This is such ludicrous. Ownership of RAIN?!?!?! You've got to be kidding me. Next thing you know people who breathe too much will be taxed because the air belongs to the private airline companies. God, people can't just let something go unclaimed, everything has to be property.

First it was income tax to pay for a war that was supposed to be stopped which hasn't. Next it was a tax on everything else, now its WATER THAT they say we can't have, now its HEALTHCARE they say we MUST HAVE even if we are healthy and haven't been to a hospital sense birth.

A police state is forming like in Europe. This is bullcrap, Government keep your fingers out of my cookie jar.

Legally then any retention and detention ( storage)of water in any form,for any length of time, in any container or on any surface could be classified as theft. Shoveling your driveway in the winter and piling it on the side is theft!? you are stockpiling water.
Having a garden and grass and tree on your property is stealing water then yes or no? Camping and hiking would have to be banned because you could not be legally allowed to use streams, lakes, ponds or snow to create.... More

And you thought you owned yourself. Your birth certificate number tells who owns you and everything you produce.

When US interests in Bolivia tried to pull this **** on the locals back in 2004, the entire city of Cochabamba, all three million of them, rose up in a body and in a six-day riot, trashed the headquarters of the water company that was trying to bill them for catching rain. The police had to let it go and the governor had to be smuggled out, because the police couldn't stop the ENTIRE city. If only you Americans showed such solidarity and willingess to stand up for your freedom against the.... More

The law in Colorado only appeared to change. If you read the statute, you'd find out that there were so many restrictions added to the law that it keeps rainwater harvesting illegal for more than 95% of the state's population.

In order to qualify to collect rainwater under the "new" law, you have to have:

1. An existing well permit.
2. May not be connected to a water utility of any kind.
3. It is residential, not agricultural zoned.

http://water.state.co.us/pubs/pdf/RainWaterBills.pdf.... More

Let me read the article to form an opinion rather than covering up your content with a "Do a survey" box. Super annoying.

Rainwater harvesting can help reduce the stress on the water distribution system. This is important as fresh water reserve levels have depleted drastically over the past few years. If you go to http://bit.ly/B461Y you can see how much the reserve water levels have dropped since 2006. This site also gives valuable information on how to save water, a water meter calculator that can help determine the water you need for your garden.... More

Lawns are functional. Besides preventing erosion, like all vegetation, grass makes oxygen. Field grass lawns are part an important part of our area's eco system, clover feeds bees, for example. Laws to prevent water polution make sense but owning a water resource, whether it's a river, a lake or an ocean shouldn't be possible. To claim ownership of the rain is as silly as claiming ownership of the air. I know, that's probably coming, too. A breathing tax.

I'd heard about Colorado's laws against harvesting rainwater, but I live in WA and have never heard that it's illegal here. In fact our county website has a whole section on how to do it and where to get the rain barrels - .... More

That's the plot of the latest James Bond thriller, although it takes place in the Bolivian desert. People thought it was about oil- they were wrong- it's about water.
Still, I think it's ridiculous that a person could be fined for capturing the rain water that happened to fall on one's roof. That person wouldn't need to buy as much water from a central authority....oh...now I get it...

Water, it seems, has always been a resource. When you look to buy land, you often look to see if it has water...don't you? Water rights stem from the days when settlements might be threatened by an upstream competitor.

Rainwater catchment should be any property owner's rights...and responsibility...meaning don't pollute it...but if used in garden applications, I think it is an intelligent solution to implement.

Man alive!!! I understand that US takes pride on being a law respecting society... but come on... this is crazy... I guess that only in america huh???

This new law does not apply to every one, you still require a well permit to harvest rain water. This story has been inaccurately told over and over. How about before 'reporting' you do some investigating.

my comment of "love your support" was a reply to the gods gift comment.fishpus doesn't know this stupid law the gov. enforces was bought and paid for by the ranchers and farmers that are his neighbors.

I must admit I never had even considered there could be laws on rainwater and who can use the water falling on their lands. It does explain though why the whole green wave goes so slowly in some places when logic is defeated by absurd laws. Collecting rainwater to reduce the use of drinking water is a logical choice and ought to be mandatory and something you had to do by law. As said, it's returned to the ground again, while saving on a very precious resource, drinking water.

The water wars have already begun. Check out this documentary. It's chilling. http://www.bluegold-worldwaterwars.com/

Nobody owns water...especially if it comes from a rain! DUH!

In Las Vegas, one of the driest places in Earth, the water authority has just made it illegal to use gray water. Insanity.