Water scarcity is becoming increasingly acute in select California regions. In East Porterville, residential wells have begun running dry, spurring emergency deliveries of bottled water to thirsty San Joaquin Valley residents. In contrast, there is an abundant supply of fresh, no-need-to-filter Hetch Hetchy water consistently funneled from a Yosemite Valley reservoir to residents of the San Francisco Bay Area.
In an attempt to bring emergency relief to drought-stricken East Porterville residents, firefighters, county employees and volunteers distributed gallons of bottled water to thirsty area residents on Friday.
Water bearers streamed through communities delivering 12 gallons of water per person. The Fresno Bee reported that approximately 15,500 bottles were delivered to homes and the fire station. The expected cost is $30,000, to picked up by the county and likely later reimbursed through a state Water Resources Control Board grant program.
Nitrate contamination in area water combined with a large low-income population were cited as qualifying area residents for the grant funds.
Residents stricken by water shortages are also able to pick up water for showering and flushing toilets from storage tank at the East Porterville fire station. That water is transported from a hydrant to a fire department tanker truck to the storage tank that, according to the Bee, is labeled in English and Spanish, “Do not use this water for drinking.”
San Francisco Bay Area residents, including power political operatives like House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, benefit from the pure Hetch Hetchy Reservoir water that flows from the pristine Yosemite Valley. Breitbart recently reported on the double standard that sees the enforcement of certain EPA regulations on rural Californians and farmers that are not as readily applied to politically powerful Bay Area consumers.
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