Readers React: Even rich Californians should landscape for a water-scarce future

To the editor: The desire to return to pre-drought landscape water usage is short-sighted. Penalizing community residents for not maintaining a heavily watered lawn is a step backward from the progress made in rediscovering landscapes that truly belong in California’s varied climates. (“This gated community insists California’s drought is over, wants green lawns again,” April 26)

In complying with Assembly Bill 1, which prohibits municipalities from fining residents who let their lawns go brown, and taking advantage of lawn removal rebates, many Californians have awakened to the beauty of our regional native plants and environment.

Episodic El Niño winters are as much an integral part of the California climate as sporadic droughts. True California landscapes are neither instant nor static; rather, they ebb and flow with the amount of rainfall. It’s essential that we accept this variability and build resiliency into our landscapes, so they can perform well no matter how much it rains.

Samantha Harris, Los Angeles

The writer is a landscape architect.

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To the editor: Those who do not learn from history are condemned to repeat it.

Let’s not make the same mistake Gov. Jerry Brown made five years ago when he declared the drought to be over. Mother Nature didn’t listen to him.

The western part of the United States could be in a state of drought for the rest of the century, if not longer. And the population in California is only going to increase. We need to double down on water restrictions and limit use even further.

The green lawn is fine in England and the eastern part of the United States, but it is inappropriate for western climate zones.

Daniel Fink, Beverly Hills

The writer is a former member of the Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers and Native Plants’ board of directors.

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To the editor: Incredible. Have the people in wealthy communities agitating for unlimited water use looked at the California drought map? Almost 75% of the state California is in a severe drought or worse.

“We’re not in an emergency” — really? This is unmitigated greed and narcissism because of affluence.

Gregg Ferry, Carlsbad

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