100 Years Later, Owens Valley Still Worries About Water Losses To L.A.

"Lone Pine, Calif. -- Rancher John Lacey eyed a rising pasture where water once flowed when his great-grandfather settled in the Owens Valley to find gold. A century after Los Angeles diverted the Owens River, grass once suitable for feeding cows has long been replaced by desert shrubs."



"'This canal was (once) full of water,' said Lacey, 48, of Independence, pointing out a dry culvert crossing land he leases from the L.A. Department of Water and Power. 'From here back to the river, a lot of it was farms.

'It’s been dry 100 years. You’ve got sand dunes. A lot of the topsoil has gone. There’s no water. The water table is very deep … this is not a production place for cows.'"

Dana Bartholomew reports for the Los Angeles Daily News November 2, 2013.

SEE ALSO:

"Los Angeles’ Water Future Remains Challenged By Drought, Short Supplies" (Los Angeles Daily News)

"100 Years of Water: Los Angeles Aqueduct, William Mulholland Helped Create Modern L.A." (Los Angeles Daily News)

"Book Excerpt: The Valley Rises as Mulholland Falls" (L.A. Observed)

"CSUN Prof Hopes to Tell the Human Stories of St. Francis Dam Disaster" (SCV News/CSUN)

Editorial: "Quenching L.A.'s Thirst" (Los Angeles Times)

"Los Angeles Aqueduct: So Much Beauty, So Much Strife" (Los Angeles Times)

Op-Ed: "The Long Shadow of William Mulholland" (Los Angeles Times)

"L.A. Aqueduct: Coursing Through History And California Wilderness" (Los Angeles Times)

"The Fathers of the Los Angeles Aqueduct" (Los Angeles Times)

Source: LA Daily News, 11/05/2013