A footbridge spans a completely dry river bed, Sept. 4, 2014 in Porterville, Calif. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)/JTA

Devorah Brous San Fernando Valley home is shaded by green trees, studded with 19 fruit trees and patrolled bya pair of affable chickens that strut around the backyard. But at the moment, she is eager to show a visitor her dying lawn.

Comparing the withering grass to a thriving orange tree a few feet away, Brous, the founding executive director of the Jewish environmental organization Netiya, says, Its survival of the fittest.

For Netiya Hebrew for planting and otherJewish environmental groups, Californias debilitating droughthas tiedtogether a number of issues that have been gaining prominence in the Jewish activist community:sustainability,social justice, and ethically and environmentally responsible food production.Their efforts range in size and scope.

In San Diego, the local branch of Hazon is having children paint rain barrels that will capture rainwater for irrigation as part of the environmental groupsSukkot festivities.

Meanwhile, in Pescadero, south of San Francisco, the environmental education group Wilderness Torah is hosting a panel discussion on water usage as part of its annual Sukkot on the Farm festival.After the panel, there will be a ceremony based on an ancient Temple rite in which the high priest would draw water from the spring and offer it at the altar in hopes of bringing seasonal rains.

Participants circling around a fountain willbless the waters of the world and call in the rain, said Suzannah Sosman, festivals manager for Wilderness Torah.

Last years Sukkot festival came amid a downpour; organizers are hoping for a similar result this year.

But themain thrust of the work of Jewish groups working on drought relief is water conservation, capture and reuse.

I dont think people are necessarily aware of how to save water other than turning off their faucets when theyre brushing their teeth, Sosman said.

See the rest here:
Amid drought, Jewish groups push conservation agenda

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October 8, 2014 at 5:29 am by Mr HomeBuilder
Category: Water Fountain Install