Conservation is key to water plan

Re “Clouding the issue of drought,” June 16

Even if cloud seeding does exactly what it’s supposed to do, it’s still a flawed response to a larger problem.

There is a finite amount of water on the planet, and all seeding does is supposedly redirect some of it, taking it away from somewhere else. This is obviously not a long-term solution as the population grows and the quantity of water remains the same.

We need to learn to conserve the water we have. The county’s efforts would be better spent promoting long-term conservation than trying to play God with silver iodide.

Laura Merryfield

Long Beach

The article about cloud seeding should remind us of the importance of capturing and reusing as much storm water as possible in Southern California.

Historically, the Water Replenishment District has relied on imported water to replenish the groundwater basins in southern Los Angeles County, serving more than 10% of the population of the state of California. Over the last several years, the district has implemented projects to increase storm water capture and to increase our use of locally produced recycled water in an effort to eliminate our need for imported water.

Maximizing conservation of storm water and other local water will ensure a safe and reliable water supply for generations to come.

Rob Katherman

President

Water Replenishment

District of

Southern California

Lakewood