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Antelope Valley: Rosamond discusses water issues and growth, and Lancaster discusses conservation options

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on July 16, 2008 at 2:00 am

From the Antelope Valley Press:

Although there’s currently a moratorium on so-called “will-serve” letters in Rosamond, the Rosamond Community Services District will be conducting public hearings in the next 90 days regarding the letters - notes from water agencies promising to supply new homes and businesses.

Jack Stewart, Rosamond Community Services District interim general manager, told members of the Building Industry Association’s Antelope Valley Chapter about the concerns facing Rosamond during a BIA luncheon Wednesday at the John P. Eliopulos Hellenic Center.

The Antelope Valley groundwater case, scheduled to go to trial Oct. 6 in San Jose, sits at or near the top of that list of worries. “We’re concerned with the outcome. No one has a crystal ball,” Stewart said. Having sat in adjudication meetings the last two or three months, he said, he watched the attorneys representing the entities involved in suits and countersuits sit around talking without arriving at a solution.

The battle has been going since October 1999, when Diamond Farming Co. filed suit against Lancaster, the Antelope Valley Water Co. and Palmdale and Quartz Hill water districts and three other agencies. Hundreds of other landowners, farming interests and government agencies have joined the battle.

Stewart told the crowd he had little faith in the water attorneys. Instead, he recommended taking the water purveyors, users and farmers and locking them in a room for a few hours. That way, he guaranteed they would come up with a solution.

“We want to protect current landowners, stimulate housing and protect agriculture,” Stewart said.

Stewart noted that 63% of the water comes from groundwater, 37% from the Antelope Valley East Kern Agency, and that these supplies are inadequate for the future. Read the full text of this article from the Antelope Valley Press by clicking here.

Meanwhile, next door in Lancaster, officials held a water workshop to discuss steps to protect and conserve the water resources:

City officials say they are considering measures such as mandating separate water meters for indoor and outdoor water use; restricting the size of lawns and types of plants; requiring homebuilders to landscape back and front yards and to install water-conserving clothes washers; and requiring homebuilders to tell prospective buyers how much water their homes will use.

City officials said they expect to draft a proposed new-development water conservation ordinance and then circulate it among homebuilders, water agencies and other parties for comment.

Last week, the City Council unanimously enacted water-use restrictions that include a prohibition against watering lawns between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. The restrictions also prohibit residents or businesses from letting water flow for more than two minutes into gutters, or from using a hose to clean sidewalks or driveways.

Read more of this story from the Antelope Valley Press by clicking here.

July 16, 2008 · Filed Under Antelope Valley

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