Using rain water is illegal?!! I'm not joking!

[FrankRep]

Using rain water is illegal !!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxFzJ2Gtgxc

[Kludge]

Illegal but (relatively) unenforced.

[FrankRep]

Illegal but (relatively) unenforced.

They are going after the businesses first, but just wait.

[tmosley]

No. It is illegal in that state, and that interpretation of the law is questionable. I have taken a course on this topic specifically.

If they catch it off the roof, it's legal (always). If they pull it out of an established waterway (even a stream that is normally dry on their own property), then it is illegal without the water rights (always). State law varies as to what can be done with water collected from non-established waterways like parking lots and the like (which weren't around when the laws were written).

It's nothing but bluster. If they took it to court, the state would lose if the business had a competent water rights attorney. If you watch to the end of the video, the city caved and diverted some of their water right for use by the car wash, but there was no need for that. Likely, they were told by their attorneys that they didn't have a case, and just did that to save face. I can't imagine that Salt Lake City would give up some of it's water rights so easily otherwise.