribute to the drought in California, and until these issues are resolved, following the water restrictions is very important for everyone in Calfornia.