Understandably, John Oliver was passionately outraged in the beginning segment of the most recent Last Week Tonight episode. This Friday’s overruling of Roe v. Wade by the Supreme Court was the main focus of the start of the show. The host did not pull any punches as he criticized those involved in the decision, including Clarence Thomas, “a man credibly accused of sexual harassment”, and Brett Kavanaugh, a man who everyone knows by now really likes his beer. The topic is seen to be so gutting for Oliver, as it is for many in the nation, that he needed an adorable transition with the dogs that took part in the Westminster dog show to segue into the main story.

The main topic of this episode was water. Yes, that thing which covers 71% of the Earth’s surface and is essential to the survival of all living organisms. This episode focused specifically on the American west, which is experiencing severe droughts. The situation with the Colorado River and the surrounding bodies, in particular, is incredibly dire. Common sense would think that people would have learned to be more mindful by now of wasting water, but if that were the case there probably wouldn’t be a Last Week Tonight episode about it. Instead of being careful with the use of water, the opposite is true, as there are plans in place to build a luxurious 20-acre surfing lagoon right in the middle of the California desert, which is, in Oliver’s words, “monumentally stupid.”

The ability to make use of the Colorado River is based on a 1922 agreement that is essentially a 'first-come, first-served' policy, or, as the British-American host describes it, “a complex system of calling dibs.” Admittedly, “calling dibs” is not the smartest way to divide a vital and limited resource like water. Just like many other policies, the Law of the River does not take into account the Native American tribes whose livelihoods depend on the river. Although, by definition, it should since they were there first before anyone else and thus have “the ultimate dibs.” Not only did the Compact exclude those who have a right to the water, but it also allocated more water than actually existed to begin with.

last week tonight colarado river
Image via HBO

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In addition to all the flaws with the 1922 Compact, there is also a “use it or lose it” policy that forces farmers to maximize their use of water; and because the water of the Colorado River is dwindling, some have turned to groundwater as a solution. But, as Oliver explains, if the groundwater is pumped dry it will take thousands of years to fill again which means it is going to eventually be exhausted. Not only that, but groundwater is not completely separate from surface water which means that pumping out groundwater will ultimately dry up the rivers. However, there are no laws limiting how much water someone can retrieve from the ground, making the situation a “free-for-all”. This has already had a variety of negative impacts on the ecosystem of the area.

Surprisingly, Las Vegas is a model for how to conserve water. But unfortunately, other places are not taking the situation as seriously as they should, with Utah being the worst example of all. In response to the drought conditions felt in the state, the governor of Utah turned “to God or whatever higher power you believe in” to pray for rain. In response to the sheer absurdity of this argument, Last Week Tonight decided to call upon God, who everyone knows looks exactly like Succession’s Brian Cox, to answer the prayers; in turn, 'God' responded with the verbal equivalent of a middle finger. Indeed, relying solely on God will not solve this problem. As Oliver concludes, what we need are policies that incentivize conservation and water efficiency and “stop with our magical thinking towards water.” If we don’t want this situation to reach a point of no return, something needs to change and States need to get together to come up with a plan to appropriately prepare for the future.

Check out the full episode below: