Uhm, wow indeed.

According to your thinking California could pump the aquifers dry and let all the stored water flow to the oceans and it wouldn't be a problem because it had all gone back into the environment. If you're taking it out of the local environment faster than it's being replenished in the local environment you have a problem. Spoken like someone who thinks water comes in endless streams from a tap. If you hadn't noticed the environment isn't partitioned by state and national boundaries and the water returning to the environment is free to rain out in the ocean or on a wetter region.

It's known as a dust lane. The particles of dust absorb light so obscure the stars behind.

The dust lanes in the Milky way are seen as a dark "constellation" depicting an emu by Australian aborigines:
<http://www.atnf.csiro.au/research/AboriginalAstronomy/Examples/emu.htm>

Funnily enough that must have been the last time your were there. Aeorbridges all round now.

Absolutely! Works to rid yourself of right wing loonies - at least it did down here recently.

I've never understood the fondness/obsession in the US for mechanising/automating simple things & making them complicated.