A "tragedy of the commons" occurs when an individual or group uses more than their share of a publicly owned resource for their self-interest, which leads to the depletion of the resource for the entire community.
A FEATURE LENGTH, POINT-OF-VIEW DOCUMENTARY
In the early 1990s, agricultural corporations and other investors began buying thousands of acres of land with water rights in the scenic wine country of San Luis Obispo County, California. They planted vineyards and sank dozens of deep wells for irrigation that have over-drafted the Paso Basin aquifer. The shallower wells of hundreds of homes and small farms and ranches began failing. This documentary tells that story through the voices of three small landowners who lost their livelihoods and hopes for their futures when their wells went dry. The film then follows how they organize social force to participate in local political processes to assert their water rights and their environmental concerns for the Paso Basin.
AWARDS *"Best of Festival," WRPN Women's International Film Festival. *"Best Feature Film," Mysuru International Water Film Festival. *"Best Environmental Documentary," Better Earth International Film Festival. *"Outstanding Excellence," Documentaries Without Borders International Film Festival. *"Best of Show," Depth of Field International Film Festival.
OFFICIAL SELECTIONS *Cinema Verde International Environmental Film Festival. *WRPN Women's International Film Festival. *Better Earth International Film Festival. *Cinema Verde International *Environmental Film Festival. Mysuru International Water Film Festival. *Documentaries Without Borders International Film Festival. *Depth of Field International Film Festival. *Southern California International Film Festival.