Hate Your Neighbor? State Creates Snitch Line for Reporting “Water Wasters”
August 3, 2015 By
“At water board meetings, regulators have noted a request for this kind of a snitch hotline since last year; now more than 300 local water suppliers are on board. Water board chair Felicia Marcus says it’s time for wider water waste reporting because with the prospect of a fifth year of drought, even if there’s an El Niño – every drop counts.”
Did you notice Jerry Brown spitting out water to the ground after taking a sip from a plastic bottle this weekend? Turn him in as a water waster! Every call you make gives government more power over you.
Drought: A new way to snitch on water wasters, brought to you by the state of California
Molly Peterson, KPCC, 8/3/15
Around 29,000 Californians reported water waste in May as a result of the ongoing drought, and now the State Water Resources Control Board is trying to make snitching even easier — with a new SaveWater website.
True, you can already rat out water hogs in some Southern California cities. (In Los Angeles, you can call 3-1-1 or email waterwaste@lacity.org, for example.) But the new site permits drought shaming efforts everywhere. Optimized for your smartphone, it allows you to enter the location and the problem – even add a photo – and the state will make sure the report goes to the right local agency.
At water board meetings, regulators have noted a request for this kind of a snitch hotline since last year; now more than 300 local water suppliers are on board. Water board chair Felicia Marcus says it’s time for wider water waste reporting because with the prospect of a fifth year of drought, even if there’s an El Niño – every drop counts.


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