Congress backing move to Claim all US Water rights

First of all please excuse me if this is placed in the wrong forum, Mods please feel free to move if this is the case.

I have heard of this move by the Government to take over private citizens personal wells and place meters on them. This in itself was a frightening thought for us farmers as we rely on our private wells to grow food crops and feed our livestock. If it were to be monitored and we were responsible to have to pay for the right to use our own well water it would make the cost of private farming a thing of the past.

While reading Steven Quayles site I followed an interesting link which lead me to a Jeff Rense article that I think warrants all of us concerned to read. If this is allowed to happen not only does it represent the ultimate Orwellian type scenario for the US, or is it as I stated above, another move on the part of corporate greed to weed out the small farms and local growers? Please read the article and tell me if this is as dire as it appears to me. Thankyou

www.rense.com...

[edit on 9-2-2008 by antar]

[edit on 9-2-2008 by antar]

I guess this is not new news, yet from the Rense article, it looks as if this is ramping up with Congresses support.
Seems like they make more and more decisions for us and without our consent, is there anything we can do to stop this?

Here is a report from 2002 when Bush first initiated the bill.
www.citizen.org...

When you consider India and the privatization of their water as supported by the World bank, it hits close to home, I especially liked reading this article as the similarities are completely parallel to our situation.

''From the World Bank's perspective, the issue is not one of private versus public,'' said David Grey, Senior Water Advisor, World Bank.

Could there be ties with the Bushes and the World Bank? Is this another good example of how the lines are being made to separate the privileged elite from the rest of the masses?

The World Bank seen as the greatest supporter of privatisation is keen to distance itself from what it calls an ideological debate.

Indias problem began in 1998 according to this article, about the time we began to open the discussion for U.S.

You can read the full report here.
www.ndtv.com...


[edit on 9-2-2008 by antar]

i have often wondered what event would make me rise up against the powers that be and cause me to have to defend what was mine, and here it is. i am a farmer and rancher and water is everything to me. i have 4 water wells spread out over 300 plus acres. i make my living from this water. if i had to pay the govt for this water i would be screwed.

on top of that, the emminent domain issue has come up in regards to a new highway that is being proposed for somewhere around me so the big wigs that work in dallas but want to live in the country can travel on a nice clean highway instead of having to suffer on our bumpy,twisting country roads.

i guess i better get the arsenal cleaned and the ammo ready, because it looks like i might be getting that fight i knew would happen some day

This is outrageous! Another attempt to commodify natural resources. My only qestion is how would they know if you drilled a second well? You could just use the original as a pretense and then use the new one primarily. Anyway, I say vote everyone of the rat ba$tards out of office.

[edit on 9/2/08 by kosmicjack]

reply to post by zoso28


zoso, now is not the time to lose your head or the ability to make a decent living. What you do by farming is the single most important job I know.
Keep a steady eye on the issues and write to, call and keep talking to your representatives. Let everyone you know have a printed out version of the bill, as it really hits you when it is truth in your hands. Bring this issue up at your local town hall meetings and discuss it over coffee with fellow farmers at the local coffee shop. Talk to your Pastor, and remember, we are all in this together what ever the out come.

reply to post by kosmicjack


here in texas all wellsare supposedto be dug by licensed drillers are registered with the state,and permitted by the county, so all they have to do is look those records. as far as a second well, it cant be dug, unless it permitted.

reply to post by antar

dont worry, i wont lose my head, but if the govt gets involved here i wont be able to make a decent living. but i have believed for awhile that one day i would have to defend what is mine from the powers that be. and i will let you know that no govt official will set foot on my property to install a water meter. aint gonna happen, furthermore, i have alot of like minded people out here,other farmers with wells, who feel the same way. and after all, this is texas, we have guns,and we know how to use them

In Idaho, most farmers rely on irrigation, and the water is diverted mostly from rivers and resevoires. And you PAY for it. I think my mother paid 3000 dollars last year for their farm. She has 100 acres.

The idea of charging people for access to groundwater is crazy and sort of makes me angry. But there's clear examples of farmers making a living and paying for water rights already, like my mother. In fact, to me it seems strange to just plant crops and rely on rain.

But I think the greater concern for me is, this is just another sign that the next thing to go after oil will be fresh water.

www.serconline.org...

Here is an example of how organized this already is. It really plans to protect those companies that get the contracts.

In Science and Environment Online Downtoearth.org there is an interesting article which suggests that the current water levels are not what originally decided upon. This is again for India, yet with our similarities in strategy, could we also be told the same?

If the government is to be believed there is enough usable water in the country to meet projected demand until 2050. Stumped by this claim, scientists at iit Delhi and Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, pored over official calculations for estimating the country’s water resources. They say the government has overestimated its usable water resources by at least 66 per cent.

www.downtoearth.org.in...

[edit on 9-2-2008 by antar]

reply to post by Jadette


HI jadette, a question for you if you don't mind, do you pay for your water in the home as well or just your field crops? Also with 100 acres of land, do you have natural ponds and or springs? I know Idaho can be pretty flat sparse and hot, but most of the time people will have their own wells rather than rely on community water, is this not the case with your Moms place? Also when this goes into full affect, will you be able to sustain your property when the cost of water doubles triples or worse? Best to find out whats up with your area if they are already sticking it to you.

reply to post by Jadette


i have long believed that water would be the next oil, or gold. i took steps several years ago to reduce my water usage for my crops and cattle, such as going organic. in return i have achieved higher yields with less expense, as the crops are healthier and dont need pesticides anymore.

in my opinion, here in texas, the major abuser of water is the average suburban homeowner, who plants non native plants and turf that requires alot of water. add to that they use synthetic fertilizers which require alot of water to work. kinda off topic i guess, but just my 2 cents

In an article from the Tennessean.com website (thankyou biggiesmalls for the link) it appears that Tennessee and Georgia are making light of the dire situation where it is projected they claim some of the land water from Tennessee and make it part of Georgia. An interesting article where the State officials actually suggest winning water rites through such games as a football match or putting a boat load of Tennesseans in a river boat and having them battle it out for the right to keep their water. Are we 'really' that big of a joke to those that we have supposedly voted into office to represent us? Thanks to the Patriot act, iwe may see a day in the near future where we lose all possible control of our land and water rights.

tennessean.com.../20080208/NEWS0201/802080435

reply to post by zoso28


I wonder just how much of the water is actually becoming shortage, and how much is hype to make it a commodity? Is it possible as the link above suggests? Are we having projections which show we have underestimated the amounts of water needed for the future or are we just being played by the World Bank and their plot to control all water rights world wide? The rabbit hole is very deep here and I suspect that the battle for water rights has begun in earnest. What about the desalination of water? We certainly have enough water for the entire planet if that is the choice we make for the future. But what of the costs? Or is this just another way to control the populations?

Is water our intrinsic right as suggested by the poster above? Or should we all pay for the right to use water as also suggested above? Do we stand by and watch as it becomes a rare commodity for only the privileged? Will taking a shower one day be outlawed? Will watering your lawn or your vegetable garden become a prison offense?

We have a small farm in NE Tennessee. We are blessed to have a spring with wonderful water. Just 2 days ago, we were saying how lucky we were, what with the drought (which has been severe for several years) and coming water shortages. Now they want to charge me for using my own water on my own land? This is beyond outrageous.
This is a total scam. It's not as if the feds will come out and take care of our spring when it needs it, we'd still have to do all the upkeep and people with wells still have to pay to have them dug.
So the Feds want our water for free and then turn around and make money off of us when they haven't paid one dime to us for our water? They're really trying to stick it to farmers and others who live in rural areas, what with the mandatory farm animal RFID chips, and now this.

Originally posted by antar
reply to post by Jadette

 

HI jadette, a question for you if you don't mind, do you pay for your water in the home as well or just your field crops? Also with 100 acres of land, do you have natural ponds and or springs?

We do have an Artesian well - pretty typical for the area really. So no, we don't pay a water bill for what we use in the house.

But there are no ponds, lakes, etc. Southern Idaho is a semi arid desert for the most part, with most water coming as run off from the mountains or diverted from rivers into a system of irrigation canals that run all over idaho. Without them farming would be impossible there.

And higher water costs are always a worry. It's already one of the larger costs of farming in the west. When we have a bad snow year - crops suffer or we pay a lot more for water.

reply to post by forestlady


This is worthy of keeping a close eye on, and if we dig deep enough I am certain there is a conspiracy to be found here. In the meantime, we will continue to enjoy the benefits of our free water. I wonder forrestlady if it is possible to simply put in a hand pump some where inconspicuously and draw water the old fashion way? You could add a generator as well as some home made solar to reduce the costs. Illegal as all get out but hey, you have to what you have to do.

Hey, Antar, thanks for the suggestion. My husband and I have actually already talked about it - that would be a good solution.
I live in the heart of what used to be moonshine country - folks around here know how to evade the govt. LOL

reply to post by forestlady


Right on. Yes we here in the midwest also like the idea of our constitutional rights being upheld against all odds. The weird thing is that, from what I have listened to about the great depression many of the same precursors are being implemented. I just think that the most important job will be to feed those that we love. Without the ability to access our water, things like rain barrels and such will be needed. They can't charge us for stored water although some of the wording sounds as if they would like to. Stay in touch.

Now the scary part is, the depletion of fresh water.


There are several large aquifers in the US, here's the largest and the changes within it. Some say that it could be depleted in 25 years.


upload.wikimedia.org...


And here is a map showing all the aquifers in the US.


nationalatlas.gov...

Is it possible that when G. W. gave his last state of the Union address and he mentioned energy efficient fuel for the future with water, he was sealing our fates? Remember its not just the US that is on this path.

www.whitehouse.gov...

n this century, the greatest environmental progress will come about not through endless lawsuits or command-and-control regulations, but through technology and innovation. Tonight I'm proposing $1.2 billion in research funding so that America can lead the world in developing clean, hydrogen-powered automobiles. (Applause.)