This may be just another wasted diary, I seem to havee a talent for it. Nonetheless, given the drought emergency in California documented here: Schwarzenegger declares drought emergency, drastic measures to obtain potable water should be entertained. This is a relatively inexpensive and renewable solution compared to desalinization plants and worked for the ice barons before the invention of the refrigerator.
In this day and age, we no longer need to tow icebergs into the harbor and saw blocks of ice out of it to deliver to customers' ice-boxes at home. (Bet many of you didn't know where the term ice-box originated if you even ever heard it.) However, there is an urgent need for potable water throughout the country and especially in the west. Alaskan icebergs could be the solution.
There is a renewable water resource in Alaskan glaciers that result in icebergs. These glaciers invariably find their way to the Pacific where the flows spectacularly break off and fall into the ocean to the delight of cruise ship passengers who ooh and ahh as shutters click and videos roll. Quite a sight but, that was drinking water that just fell into the ocean.
My suggestion is to tow these icebergs to a series of deep water dry docks that once docked, could be evacuated of the ocean water and the iceberg allowed to melt, creatiing it's own small reservior of potable water that could also be used for irrigation. Alas, a single iceberg isn't the solution so this would be a series of these deep water dry dock reserviors, probably best located in Oregon and Washington states with pipelines to the south. This could even become man-made lagoon type reserviors with a series of locks that would allow evacuation of sea water then flooding of reservior water to float the bergs into the lagoon reservior to melt.
I admit that this is completely off the top off my head and have done absolutely no cost analysis. Nonetheless, the more I think about it, the better I like it.
Go ahead Kossacks, take it, run with it or pick it apart.
UPDATE: Better yet, build a pipeline with real purpose from Alaska, rich in water resources.