American Notes CALIFORNIA

Residents of Santa Barbara (pop. 80,000) have long resisted development that might attract people to their seaside city. In 1979 they voted down a measure that would have connected Santa Barbara to the state's water system, mostly because they feared a plentiful supply would encourage growth.

Now there is trouble in paradise. A severe drought has plunged the city into a water crisis for the fourth consecutive year. City officials have hiked water-user fees as much as 500%.

In a desperate search for new supplies, city officials are considering importing Canadian water in tankers or barges, employing a never used Chevron oil pipeline or building the country's biggest desalination plant. Despite the hardships, most Santa Barbarans would rather live parched than overpopulated.