Farmers use 80% of the water but contribute less than 5% of the state’s GDP, and the cheap water drives wasteful irrigation practices, says the editorial: ” … The archaic water laws that are practically feudal in their disparity are stopping up the opportunity to conserve water at the level we need for what scientists warn could be a dry century ahead. The grandfathered-in water rights are protected by lawyered-up wealthy inheritors of land that don’t necessarily serve the entire state well. Certainly not for those of us in Southern California who have had to embrace conservation under the coercive consequence of steep fines and the disapproval of friends and neighbors. … “
Read more from the LA Daily News here: California is drowning in ancient and unfair water rules: Editorial