Opinion: Who owns California’s water?
By Bob Williams, Record Searchlight
Most of us have always believed that water flows downhill. We were recently corrected by Len Richardson, editor of the California Farmer who said, “Water tends to flow toward wealth.”
Richardson has good reason for this cynical view and it’s time for all Californians to take notice. Wealth has moved to take more and more control of California’s waters. The rise of water oligarchs is nothing new and was brought home to anyone who saw the movie “Chinatown.”
The action has now shifted to the San Joaquin Valley and to maneuvers there for privatizing control of water in the massive State Water Project. These are not work-a-day farmers we are talking about. One or two may own a broad-brimmed hat but their offices are in Sunnyvale and Beverly Hills.