Brisbane Australia mate, and yes, they have water cops, and if you are caught impounding water on your property without a permit, the water will be confiscated, you will be fined, and you will be put on a list to be physically checked on a regular basis. No busting down of doors in the wee hours, but they are effective at what they do nonetheless. They are just like the code enforcement officers hired by planning departments here that go around and look on people's properties to see if they have anything they shouldn't, like an shed in an easement, or a carport attached to the side of a house, etc.

You get charged for whatever water you collect just as if it came out of the tap. There was a joke going round that next we'd be getting charged for breathing air as well.

I wouldn't laugh too loud about that one, mate.

Searching the ohio laws and people discussing them I'm finding a grey area where collection water is not illegal but must be cleaned and processed and such. I'm wanting to set up some barrels to collect rain and run it through a soaker hose during dry days to water my plants. I'm now looking for some long flat ones I can slide under my deck to keep them out of site.

i just had a look at GroovyGreen and the rain barrel issue..so
water that falls from the sky is not yours---in Minneapolis the city wants you to keep that water out of the storm sewer system and back into the ground to help recharge the aquifer..i'll say one thing about ETS..i learn more than suvrival stuff here--

Do you have a link to the program?

The legal issue of the ownership of rain water in Colorado is probably linked to the problems of the Colorado river/Lake Mead system. That barrel of water is one less barrel of water used to supply the residents of Las Vegas down river for example. Lake Mead has about 10-20 years left at the current drought conditions before it runs dry and when it does run dry 10s millions folks will become environmental refugees.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_River

I don't know if rain in Colorado only comes in torrential downpours, but it seems that collecting water, especially from brief, light rains that would otherwise just evaporate would result in a net decrease in demand on the public water supply.

The problem is who controls that water, you or the government. If you collect it without a fee or accountability, then you exclude the government from being able to say what can be done with that water. Water is a natural resource, freshwater is a limited resource, and that means it all must be governed and regulated, regardless of the source or abundance. That's why owning a house on a lot does not automatically grant you permission to do with that land whatever you want. Someone else most likely owns the mineral rights to that land.

There's freedom, then there's the illusion of freedom. Guess which one we really have?

and now you know...the rest of the story.

Ben-who grows weary of trying to make sense of it all.

You can't cache rainwater in Colorado because of Nevada? That stinks.

I wonder if Coloradoaaaaaans (or the proper term) could slap a www.ready.gov sticker on the barrel and call it disaster prep? Ready Colorado suggests storing water for emergencies though they only mention 2 quarts per person per day rather than 1 gallon per person per day that some other states and the federal government suggests. It baffles me that taking it from the sky to store is not acceptable where pulling it from the tap is just fine.

It's got to have something to do with revenue from water bills too, but seriously.

Laws like this make me want to figure out a workaround, even though I don't even live in Colorado.

The government can and does charge you for the water you get from them to water plants or your yard. They also estimate your swage bill based on the water you allow to flow through your water meter. Why pay a sewage charge for water you spray on plants? Why pay for city water to water plants when rain water will do the same thing?


It’s simple, collect your rain water in a way that conceals it from inquisitive eyes and don’t tell your neighbors or anyone on the net you are doing it. then water your plants as needed.


When you collect it and use it to water the yard or plants, you are in fact putting it right where it would naturally go, just not at the same time as it falls from the sky.

Yeah, he's probably right. Local municipalities across the US are already fighting over water rights and availability. "Water war" isn't too far fetched an idea as most of the world does not have easy access to potable water.