In Colorado, Rain Barrels Are Illegal. Yup. » GroovyGreen.com — Reader Dane Elshof wrote me in response to some comments about how they collect water in Bermuda which I made on No Agenda to inform me that in Colorado the practice of even re-using water (you legally cannot recycle your own water) is against the law in Colorado and he suspects (I do too) that this is the case in most states. Meanwhile everyone bitches about droughts, lack of water and do what they can to jack up water rates. Scam, you think?
Colorado Water Law requires that precipitation fall to the ground, run off and into the river of the watershed where it fell. Because rights to water are legally allocated in this state, an individual may not capture and use water to which he/she does not have a right. We must remember also that rain barrels don’t help much in a drought because a drought by its very nature supplies little in the way of snow or rain.
Additionally, any and all water that comes from tap may only be used once. “Denver water customers are not permitted to take their bath or laundry water (commonly referred to as gray water) and dump it on their outdoor plants or garden.” Even if that said water is ecologically-friendly?
More “blue” state insanity.
If we want to build a better, more sustainable society, then we will need to start by overturning all of these roadblocks to doing so that have been carefully laid by the defenders of the old way. For instance, here in (red state) Ohio, it’s virtually impossible to put up alternative energy generation as an individual, as you have to sell the electricity to the electric company, then buy it back at twice the rate! There are many other examples I could give, from zoning laws that force you to build an inefficient, square stick frame structure, to water use restrictions that only make sense to the water companies bottom line.
Do they actually enforce the law?
I saw some water collecting in a pothole,
better sue the city!-)
# 3 Improbus said, “Do they actually enforce the law?”
When I lived there in the 70’s they didn’t. No idea about now.
Funny, I was just thinking about this same thing this morning. I live in Atlanta, and we’ve had lawn-watering restrictions in place for over a year, and some of my neighbors have started collecting water in their rain barrels so that they can keep their grass green.
I was thinking, what if a half million people started collecting water in rain barrels? What would the impact be to those downstream who rely on run-off from the city? Would it be possible to starve another smaller city/region of water?
Let the water wars begin. (Even though I just heard a lecturer last night explaining how most international relations with respect to water are handled quite peacefully.)
Seriously though, I understand issues about not connecting the pipes or about putting in backflow prevention devices to avoid having gray or even dirty water reenter the drinking water supply. But, this is really ridiculous.
Has anyone considered the possibility that we simply should not be growing crops in areas so dry that people are prevented from collecting their rainwater?
A pound of corn requires a thousand pounds of water. I’m not sure about other crops, but the numbers are always staggeringly higher than the amount of drinking water.
So, yes, fresh water is a precious resource. But, no, we don’t need laws that regulate it in such a way as to actually waste water, as in this case.
# 7 Misanthropic Scott said, “Has anyone considered the possibility that we simply should not be growing crops in areas so dry that people are prevented from collecting their rainwater?”
Only Luddites who shun technology.
#5. I have a roof collection cistern system in a home in the Caribbean, I tried to have a house designed that way here in Colorado and was told it is against building code. The rain barrel thing is unenforceable. I would retrofit something after I obtained a Certificate of Occupancy. Screw em.
Living downstream in an even more blue state – New Mexico – rainwater harvesting is legal. Some municipalities subsidize the cost of rain barrels. I have two – unsubsidized.
There are retail stores dedicated to rainwater harvesting. Which is where I bought mine.
Greywater regs are covered in the building codes in many municipalities.
Sorry to hear Colorado is so far behind. Maybe it’s their red state heritage.
BTW, what if people just stopped having stupid lawns all over the place? They’re among the least environmentally conscious things we Americans do.
http://tinyurl.com/dfzlm9
Exactly. You can’t just keep all the rain to yourself.
#6 this is the rationale. But in fact, if you’ve ever been to Los Angeles, they have these huge trenches to collect the rainfall then it goes straight to the ocean! In the SF Bay Area all the rain goes into the sewers then into the Ocean. This argument is bogus.
13,
No. The argument is not bogus. The implementation of the plan might be bogus. The exploitation of the resource might be cynical AND unethical yes. but, the argument is sound.
Colorado is legally liable to protect the water rights of other states who claim Colorado rivers as their water sources. This is the way it has been for almost 100 years.
The argument is bogus. If I re-use rain water, eventually it will return to the rivers and sewers. It’s not like I’m hoarding it and never using it.
If I use store rain water, then use it during droughts to water my lawn, etc – it still ends up going down-stream eventually.
And if it’s used in toilets, it will go through the same waste-treatment as all the other water.
16,
Yes. You’re not hoarding it. But someone will make it a business plan and devise a mass scale of water collection. And while you’re doing nothing bad, and potentially good by not requiring expensive processing and recycling of water, you know some ass is going to exploit it. Its how America was founded, after all…
Sometimes laws have to be broad enough to disallow loopholes.
Same goes in Washington state. I recently had a new private well drilled which I paid $10k. Now the state and counties are considering ways to meter (and thus charge for) private wells. And I wouldn’t even think of diverting water from the salmon creek behind my house. It’s okay because I still get to pay property tax on the acre and a half the creek and setbacks consume and I legally am not allowed use of that area. Gotta love America.
#2 Li
A. I don’t know where you get your info from but Ohio is no longer a red state……more blue nowadays. (purple)
B. I have two wells (one dug and one drilled) as well as city water and we don’t live in a stick house either. I also don’t have to do anything with my electricity that I generate except use it myself. I’m putting in a large pond to collect water so screw’em.
Well I can see why it is illegal to put your grey water on your plants, as they charge you for sewage processing on all water they sell. IF you put grey water on anything else, you could then sue to have them not charge you for sewage processing on that water.
Wisconsin *encourages* the use of rain barrels:
http://dnr.state.wi.us/runoff/rg/links.htm
[Please drop the WWW from URLs as WordPress doesn’t display it properly… plus it’s unnecessary. – ed.]
North Carolina also encourages the use of rain barrels. The city of Raleigh even provides a list of different types, and gives you relevant contact information so that you can purchase one.
http://raleigh-nc.org/portal/server.pt/gateway/PTARGS_0_2_306_202_0_43/http%3B/pt03/DIG_Web_Content/category/Resident/Garbage_and_Recycling/Cat-2CA-20071015-151721-Rain_Barrels_For_Sale.html
[Please drop the WWW from URLs as WordPress doesn’t display it properly… plus it’s unnecessary. – ed.]
Since when does Colorado own the rain? Then they use the language about “water customers”. It doesn’t make sense. I would put a barrel out and any water that falls in it is clearly an act of god. Isn’t that the disclosure that makes the big boys not responsible for just about anything in the legal world!?! 😉
@#19 I am not from Ohio, but at least in NY laws that regulate what kind of green-energy generating devices you can/can’t install and what can/can’t you do with the energy generated are local (counties, towns). Ex. in the town just east of me (same county) you can install electricity generating windmill on your property and use electricity it generates as you will. In my town you can’t do that by the code. Forbidden.
I suspect your situation vs. Li in Ohio might be the result of similar local “petty” laws. But it also points to how crazy all those regulations can be…
If everyone had a rain barrel, would this really impact the water table? Seriously?
The thing about that law reminds me of what multinational Bechtel wanted to do to the residents of Cochabamba in Bolivia. Not only charging an obscene amount of money people SURVIVING on less than a dollar a day but also barring them to collect water in barrels.
And they’re still going at it..
http://tinyurl.com/bq5ljg
#25–brm==I think so. Rain collected would be used at a later date making it more subject to evaporation and not going to the water table.
At least the rule “makes sense” for the purpose stated. What the voters need to do is “change the law.” Water should go to the highest bidder, not the first one who took it for free. Homeowners can always easily pay more for water than any industrial user.
Let capitalism and the market rule.
#25. Yes, it depends on how big the barrel is. My sister’s farm in New Zealand collects all it’s drinking, laundry and bathroom water from roof rain. A 5,000 liter plastic tank feeds an electric pump controlled with a pressure regulated switch. In summer, a tanker truck can be called to supplement it. It’s clean and tastes great.
In TN water hasn’t been much of an issue other than for a few during drought years but cesterns were once common. The water is good and during normal years you can catch all you need and no need to pump water.
Some places have city water but not sewer service and use septic tanks, sounds like this would make it illegal