Saturday’s top of the scroll: State politicos sidelining Delta area legislators in $9.4 billion repair plan; Steinberg defends proposed water legislation
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 8:51 amFrom the Contra Costa Times:
“Legislative leaders pushing a $9.4 billion overhaul of the ecologically fragile Delta are executing a political strategy designed to neutralize Contra Costa and the other Delta counties, say two of the region’s state senators.
Sens. Lois Wolk of Davis and Mark DeSaulnier of Concord say backers of water policy and funding bills crafted behind closed doors and introduced last week are intentionally cutting deals with legislators and interests from outside the Delta to secure the votes they need to pass the package.
“The Delta is being thrown under the bus,” Wolk said. “It’s a 19th century approach, where a small group like the Big Five gets in the room, decides what to do, and then they go out and pick everyone off.”
It’s unclear if it will work. The policy bill needs a majority vote of both houses, while it takes two-thirds to put the water bond on the ballot.
As evidence, Wolk points to provisions in the bills that protect the water rights of upstream users but not those of agencies that tap directly into the Delta, including the Contra Costa Water District.
The shift would leave Delta water-rights holders responsible for providing 100 percent of the water required to restore the failing ecosystem, said Contra Costa Water District Assistant General Manager Greg Gartrell. The district has threatened to withdraw its support if the provision is not removed. …”
More from the Contra Costa Times by clicking here.
From the Tracy Press:
“Forget the Freddy Krueger mask. If you want scary this Halloween, just take a look at what’s happening at the state Capitol.
Late last week, a bill was unveiled that would completely overhaul the state’s water delivery system — mandating conservation, setting up a new bureaucracy and paving the way for a canal to be built around the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
But the bogeyman is not that the proposal is making the rounds. It’s that it’s not really making the rounds.
At least according to someone who knows how these things work — she is, after all, a member of the Legislature — the process that brought about “the most significant water policy bill in decades” has so far been a cloak-and-dagger enterprise.
“It’s been very secretive,” said state Sen. Lois Wolk, a Democrat who represents Tracy in addition to vast swaths of the Delta. “I’ve never seen it this bad.” …”
Read more from the Tracy Press by clicking here.
Senator Steinberg defended the package at a luncheon on Friday, reports the Sacramento Bee:
“Facing an array of criticism from Northern California interests about controversial water legislation, Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg defended the measures Friday, saying they include plenty of protections – and money – for Sacramento and Delta interests.
Steinberg, D-Sacramento, spoke as part of a panel at the Sacramento Metro Chamber of Commerce’s annual “State of the County” luncheon. The panel focused on statewide water issues and the effects on Northern California and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
Joining him on the panel were Sacramento County Supervisor Don Nottoli, Yolo County Supervisor Mike McGowan and prominent water lawyer Stuart Somach.
The three said the bills don’t do enough to protect Northern California water rights, don’t provide enough money to local governments to compensate for the loss of farmland to habitat restoration, and don’t provide enough local representation on a new Delta Stewardship Council proposed to govern the estuary.
“We’re not trying to stand in the way of progress,” said McGowan. “Our whole pitch has been that the protection of this resource ought not be done at our expense.” …”
Read more from the Sacramento Bee by clicking here.
So what’s included in this latest legislative package? From the Sacramento Bee:
“Republicans, Democrats and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger are trying to reach agreement on water legislation aimed at protecting the fragile Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta while boosting water supplies. Here is a look at the latest proposal and some of the issues that stand in the way of a long-sought deal.
FINANCING
THE PROPOSAL: The proposal borrows $9.4 billion to pay for dams, underground water banking, water recycling, Delta restoration and regional projects. Voters must approve the bond, which would cost the state about $600 million a year in debt service at its peak.
THE STICKING POINTS: Democrats and Republicans have offered competing bonds. Neither earmarks money for dams, requiring them to compete with other projects for money. …”
More from the Sacramento Bee by clicking here.
Huber bill on peripheral canal will provide protections and ensure due process
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 8:31 am
From Assemblymember Alyson Huber:
“Sacramento – Assemblymember Alyson Huber introduced a bill today, co-authored by Senator Lois Wolk, which would prohibit the construction of a peripheral canal around the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta without a full fiscal analysis and a vote of the state legislature.
“It is important that we maintain legislative oversight of large-scale projects and not delegate that authority to unelected bureaucrats,” said Assemblymember Huber. “I am very concerned that the current water policy bill provides a clear path to building a canal and this ensures we get answers to some very important questions, and give the Delta a voice in the process.”
“The people of California deserve to know that due process will take place before tax payers and rate payers are asked to spend billions of dollars on a peripheral canal, “ said Senator Wolk, who chairs the Senate Select Committee on Delta Stewardship and Sustainability. “This bill ensures that the legislature is fully informed and that historic protections are maintained prior to moving forward with such a large-scale project.”
The bill would also require the non-partisan Legislative Analyst’s office to conduct an economic feasibility analysis to ensure that the Southern California ratepayers who are supposedly being asked to cover the cost of this massive project actually know how much this will cost. It would also ensure that the canal will not have a negative impact on water in the Delta and upstream communities – be it for our local cities or our farmers.
Assemblymembers Bill Berryhill and Wes Chesbro have also signed on as co-authors.
Audio clips available at Assemblymember Huber’s website – click here.
Commentary: Bay Area must speak with one voice on water
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 8:27 amFrom the Contra Costa Times, this commentary by Carl Guardino, president and CEO of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, and Jim Wunderman, president and CEO of the Bay Area Council:
“As the California Legislature appears on the brink of making historic water decisions for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, the Bay Area is not speaking with a clear voice on the matter. Locally, the Contra Costa Water District has voiced conditional support if changes are made to a package of Delta, governance and water management reforms. Next door, the East Bay Municipal Utility District was opposed to the package as it came to a debate on Sept. 11, with lawmakers tabling the matter for more negotiations.
When a region doesn’t speak with a clear voice on an issue as important as water, the region risks having no voice at all. The future of the Bay Area is directly connected to the Delta. Water is central to our quality of life and to our economy. Water is the backdrop to world famous tourist destinations in San Francisco, sustains our vital salmon populations and helps fuel many high-tech businesses in the Bay Area.
That is why when a historic opportunity comes along to address this problem — such as right now — we need to constructively support the reform effort.
Our organizations support the policy package being debated in Sacramento. It would revamp and modernize a Delta water system that creates too many conflicts with fish species. It would direct the necessary habitat restoration in the Bay-Delta ecosystem. And it would improve water management in the estuary and statewide. …”
Read more of this commentary by clicking here.
Dan Bacher commentary: Environmental groups around state oppose legislative water package
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 8:21 amFrom Dan Bacher, this commentary:
“Representatives of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and other corporate environmental groups who have participated in back door negotiations with Legislative leaders, Westlands Water District and Metropolitan Water District claim that the “environmental community” is behind the proposed water legislation currently being considered at the State Capitol.
However, nothing could be further from the truth, since grassroots environmental organizations, fishing groups and environmental justice organizations throughout the state oppose the deals that the NRDC, Environmental Defense and the Nature Conservancy are making behind closed doors without input from Delta legislators and communities. This water legislation package, rather than “restore” the Delta ecosystem as its proponents contend, clears the path for the construction of a peripheral canal that would result in pushing imperiled Central Valley salmon and Delta fish populations over the abyss of extinction.
Blog commentary: Billion here, billion there — pretty soon, real money
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 8:17 amFrom Greg Lucas at the California’s Capitol blog:
“Both of the recently introduced $9.4 billion general obligations bonds to fund a variety of water-related projects would spend $1.5 billion on dirt.
In his bond proposal, SB3 7X, Senate President Pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg, a Sacramento Democrat, calls its “Statewide Watershed and Water Quality Protections. In the bond introduced by Sen. Dave Cogdill, a Fresno Republican, it is called “Conservation and Watershed Protection.”
But it’s dirt nonetheless.
Watershed is defined as “the entire geographical area drained by a river and its tributaries; an area characterized by all runoff being conveyed to the same outlet.”
That would be dirt.
And the bond measures are fairly specific about what dirt they want protected.
Section 79750 of Cogdill’s measure, SB2 7X, is Section 79760 of Steinberg’s bill in that both begin by saying the $1.5 billion will be spent on “grants for ecosystem and watershed protection and restoration projects including but not limited to, all of the following watersheds: …”
Read more of this blog commentary from the California’s Capitol blog by clicking here.
Congressman Nunes: Distorted water – Clarifying facts to combat the twisted views of radical environmentalists…
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 8:10 amFrom Congressman Devin Nunes, this 8-page pdf:
“During the debate in Congress concerning California’s government-imposed drought, I have heard a host of excuses as to why San Joaquin Valley residents should not be given immediate help. Many of the most troubling statements about our region have been posted on my YouTube Channel or are discussed in my blog. However, I prepared this document because it is important for us to understand the distortions used against us and to respond to them with facts.
DISTORTION: Agriculture uses 80% of California’s water.
FACT: Quite the reverse is true – 76% of Delta water is used by the environment.In an average year, the entire state of California receives about 200 million acre feet of water through precipitation. More than 50% evaporates into the atmosphere, percolates into the soil, or is used by native vegetation.
The remaining water, approximately 82 million acre feet, flows
into rivers. Of this amount, California dedicates 48% to the environment – the single largest use of water in California. The remaining water is used by agriculture (41%) and cities (11%).It is important to note that of the water that actually reaches the Delta, 76% is flushed to the ocean for environmental reasons.
Bay Area water users, combined with users in Central and Southern California, consume 18% of Delta water. Delta cities and farmers use the remaining 6%. …”
Download this 8-page pdf from Congressman Devin Nunes by clicking on the version you want:
Peter Gleick: Who is stealing California’s water?
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 7:53 amFrom Peter Gleick at the City Brights blog:
“Someone is stealing our water. Many someones. But who and how much? No one knows today, mostly because the agency responsible for keeping an eye on water rights and use–the State Water Resources Control Board–is blind, deaf, and dumb.
Blind, because they don’t look. Deaf, because they don’t listen to or act on most requests to investigate water rights allocations and use. Dumb, because they don’t talk about these issues. “Asleep at the switch,” as a colleague describes it.
What do I mean by stealing water? I mean people extract water from our rivers and streams without a right to do so. Legal water rights are managed by the State Board. Water rights permit and license holders are required by the California Code of Regulations to file reports with the State Water Board on their water diversion and use amounts. Fewer than 70 percent of permit holders actually submit these reports. There is no penalty for failure to file a report and, worse, no verification of the numbers reported. Further, information is not available to compare face value of water rights to actual use. Some, perhaps many, rights holders are likely taking more than their right allows. …”
Read more from Peter Gleick at the City Brights blog by clicking here.
Delta fish-protection project draws local opposition
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 7:49 amFrom the Contra Costa Times:
“Known as the Two-Gates Fish Protection Demonstration, the project would install two gates along Delta channels between Bethel Island and Discovery Bay to see whether they prevent Delta smelt from dying in pumps near the Tracy area. Some East Contra Costa County residents argue that the plan would threaten the health of the Delta, water quality and recreational boating.
The U.S. Department of Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation plans a five-year study on the gates’ effectiveness in protecting the fish from pumps that deliver water from the Delta to Central and Southern California. It’s hoped that the project would allow more water to flow south without killing the fish.
Officials from the bureau have recently gone to cities throughout the state to hear public comments about the plan. They stopped this week in Discovery Bay, where nearly 600 people came to discuss potential effects on the town.
Some complain that boaters would need to take longer routes to get to and from Discovery Bay when the gates are closed, and that pumping more water from the Delta would increase the salinity of the town’s water.
Resident Chris Steele said he couldn’t support the project as currently planned, and that the town needed more time to review the studies by the Reclamation Bureau. He thinks the primary goal of the plan is to pump more water out of the Delta.
“It’s really frustrating,” Steele said. “There are other techniques to save these fish, and they haven’t looked at any of them.” …”
Read more from the Contra Costa Times by clicking here.
McClintock blasts Water and Power Subcommittee
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 7:44 amFrom YouTube, (posted by Congressman Nunes):
“Water and Power Subcommittee Ranking Member Tom McClintock blasts his own committee for holding a hearing on “data collection” while doing nothing to address California’s government-imposed water crisis:”
Evnironmental Graffiti: Bizarre bubbles invade the ocean floor
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 7:30 am
From Environmental Graffiti:
“Bunches of grapes grown in a radioactive environment? The genetically modified eggs of some strange unidentified marine species? Or a fungal growth that would call for a hasty trip to the doctor? Nothing of the sort. It’s stunningly beautiful bubble coral, and once we saw it we simply had to blog about it. Don you’re dark glasses; you’re in for a feast for the eyes that might leave you dazzled.
Bubble corals are recognizable by their large, water-filled bubbles, or vesicles. Like light-loving balloons, these inflate during the day and deflate at the night, when tentacles come out instead in search of food. … “
More pictures from Environmental Graffiti by clicking here.
Lake Tahoe scientists use oxygen deprivation to kill clams
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 7:18 am
From the North Lake Tahoe Bonanza:
“Lake Tahoe scientists have found a way to kill small populations of Asian Clams in the alpine lake.
Putting rubber tarps over 10 foot by 10 foot areas of clams may not be a solution that can be implemented around the entire lake, but it is the beginning of finding a control for the invasive creatures.
“Clams are sensitive to not having enough oxygen — if they do not have enough oxygen they cannot survive,” said Marion Wittmann, a UC-Davis scientist.
The thumb-nail size clams were discovered in small groups in 2002. Since, they have grown in populations and cover many areas along Tahoe’s southeast shore. …”
Read more from the North Lake Tahoe Bonanza by clicking here.
Oil spill south of Bay Bridge evokes memories of Cosco Busan; taxes an already fragile bay
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 7:15 am
From the Silicon Valley Mercury News:
“A mechanical failure during the fueling of a tanker caused an oil spill Friday morning, leaving a two-mile slick south of the Bay Bridge and evoking memories of a much larger spill two years ago.
The spill was reported to the Coast Guard at 6:48 a.m. in an area about 2.5 miles south of the bridge. Crews responded immediately, but it took almost four hours before booms were deployed to contain the spill.
The Panama-flagged Dubai Star, a tanker about 600 feet long carrying jet fuel, was taking bunker fuel from a barge when an “unknown amount” of fuel spilled onto the deck and then the water. The vessel’s crew shut down the fuel pump to prevent additional leakage, but not before it created a slick that got as long as two miles and as wide as about 200 yards.
“There were safeguards in place,” said Capt. Paul Gugg, commanding officer of the Coast Guard’s San Francisco sector. “There were people on both ends of the transfer, and equipment to address spills. Those were inadequate.” …”
Read more from the Silicon Valley Mercury News by clicking here.
From the San Francisco Chronicle:
” … The estuary that defines so much of life in the Bay Area faces increasing ecological pressures from polluted urban runoff, the vagaries of climate change and the effects of more fresh water pumped out of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. The herring season – the bay’s last commercial fishery – was canceled last month because of concerns about the health of the fish population.
On Friday, ecologists were most immediately worried about the oil spill’s effect on marshlands and rocky outcroppings where birds and fish congregate to feed and spawn, according to Deb Self, executive director of San Francisco BayKeeper. The areas of highest concern include Richardson Bay, Brooks Island off of Richmond, Keil Cove near Tiburon and the Emeryville Lagoon and mudflats.
Initial reports were that the spill was not as large or dispersed as the 2007 Cosco Busan disaster, which killed thousands of birds and fouled far-flung beaches. But much depends on the cleanup response, Self said.
“We’re optimistic that it won’t be as devastating, but we’re still in that window where it’ll be about how much they can contain and collect,” Self said. “Once the tide starts going out and they lose control of the slick, we might see impacts on the shoreline again.” …”
Read more from the San Francisco Chronicle by clicking here.
State Republicans to offer water fix: Bill could be step toward solving Santa Clarita’s chloride dilemma
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 7:08 amFrom the Santa Clarita Signal:
“With California lawmakers one step closer to fixing the state water crisis, one Santa Clarita Valley water manager is optimistic the state will finally fix a problem that has spanned three decades.
California Assembly Republicans will introduce a bill Monday that will push more conservation and establish a Delta Protection Commission that will oversee operation of the estuary that is the source of 50 percent of Santa Clarita Valley’s water.
While the plan does speak to upgrading the way water is transported from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, nowhere in the 98-page bill do the words “peripheral canal” appear.
“Certainly I would have liked to see it in the bill, but it isn’t necessary,” said Dan Masnada, general manager for Castaic Lake Water Agency. “But this bill greases the skids for a Delta fix, which a peripheral canal is a part of.” …”
Read more from the Santa Clarita Signal by clicking here.
Poseidon Resources ups Carlsbad desal cost to $550 million: Asks state for additional subsidy for proposed project
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 7:05 amFrom the Press Room at Food & Water Watch:
“This week, Poseidon Resources, which is seeking a tax-free bond from the state to pay for its proposed Carlsbad desalination plant, increased its request by $70 million to $550 million. This change comes just weeks before the request goes before the three-member committee that will decide if a taxpayer subsidized bond will be approved. Poseidon has not provided any explanation on what caused the plant’s estimated cost to rise.
Critics question why the state would allocate tax-free state bonds to finance Poseidon Resources’ proposed desalination plant in Carlsbad.
“The state should not reward Poseidon’s track record of failure,” said Renee Maas, Food & Water Watch Water program organizer. “Their only other desalination plant in Tampa Bay, Florida, was riddled with problems and ultimately had to be taken over by the Tampa Bay Water Authority. That project came in $40 million over budget and has never produced its promised 25 million gallons of water per day. Now Poseidon wants subsidies to build a plant using the same technology, but twice the size in Southern California.” …”
Read more from the Food & Water Watch by clicking here.
Nevada hold ‘em: Don’t gamble with Utah’s water, says editorial
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 31, 2009 at 7:03 amFrom the Salt Lake Tribune:
“Consider this scenario. Las Vegas, which is powerful thirsty, covets its neighbors’ water. It yearns to pump huge gulps of ground water from beneath rural basins to the north and pipe it to Sin City. The locals who live in the rural basins cry foul, claiming that there is no surplus water in the aquifers and their future will dry up and blow away if Las Vegas is allowed to stick a straw in the ground and suck the precious liquid out.
Sound familiar? It should. That’s just the controversy engulfing Snake Valley, which straddles the Utah/Nevada state line. Most of the arable land in Snake Valley is on the Utah side.
Many Utahns may not realize, however, that this scene is playing out in many more places than Snake Valley. The Las Vegas octopus has spread its tentacles around much of eastern Nevada. But the little guys won an important case last month when a Nevada judge ruled that the state engineer’s approval of part of the water theft was “arbitrary, capricious and oppressive” to the interests of the rural folk. …”
Read more of this editorial by clicking here.
New top of the scroll: Lawmakers on wrong track for water deal, says editorial: “The governor and legislative leaders need to focus first on restoring the health of the delta and then supplying a steady supply of water to Californians in the most fair and equitable fashion possible”
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 9:34 amWhoops, missed a few… From the Silicon Valley Mercury News, this editorial:
“As negotiations over a water reform plan come down to the wire, California legislative leaders are dithering over the wrong details.
They should be working on how to maximize water conservation, not only by urban users but also by agriculture. They should be trying to lower the cost of a multibillion-dollar bond, which now not only would pay for badly needed work on the flood-prone Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta but also would finance dams that aren’t needed and would damage the environment.
Instead, the governor and lawmakers are haggling over penalties for water theft and for urban water districts that don’t meet conservation targets. If they’re not careful, they’ll end up with a spending package that California voters will reject, wasting all the work this year and sending everyone back to the drawing board. That would be a tragedy, given the magnitude of the delta water crisis.
The delta, 50 miles northeast of San Jose, supplies a portion of the water supply for more than 20 million Californians and provides more than half of Silicon Valley’s water supply. Its ecological health is critical not only for drinking water but to sustain economic growth. Yet it is just an earthquake away from becoming a disaster of Hurricane Katrina proportions. …”
Read more from the Silicon Valley Mercury News by clicking here.
High water mark: Glendale man disputes utility’s claim that he used 1.5 million gallons in two months
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 9:31 amFrom the Glendale News Press:
“NORTHEAST GLENDALE — When Escott Norton spotted inspectors examining his home’s water meter, he thought they were as doubtful as he was that he had used 1.5 million gallons in one two-month billing cycle.
That was before he got a bill for $5,474.71 worth of water, far surpassing his previous high of $120.05.
“Everyone thought it was ridiculous except for the people at [Glendale Water & Power],” Norton said.
Although the utility was admittedly puzzled by the reading and lack of leaks or massive amounts of runoff, officials believe the meter was right, said Glenn Steiger, general manager of Glendale Water & Power.
“There’s no question it’s extraordinary, and that’s why we took extraordinary measures to make sure that there wasn’t something else going on,” Steiger said. …”
Read more from the Glendale News Press by clicking here.
Dan Bacher commentary: The legislature hard at work: 14 Water bills and counting
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 9:30 amFrom Dan Bacher, this commentary:
“California legislators are “hard at work” developing Delta and water policy and bond legislation that will provide a clear pathway to build a peripheral canal and Temperance Flat and Sites reservoirs.
“Coming into Monday, there was a single piece of introduced legislation in the special water session. As of dawn Thursday, there were at least 14 bills,” said Steve Evans, conservation director of Friends of the River. “With the Assembly scheduled for check-in tomorrow, there is the possibility of even more bills.”
On Thursday, Assemblywoman Alyson Huber, to counteract the bills providing a road map to a peripheral canal and more dams, introduced legislation that would block the construction of a Peripheral Canal unless it was expressly authorized by the Legislature.
“The special-session bill by Assemblywoman Alyson Huber, D-El Dorado Hills, also requires the Legislature’s nonpartisan fiscal adviser, the Legislative Analyst, to put together an economic feasibility study of the potential project,” according to the Capitol Weekly on October 30.
Here is a brief run-down of the bills, according to Evans.
Friday’s top of the scroll: Huber introduces bill that would put Delta canal to a vote of the legislature
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 8:38 am
From Stockton’s Record:
“Put it to a vote. So proposes a bill introduced Thursday that would outlaw construction of a peripheral canal unless the state Legislature directly approves one.
The bill by state Assemblywoman Alyson Huber, an El Dorado Hills Democrat who represents Lodi, north Stockton and a portion of the Delta, pushes back against legislation in the Senate that some say would hand off a canal decision to the state and a council of appointed bureaucrats.
That larger bill, by Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, is supported by a coalition of water users and some environmental groups.
“Half of the people in this coalition say that this is a clear path to a (peripheral canal), and you get other folks that say there’s nothing in there that authorizes a canal,” Huber said. “What my bill does is clarifies this issue.” …”
Read more from the Record by clicking here.
From Capitol Weekly:
” … The special-session bill by Assemblywoman Alyson Huber, D-El Dorado Hills, also requires the Legislature’s nonpartisan fiscal adviser, the Legislative Analyst, to put together an economic feasibility study of the potential project.
“I am very concerned about the direction in which the water discussions are heading. I am authoring the bill to make sure we get answers to very important questions,” Huber said.
Cost estimates of $6 billion to $12 billion for the huge public works project have been provided by its supporters, but Huber said lawmakers need an independent, nonpartisan analysis to decide the issue. …”
Read more from Capitol Weekly by clicking here.
Photo of Sacramento capitol building by flickr photographer Seth Gaines.
Not all Inland water agencies fully agree with pending state legislation
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 8:31 amFrom Riverside’s Press-Enterprise:
“Southern California’s Metropolitan Water District is a key player in the coalition lined up behind major water legislation pending in the state Capitol, but some of its Inland member agencies so far are not on board.
The difference of opinion centers on the package’s approach to encouraging water conservation and how that could affect water users in the state’s warmer, drier regions where suburbs and lawns are the norm.
Los Angeles-based MWD supplies water to almost 19 million people. Several water agencies in Riverside and San Bernardino counties get some of their water from the district.
Earlier this week, Metropolitan officials joined representatives of major environmental groups in publicly backing the legislation by Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento. …”
Read more from the Press-Enterprise by clicking here.
California’s water legislation: Q&A with USD law professor Jack Minan
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 8:28 amFrom the San Diego News Room:
“California lawmakers have been going back and forth on water legislation for the last few weeks. Democrats want the legislation to achieve three main goals: increase enforcement of water laws, force further measures of conservation and include provisions that call for the monitoring of groundwater use. Republican’s want to make sure local water districts are protected from certain environmental laws and some Republican leaders would like to see the construction of some additional dams and reservoirs. Republicans introduced their own version of the bill on Tuesday, which has only fueled the debate further. Behind it all is a $9-billion bond proposal that would set aside money for water storage, although it does not detail any plans.
SDNR sat down with University of San Diego Law Professor Jack Minan to discuss some of the issues behind the water legislation. Here are some highlights of the interview. Minan is the former Chairman of the Water Quality Control Board, and he teaches Property, Land Use Planning and Water Law at USD. …”
Read more from the San Diego News Room by clicking here.
Dan Bacher commentary: Congressman McNerney urges Governor to drop canal plan
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 8:26 amFrom Dan Bacher, this commentary:
“In a letter to Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on October 23, Congressman Jerry McNerney (D-Pleasanton) criticized plans to build a peripheral canal and the exclusion of input from Delta residents in the current Delta/water bill package now being considered by the California legislature.
The letter reiterates the Congressman’s plan to “closely monitor’ initiatives that require federal participation and his concern about any proposals that lay groundwork for a peripheral canal.
“I am deeply concerned by initiatives that may be intended to lay the groundwork for a canal that diverts additional fresh water from the San Joaquin Delta,” said Jerry McNerney. “Such a canal would further erode water quality for several million people. A canal and related proposals are expected to threaten jobs by turning family farms into uninhabitable salty marshlands and could raise water rates by decreasing the supply of clean water for families and businesses in the San Joaquin Delta area.”
He emphasized, “Public health and economic opportunity in Contra Costa County, San Joaquin County, and other San Joaquin Delta communities should not be sacrificed in pursuit of expensive and counterproductive water projects. I will oppose federal support for water proposals that threaten the millions of people that call the San Joaquin Delta home.” …
Costa asks state legislature to craft and pass vital water legislation; The time is now for California to pass a water package including storage, conveyance and long-term water plans, says Costa
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 8:20 amFrom the website of Congressman Jim Costa:
“WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Jim Costa (D-Fresno) sent a letter to the California State Senate and Assembly urging both chambers take the lead and craft a robust water package to improve California’s broken water system. The text of the letter is below.
…
Dear Senator Steinberg and Speaker Bass:
In 1982, I was completing my second term in the California State Assembly when legislation approving the Peripheral Canal that I helped to support and pass was signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown and then failed on a statewide ballot. Since then, the state legislature has had numerous opportunities to find common ground on a long-term solution to fix California’s broken water system. As you may know, I authored and helped to win statewide approval of four water bonds, raising more than $2 billion to improve California’s water system and provide safe, reliable drinking water to our communities. At that time, many of the beneficiaries of these funds pledged to help fix our water system and add to our water supply to meet the demands of a growing population. That support has regrettably remained elusive. Every Governor since Jerry Brown has tried to repair California’s outdated water system. You now have an opportunity change the pattern and make history.
It is unfortunate that the San Joaquin Valley has been the only region of California that has had to sacrifice its water for the rest of the state, and with no proven benefits whatsoever to the system as a whole. As you are both well aware, despite the millions of acre-feet of water that has been diverted away from the Valley for environmental and ecosystem restoration purposes, the Delta is arguably in the worst shape it has ever been. The fisheries are still on a rapid decline, possibly to the point of extinction for the Delta smelt; and farmers, farm workers, and farm communities in my District are feeling the devastation of a three year drought and regulatory restrictions for which we should have already been prepared. A comprehensive approach is needed now that secures a sustainably water supply for every region of California, before it is too late and the Valley literally withers and dries out.
Water agreement bottled up in Capitol: Gridlock over balancing growth, environmental concerns could end if everyone gives a little, says editorial
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 8:13 amFrom the O.C. Register:
“Population growth and new development may increase California’s water needs 40 percent in the next 25 years. Yet, there are those who prefer neither population nor water supplies increase.
The longstanding, intractable deadlock in the state’s largely self-imposed water crisis could be close to resolution on how to get sufficient water flowing to farmers, homeowners or developers who rely on it, while mollifying those more focused on ecological concerns.
“Enough water falls from the sky and drains into the ocean that if we managed it in an efficient manner … environmentalists, builders, farmers – everybody who wants water – could have an ample amount for their preferred purposes,” state Sen. Dave Cogdill, R-Fresno, has pointed out. …”
Read more from the O.C. Register by clicking here.
Day of reckoning for water is here, says SacBee editorial
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 8:08 amFrom the Sacramento Bee, this editorial:
” … The package negotiated by Senate President Pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg doesn’t meet the perfection test. An ideal package would seek stronger management of the state’s unregulated aquifers, more ambitious conservation mandates, and adoption of state water fees to help pay for Delta restoration, water efficiency projects and cost-effective storage.
But for California to make any progress on water, there must be compromise. In recent weeks, Steinberg has worked to talk to all sides and modify the package to address many, but not all, concerns.
The bottom line: Is this policy package an improvement on the status quo? The answer is an unequivocal yes. It takes progressive steps forward on efficiency and groundwater, with protections for Northern California’s water rights. It doesn’t give a green light to a canal. Indeed, such a project would undergo a multiyear review before state and federal agencies sign off on any preferred option for new “conveyance” in the Delta.
There are legitimate questions to be asked about the size of any bond referendum that would be part of this package. Lawmakers must ask themselves if a $9 billion bond would sacrifice existing state programs, and if voters would reject it as a result.
Yet in re-imagining the future of the Delta, California can’t keep putting off hard decisions. The time is now. Failure to modernize the state’s water policies could mean another 27 years of frustration, litigation and degradation. …”
Read the full text of this editorial from the Sacramento Bee by clicking here.
Commentary: Water issues arise at Lake Almanor
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 8:02 am
From the North Lake Tahoe Bonanza, this commentary by fishing columnist Bruce Ajari:
“As everyone is well aware, water is becoming a highly sought-after commodity. It is crucial to our local fisheries. With Lake Tahoe soon to drop below its natural rim for a second time, we all know what the Truckee River is looking like these days.
A recent trip north to Lake Almanor exposed me to a huge water issue that the local community is facing up there.
As part of a dam’s Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) relicensing plan for Lake Almanor, the State Water Quality Control Board is requiring consideration for lowering the temperature of the North Fork of the Feather River about 40 miles downstream between Rock Creek and Cresta dams.
A water temperature of 68 degrees (20 degrees Celsius) is being sought during the summer months as part of the plan. This is to enhance water temperatures for trout.
Installing a thermal curtain in Lake Almanor and additional ones in Butt Valley Reservoir is apparently the recommended approach for achieving this temperature decline by removing water from the lake’s bottom. …”
Read more from the North Lake Tahoe Bonanza by clicking here.
Picture of Lake Almanor by flickr photographer etgeek.
Tim Quinn: Water crisis called worst in state’s history
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 7:24 amFrom the Chico Enterprise-Record:
“The future of California will see a shift from water extraction to balancing the needs of the environment with the need for water reliability, said Tim Quinn, executive director of the Association of California Water Agencies.
Quinn was among the many speakers Wednesday at the Sacramento Valley Forum. The event at Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. was hosted by the Great Valley Center.
“The resource is in a crisis like none of us have seen in the history of the state,” Quinn said.
For several generations, the state’s water policy was one of extraction, Quinn said. Big dams and water projects were constructed. The state’s water rights system stemmed from “battles between miners and agriculture.” Thoughts of protecting the ecosystem “had not yet earned their place.”
Since then there has been passage of the Endangered Species Act, Clean Water Act and the Central Valley Project Improvement Act.
He said the Association of California Water Agencies sees the “central challenge as how to take the extraction plan and reinvent it so we can have co-equal goals,” of protecting the environment and providing a reliable water supply. …”
Read more from the Chico Enterprise-Record by clicking here.
Six solutions for California’s water crisis and how we can help
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 7:21 amFrom the TreeHugger blog:
“As California completes its (ongoing) third year of drought, lawmakers are wondering what do we do? As the Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta is under increasing pressure to supply not just the farmers to the east of San Francisco but also 23 million people in that area and in the very dry south, lawmakers are unsure what to do next. Popular Mechanics reports on six of the solutions the government’s task force on the issue came up with to deal with California’s water crisis of 2009 (and beyond).
Turns out, while there are about 5 solutions being batted around the state legislature, late last week a bill by Sacramento Senate Pro-Tem Darrell Steinberg made its way to the top and is up for a possible vote this week. Yet, many of the recommendations are things homeowners and residents can and should be doing on their own. After each solution, we’ll offer a few tips for how you can get involved and make it happen without waiting for a resolution. …”
Read more from the TreeHugger blog by clicking here.
Stockton breaks ground on Delta Water Supply Project
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 7:19 amFrom the Lodi News-Sentinel:
“In a matter of years, Stockton will join the overwhelming majority in California by drawing a portion of its drinking water from the Delta. A groundbreaking for the Delta Water Supply Project, a $217 million venture and the largest public works project in city history, was held on Thursday on Lower Sacramento Road between Armstrong and Eight Mile roads.
More than 100 people crowded into a tent to protect them from the wind while 16 engraved shovels stood in the dirt for the groundbreaking that took place at the site of the future water treatment plant.
“Today is a momentous occasion,” said Stockton Municipal Utility Director Mark Madison. “We worked hard for 14 years. … Now it’s time to build something.” …”
Read more from the Lodi News-Sentinel by clicking here.
Lloyd G. Carter’s video presentation: California’s water mess – is anyone doing anything right?
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 6:31 amFrom the WaterWired blog:
“Lloyd G. Carter, born and raised in Fresno, former journalist, and current Cailfornia deputy attorney LGC general in the Criminal Division, spoke here at OSU on 28 October 2009 about California’s Water Mess: Is Anyone Doing Anything Right?
I’m glad I finally got the chance to meet, hear, and have dinner with him. Fascinating guy – an ambulatory encyclopedia of California water issues and fact. And stories! …”
More thoughts from Water Wired by clicking here.
Here’s a video of Lloyd’s speech at OSU:
Furloughs delay new water plan
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 6:27 amFrom the Capital Press:
“California’s Central Valley water board says state employee furloughs have delayed release of a draft plan for protecting ground-water quality.
The board had expected to release the draft by early October but now expects a late-November release. The board said its four August workshops drew large crowds; one attracted some 220 attendees. That meant there was abundant feedback while state furloughs reduced the staff hours available to process it.
Lonnie Wass, supervising engineer with the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, said recent spikes in ground-water usage have added urgency to the issue.
California does not regulate or monitor ground water, leaving that to local jurisdictions. The board’s strategy would tie together the functions of those entities to avoid overlap and allow monitoring of ground-water quality in the Central Valley as a whole. …”
Read more from the Capital Press by clicking here.
CSPA to Sue El Dorado Irrigation District for illegal sewage
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 6:19 amFrom the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance, this press release:
“The California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA) today gave formal notice, pursuant to the federal Clean Water Act (CWA), of its intent to sue the El Dorado Irrigation District’s (EID) sewage collection and treatment systems serving the communities of Cameron Park, Deer Creek and Motherlode for illegal sewage spills, overflows and discharges to creeks tributary to the Consumes River and thence the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The CWA requires that citizens enforcing the Act must provide a discharger 60 days notice prior to filing the lawsuit. CSPA’s letter puts EID on notice that its municipal sanitary sewer collection and treatment system has violated effluent, monitoring and reporting requirements of its wastewater permits and illegally allowed egregious quantities of raw sewage to overflow into city streets and the storm water collection system and thence to local creeks, the Cosumnes River and Delta.
“EID’s sewage collection and wastewater treatment system is a public health and environmental hazard,” said CSPA Executive Director Bill Jennings. “The District’s failure to provide adequate facilities and acceptable levels of maintenance for wastewater control indicates an outrageous and egregious disregard for the health of area residents and poses a clear threat to the integrity and survival of local creeks, the Cosumnes River and the Delta’s fish and wildlife resources,” Jennings observed, adding that, “the spills and effluent violations evidence poor environmental management.”
EPA tests porous pavement to combat contaminated rain runoff
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 6:17 am
From Scientific American:
“In an effort to prevent polluted parking lot rain runoff from contaminating surrounding soil and underground water, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday said it has launched decade-long test of permeable materials to find one that can filter out impurities in rainwater before it flows to its final destination.
Pavement tends to collect grease, oil, antifreeze and other chemicals leaked from the cars that park there. When a heavy rain or snowstorm passes over this area it tends to wash these toxins toward the nearest porous surface. Sometimes this water rushes to a storm drain but other times storm drains are overwhelmed and runoff keeps flowing until it reaches the nearest patch of soil or body of water. …”
Read more from Scientific American by clicking here.
California wins lawsuit for more water/energy-efficient clothes washers
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 6:12 amFrom the Los Angeles Times:
“Washing machines account for 20% of an average household’s water use in California, but that may change now that the California Energy Commission has prevailed in a years-long lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Energy, which had prevented the commission from adopting a more water- and energy-efficient standard for clothes washers.
Currently, there is no standard for how much water a washing machine uses. It’s estimated that the average washing machine uses 39.2 gallons of water per wash, or 15,366 gallons a year for a normal household.
If California’s proposed standard goes into effect, an average machine would use just 6 gallons of water per cubic foot of washing machine capacity; the average washing machine would use just 21.1 gallons per wash, or 8,271 gallons per year. …”
Read more from the Los Angeles Times by clicking here.
Report estimates climate change adaptation costs, impacts to utilities
Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on October 30, 2009 at 6:05 amFrom Water Online:
“The National Association of Clean Water Agencies (NACWA) and the Association of the Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA) released a report recently detailing the impacts climate change can have on wastewater and drinking water utilities and estimating the adaptation costs for these critical facilities to be between $448B and $944B through 2050. The associations, which represent the nation’s public wastewater and drinking water agencies, urged Congress and the Obama administration to recognize that climate change is fundamentally about water and to implement policies that will help utilities take timely actions to adapt.
“Now is the time to establish policies, invest in research, and provide support so that water and wastewater utilities can begin to plan the necessary adaptation strategies needed to confront the inevitable impacts of climate change. Timely action is critical — water and wastewater infrastructure planning and implementation operates within a 20 to 40 year timeline,” the report said. “Failure to provide a timely response to needed climate change adaptation will have serious consequences for the nation.” …”
Read more from Water Online by clicking here.
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Recent Posts
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- Commentary: The human cost of the salmon crisis
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