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It's bad enough to see homes burn down and fire hydrants run dry in Malibu and the Pacific Palisades, but the horror is made even worse when we learn that water shortages are the result of bad bureaucratic decisions.
Water is everywhere in California. The Golden State borders the Pacific Ocean, where there are countless gallons of water that can be desalinated to fill reservoirs or feed fire hydrants.
But California's bureaucracy encouraged desalination plants that guaranteed additional water, and the $2.7 billion reservoir approved in 2014 was never built.
Los Angeles wildfires: Police warn of arsonist, California firefighter arrested caught on video
Environmentalists like to blame climate change for wildfires, just as the ancient Greeks blamed God when things went wrong. Instead of looking in the mirror, you're wasting your money.
A helicopter drops water on the Kenneth Fire in the West Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles on Thursday, January 9, 2025. (Ethan Swope/Associated Press)
The number of acres burned on federal land between 1916 and the mid-1940s, when carbon emissions were low, was as high as levels during the first decade of the 2000s.
In California, politicians promoted policies to remove water, energy, and minerals that increased human suffering. The question is how they can maintain power without a vote of the people.
This is especially true when considering fire tragedies that could have been prevented with water.
State agencies that must approve desalination projects include the State Water Resources Control Board, the California Coastal Commission, the California Lands Commission, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, and the National Marine Fisheries Service. West Coast Region, and six Coastal Region Water Quality Control Boards. This system is designed to slow progress.
Additionally, approval is subject to factors such as tribal consultation, environmental justice, marine life considerations, and energy efficiency.
California awarded $120 million for desalination projects, compared to $1.4 billion for charging stations and $500 million for electric school buses. The California Air Resources Board has the authority to expedite clean air regulations.
Indeed, if California can afford to invest billions of dollars in electric vehicles, the state can afford to fill its reservoirs with water — especially since wildfires are more harmful to the atmosphere than gasoline-powered cars. that's why?
Countries with lower GDP than California have no problem building desalination plants. Such plants produce more than 7 million cubic meters per day in the UAE, representing about 40% of the country's drinking water. Kuwait and Oman use desalination for about 90% of their drinking water, and Saudi Arabia's share of desalinated water is 70%.
More cars destroyed in the Eaton fire at Brakemasters in Altadena. (FOX News Digital/Ashley Carnahan)
Bahrain recently completed its second desalination plant, which features new energy-efficient reverse osmosis technology from France-based Veolia Water Technologies. The plant produced 227,000 cubic meters per day and began operations 22 months later.
The problem is that just as California's government has created energy shortages and critical mineral shortages, it has also created water shortages.
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California faces energy shortages and rising prices as 60% of its energy must come from renewable sources by 2030. Congress unanimously passed the Seabed Mining Prevention Act in 2022, banning the extraction of critical ocean minerals, putting the United States at China's mercy.
Environmentalist policies, which focus on scarcity rather than abundance, give governments the power to distribute limited resources. In times of scarcity, people become dependent on government rather than on their own actions.
Water is everywhere in California. The Golden State borders the Pacific Ocean, where there are countless gallons of water that can be desalinated to fill reservoirs or feed fire hydrants.
Robert, author of Malibu Burning: The True Story Behind L.A.'s Most Destructive Wildfires *It was owned by Kerbeck, and he had learned how to spray fire retardant on his home beforehand. and those who cut back brush that could feed the flames.
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As Kerbeck recently wrote, “We need more water to put out fires, reservoirs to store water, and more firefighters with the proper equipment to fight large, wind-driven fires.” be.”
California policy is often based on, to paraphrase Churchill about the Soviet Union, a myth within a mystery. Californians who have championed issues of energy, water and mineral scarcity for the sake of the environment should think again. Nature should not be worshiped at the expense of people.
Click here to read more by DIANA FURCHTGOTT-ROTH
