Shouldn’t sensible water practices be used?

I just witnessed Fallbrook Public Utility District (FPUD) flushing out a fire hydrant and hundreds, if not thousands, of gallons of water heading down the street.

If this is a regular practice, and if water is in short supply (as we have been told so often), and we are on the brink of water usage regulation, wouldn’t the sensible thing be to collect the water in a water tanker and put it back in the system?

L.K. Shell