California drought

As a lot of people may be aware, California has been experiencing a terrible water shortage.... not that you can tell with the themeparks, waterparks, and SeaWorld....
I was born and raised here, and always heard about the water shortage, but it's difficult to comprehend when you're a teenager at the beach!
now things are getting tight.
like, difficult to actually get water tight. and it's just a little bit scary.

I live on a sailboat with a watertank that lasts about a week and a half. it fuels our kitchen sink and self contained freshwater head.

usually once a week or so when we go pump the head, we fill water.
last week we were told by Volunteer Harbor Police that we couldn't fill our water unless we paid for a slip.... they said, er, well, it's a grey area.... we didn't need a slip, just filling our water per usual. the water is not and has never been anything other than free for all, and the volunteer was really fuzzy on the legality, he wasn't even sure, but basically was pushing us off.
about ten percent of boaters here are liveaboards. people don't like liveaboards; they think we're homeless, messy, trashy, weird. it's not unsual at all for liveaboards to be hassled by law enforcement often. it happens to me and most of my neighbors.
so we went some time without water, which was tough and scary. it basicslly meant filling our water bottles, going into our emergency water, drinking on land.
we finally managed to pirate some water on the downlow, but it's sad and scary that it's come to this. only the rich and or powerful can have water? i asked the volunteer how we're supposed to get water with no money, he didn't care.
it's scary feeling the water squeeze so tight. how much worse is it gonna get?

 

I saw some geologist on the boob tube a while back--he said between 900 AD and 1400 AD was a 500 year drought in the area! Everything in California will be worth nothing if that happens again--real estate and all. Desalination is probably the answer, but humans tend to wait until it's too late to fix things. Soooooo----who knows.

 

What, you guys are just anchored in the bay?

When I think of the drought in Cali, I always occurs to me; Oh no's, you mean they won't be able to fill all those swimming pools and irrigate all those golf courses? Oh hell no, that stuff will be fine, it's the people who can afford it the least will be the ones who will suffer and pay.

Sorry they are putting the screws to you, Sappho. I hope you can work something out.

 

I read something recently about how residents are being told to conserve water, but Nestle is free to fill and sell as many bottles of water as they please.

 

moored. so yes, similar to an anchor.
yeah, it pisses me off the hypocracy, but even more that water is, imho, a human right.... and they're saying.... no water for liveaboards, unless you pay a fee?

 

Where is the boat?

When I was out there a couple of weeks ago there were signs all over the place on the highways urging people to conserve water. Couple the drought with fire season....yikes! It is super dry out there.

 

Well, to be fair, everyone with a house/apartment pays for their water delivery. But I do agree with you.

 

And they have to buy water credits in California.

 

that's true.... although, i grew up where water was included with rent. and what about water fountains?
i think the volunteers were bullshitting us on the water thing. they weren't even sure.... he was stuttering and correcting and saying um a lot.... couldn't answer our questions.
we fill up at a transient dock and it's never been an issue; there's water hook ups right there. and there's nobody selling water to fill our tanks anyway. fuel dock says they aren't allowed to fill water tanks anymore.

 

The powers that be are always after the livaboards. Especially if you anchor off instead paying for a dock. I was living on a Tri in the Ala Wai harbor (Oahu) and there was a huge effort to punish livaboards for polluting the harbor. Some one put some dye in some hotel shitters which showed up big-time in/or around the area. They backed off some after that. Funny--I just read a book by Hiaason that had a plot like that.

 

yep. they don't like us because it's difficult to define our living status, homeless or not, and they kind of see us as moocher travellers. we have a friend who hasn't paid for any kind of dock or mooring for over a year, just by hopping from anchorage to anchorage.

 

You know--$$$$$$$$$$$$$. They just hate to see anyone "getting away with something." We anchored off the breakwater completely out of the way and didn't even use the showers or anything else that might cost someone a nickel or two. Showered in the cold water at the beach.

Reminds me of Bud in Repo man---"ïf we could just figure out how much they owe and make ém pay!"

 

When you live on a boat in the salt, freshwater is always going to be at
a premium. When your land sources dry up then it's time to berth somewhere else.

 

So you know I always thought when you said you lived aboard you were just misspelling abroad haha...i thought you moved to Europe or something

It really does suck about the water shortage though

 

so if they are like "um...ah...you can't have any water unless you pay for a slip...maybe... I'm not sure", it sounds like bullshit.

try calling 211, they may be able to connect you to someone that can help. either a social service org that can get you water, or a pro-bono lawyer that can get to the bottom of whether or not you can be legally denied water for not paying for a slip.

law schools often have free legal clinics for people who can't afford legal services.

my guess is that they are bullshitting you about the no-water thing, and a letter from a lawyer will clear things up quick

 

haha! yes, liveaboard, i literally live on a sailboat in the middle of the water. been living aboard more than a year.

 

cop "everyone here (?) has to pay for water."
me "we can't even use it to flush our head?"
cop "nope..."
husband "but we've been using it..."
cop "well its a grey area..."
me "a grey area!"
cop "yes, but..."
husband "so we have to reserve a slip for an entire night.... for water? but we just need the water... can i just pay you the few dollars it's worth?"
cop "nope.... you gotta go online, make a reservation...."

no big, we just go when they get off work!

 

Yea I mean it sucks....

But I was thinking something along the same line of.... "We have to pay a water bill for a our tap water" Annnnd.... around here if you don't pay it on time- you have about a three day area that if you don't pay it during those three days, they cut off your water. So, I was thinking how is you guys having to pay for water different ....bc if we don't pay for our water we don't get water either.

I don't see water as free...although I often think it should be!!

Anyways good luck and still sorry you're in a sucky situation though.

 

yeah we fill it a hose.... there's no 'water store' with a hose and a cash register...

 

Clean water costs money...it costs to treat it and pump it... there's an electricity bill, maintenance of water treatment equipment, chemicals, you gotta pay a certified water guy to test, monitor and document for the state on a regular basis.
It sucks but it's a fact of life, someones paying the bills... and I don't think it's wrong they ask you to pay part of it. Asking you to rent a slip seems excessive of course but you already know they just want to bad-vibe you the fuck out of there anyway, you aren't making them any money.