Where do you live? Because in the western part of the nation, water rights are serious, and part of a real property’s deed. People used to hanged for violations.
The original land holders in southern Oregon (where this is located) were probably farmers or ranchers. They protected their water rights because it mattered greatly in the success of their businesses. There is NOTHING moronic about it.
This man damned up a tributary to a river. He broke the law.
He could take the issue to SCOTUS, but I doubt it will get out of State courts, as it is a State of Oregon issue.
Okay, I said earlier if he damned up a river, then I think he was fair game. Now, exactly what does this tributary consist of? Is it a small stream that only exists after a rainfall, and is dry most of the time in-between?
You tell me what happens when a pond gets full. Oh that’s right, the water goes right back to flowing. The interruption only occurs part of the time as the pond fills. The first rain each year, the pond is full, the water flows. Most of the time the water still continues to flow.
Who is really getting injured here? Show me a farmer that can’t grow a crop on 26 inches of rainfall per year. And all the people that could be injured are going to be down-hill, closer to the coast and will get in excess of that 26 inches.
As for water shortages in the west, they are consistent with inland more desert regions. They are not consistant with areas getting 26 inches of rain or more per year.
If we’re talking about inland Oregan, inland California, inland parts of Washington, then fine. This isn’t a dessert condition and it’s all about control, not a real need to conserve.
“People used to hanged for violations.”
The irrigation ditches along the Gila River were originally build using mule teams, dynamite, and a lot of sweat. People’s livelihood depended on that water. During the dry months when water becomes scarce, the ditches go on ‘turns’ so everybody gets their fair share, divided up by how long one gets to use the water in the ditch. The more water rights a person owns, the more time allocated to water. Many a person was shot at, and some killed, for stealing water. Everybody was/is in the same predicament during low flow. Livestock needs to drink and crops get thirsty. It truly does seem to be the logical way for a community to get along. Water is still worth much more than the land here.