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Weird Law of the Day
In Colorado, it is illegal to collect rainwater.
MORE: That link is down right now. Try this one.
Elemenope|6.26.08 @ 9:31AM|#
Bad link? It doesn't seem to work for me.
Either way, I would imagine such a law would be mightily difficult
to enforce. Has anyone ever been fines or tried under it?
|6.26.08 @ 9:36AM|#
Ever hear "hard cases make bad law?"
Water rights in the dry west are a very hard case.
Guy Montag|6.26.08 @ 9:52AM|#
Heard about a wierder, perhaps, proposal in Madison Wisconsin to
ban drive through service, even at Starbucks, in an effort to
combat Global Warming.
Not a law or zoning ordinance yet, but the proposal was reported as
coming from one of their city planners, so of course, it must be
good, because it will be part of the central plan.
BakedPenguin|6.26.08 @ 9:55AM|#
Banning drive through service!What a great idea! I can feel the icecaps stop melting already.
|6.26.08 @ 9:56AM|#
Depending on how this is interpreted, it could outlaw the use of "tanks" - ponds that are very widely used throughout the dry west to capture runoff, mostly for livestock. If you want to shut down an awful lot of ranchers, outlawing their tanks would be the way to do it.
Guy Montag|6.26.08 @ 10:00AM|#
If you want to shut down an awful lot of ranchers, outlawing
their tanks would be the way to do it.
Yea, sounds harsh, but think about the Polar Bears!
Elemenope|6.26.08 @ 10:04AM|#
Depending on how this is interpreted, it could outlaw the
use of "tanks" - ponds that are very widely used throughout the dry
west to capture runoff, mostly for livestock. If you want to shut
down an awful lot of ranchers, outlawing their tanks would be the
way to do it.
The way I hear it, ranchers are often also armed.
With guns.
Guy Montag|6.26.08 @ 10:10AM|#
In other Polar Bear news, sounds like the dilemma for what to carpet the 'hybrid' Charger with may be solved soon.
|6.26.08 @ 10:26AM|#
If you want to shut down an awful lot of ranchers, outlawing
their tanks would be the way to do it.
Yea, sounds harsh, but think about the Polar Bears!
Actually, preserving water has nothing to do with polar bears. It
has everything to do with people. The West is very dry and the vast
majority of water is used by agriculture. Agriculture interests
have very lenient water use laws compared to people. It would be
better for a lot of people if water usage rights were more fairly
allocated in thirsty western areas. Of course, actual facts have
never stopped you from saying dumb things before.
|6.26.08 @ 10:32AM|#
Isn't this kinda like saying you don't own migratory birds just because they land on your property? I mean, sure the law sounds silly, but it's no sillier than saying that you can't dam the Colorado River to keep it and prevent people downstream from using it.
Ravac|6.26.08 @ 11:06AM|#
I'm kinda confused about the "dry west" arguments here. Isn't Colorado full of snow-capped mountains, lush forests, lakes, and rivers? That's what all the tourism ads say.
Pedantic Asshole|6.26.08 @ 11:10AM|#
I rent my current house, so I don't have control over the
absence of gutters - it would take four rain barrels to make smart
use of the places that water rushes off my roof.
If you rent, it's not YOUR house. Therefore it's not YOUR roof.
|6.26.08 @ 11:20AM|#
I'm kinda confused about the "dry west" arguments here.
Isn't Colorado full of snow-capped mountains, lush forests, lakes,
and rivers? That's what all the tourism ads say.
About half the state has some form of drought
conditions. It's nothing like my home state,
but those conditions are on the more populated half of the
state.
Sam Kinnison |6.26.08 @ 11:31AM|#
Ever hear "hard cases make bad law?"
Water rights in the dry west are a very hard case.
Don't live in the fuckin' desert.
Mr. X|6.26.08 @ 11:37AM|#
I'm about to move to CO and I'm pretty sure that the "no rain
barrel" interpretation of the law is incorrect.
It stems from the fact that Colorado and other western/southwestern
states have a different set of water rights laws than the eastern
states. In the east, you have a riparian system that lets you take
as much as you want from a river, stream, or lake. In CO, because
water is scarce, you can't interfere with the downstream rights of
your neighbors.
However, I don't see how putting a rain barrel under your gutter,
then using the water on the land (and allowing it to seep down/run
off naturally), interferes with the downstream rights.
Guy Montag|6.26.08 @ 12:05PM|#
In the east, you have a riparian system that lets you take
as much as you want from a river, stream, or lake.
Well, in general I guess, but not in the case of Virginia and the
Potomac River. They have to get permission from MD or DC (depending
on the location) to use water from that river. I hink part of the
issue is that the border is on the VA shore, not the middle of the
river like most (but not all) other places in the USA.
Mr. X|6.26.08 @ 12:08PM|#
Well, in general I guess, but not in the case of Virginia
and the Potomac River. They have to get permission from MD or DC
(depending on the location) to use water from that river. I hink
part of the issue is that the border is on the VA shore, not the
middle of the river like most (but not all) other places in the
USA.
I should have clarified. You have to own the land that abuts the
river or stream. So if you were on the VA side, you could, but on
the MD or DC side it's permissive.
|6.26.08 @ 12:23PM|#
Water rights are a HUGE deal out here, and given the population growth, it's only going to get more contentious as time goes on.
|6.26.08 @ 1:30PM|#
However, I don't see how putting a rain barrel under your
gutter, then using the water on the land (and allowing it to seep
down/run off naturally), interferes with the downstream
rights.
The purpose of a tank is to capture water that would otherwise run
off. If that's the principal, you've just shut down a lot of
ranchers.
Riparian rights limit your ability to control water that enters
your land from someone else's. Running water is (gawd, I hate to
say this) in the public commons, like wildlife, and doesn't belong
to whoever's land it happens to be on at any given moment.
Rainwater is fundamentally different. It "originates" on your land.
Saying you can't capture it is much like saying you can't use any
springs that are on your land.
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