[Water_news] 5. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS: AGENCIES, PROGRAMS, PEOPLE - 4/23/07

Department of Water Resources

California Water News

A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment

 

April 23, 2007

 

5. Agencies, Programs, People

 

CALIFORNIA AQUEDUCT:

Aqueduct water defended; Dumped bodies, old autos filtered from state system - LA Daily News

 

INFRASTRUCTURE:

Warming threat fails to sway foes of dam; Survey finds strong support for water conservation - Auburn Journal

 

NAPA VALLEY FLOOD ISSUES:

St. Helena flood project should take two years - Napa Valley Register

 

HAMILTON CITY LEVEES:

$621,000 grant keeps J levee design on track - Chico Enterprise Record

 

MANTECA FLOOD CONTROL:

Manteca joins rest of county in flood control - Manteca Bulletin

 

RECREATION FACILITIES:

Hemet, San Jacinto demand promised recreation facilities from water agency - Riverside Press Enterprise

 

STEELHEAD LAWSUIT:

Casitas water board to pursue lawsuit over flow for steelhead - Ventura County Star

 

PROFILE:

Keeping water flowing; Irrigation manager tackles growth, maintenance, communication - Redding Record Searchlight

 

WATER SAVING WASHING MACHINES:

State plans suit over washing machine rules - Los Angeles Times

 

LOCAL WATER DISTRICT ISSUES:

Editorial: Fruitridge's Uncity; Water problems point to neglected 'pocket' - Sacramento Bee

 

LAKE OROVILLE FACILITIES:

Lake Oroville dam overlook mystery - Oroville Mercury Register

 

 

CALIFORNIA AQUEDUCT:

Aqueduct water defended; Dumped bodies, old autos filtered from state system

LA Daily News – 4/21/07

By Patricia Farrell Aidem, staff writer

 

The tap water piped from the north to Southern California comes from pure snow drifts that melt and flow south in snaking canals - rushing over a hidden trove of stolen cars, lethal weapons and even human remains.

 

The state's engineering marvel, the 444-mile California Aqueduct stretching from Sacramento to Riverside County to bring water from the verdant north to the thirsty south, masks this linear dump, but raises the question of just how safe is this massive water supply.

 

The state Department of Resources insists the water is perfectly fine to drink for two reasons: The volume of water is tremendous, diluting any contaminants, and the water is treated to meet tough standards when it reaches individual wholesalers.

 

Early this year, the Water Resources crews drained a 98-mile stretch of the State Water Project aqueduct that flows largely across the northern edge of Los Angeles County from Gorman to Pearblossom and south toward Hesperia near Riverside. There was construction upstream, offering a good opportunity to clean out the lower end, a feat accomplished by closing some of the 66 water-tight gates that section off portions of the aqueduct.

 

"They found a large number of vehicles in there  - 20 to 30 pickup trucks and sedans and cars," said Blaine Laumbach, chief operator at the department's Pearblossom hydroelectric plant. "They found parts of a motorcycle, a Jet Ski..."

 

And they found some pipe bombs attached at bridges, explosives they figure weren't meant to be destructive, but were likely planted by fishermen to shock their quarry to the surface, Laumbach said.

 

Water Resources officials maintain that the rejected washing machines and firearms tossed in with enough cars to fill a parking lot amount to just a drop in the enormous bucket of water drawn from Northern California rivers to green the lawns at the southern end of the state. In other words, there is so much water flowing, the foreign bodies don't make much of a difference.

 

"The solution to pollution is dilution," is their credo.

 

"When you start to calculate whatever contaminants there are in a vehicle dumped in the aqueduct and compare that with the volume of water that moves through in a certain day, it's parts per billion," Laumbach said. "It's not even at a level that our health standards would consider hazardous."

 

The same philosophy eases the minds of water officials who say that while patrols of the aqueducts have increased to guard against a terrorist poisoning the well, it would take a tremendous amount of chemicals to affect drinking water.

 

So even if an entire big rig could be submerged undetected in these manmade rivers - as happened in Northern California, where it was discovered only when a leak prompted a section to be drained - it's extremely tough to poison the public by dumping some poisonous concoction in the water supply as it heads to the nation's largest urban mass.

 

But that doesn't solve the "ick factor" for the unsuspecting one who flips the tap for a cool drink. After all, an occasional body lands in the aqueduct.

 

"People do die in that thing. People fishing fall in and they can't get out. The sides are too steep and slippery," Water Resources spokesman Don Strickland said. "They've found bodies in trunks of underwater cars. That's happened, too."

 

Water in the aqueduct is not treated until it is piped to an agency that buys and distributes it, Strickland said.

 

In the Santa Clarita Valley, that's the Castaic Lake Water Agency, a wholesaler that distributes water to retailers who in turn pipe it to individual customers.

 

CLWA General Manager Dan Masnada is confident the water his agency treats for a region of more than 200,000 comes out of the tap purer than trendy bottled waters.

 

"The testing we do is very rigorous and it's driven by a number of regulatory agencies," Masnada said.

 

Water earmarked for Santa Clarita flows from the aqueduct to Castaic Lake, then is piped to CLWA's Rio Vista treatment plant in Saugus. The water, which Masnada said comes in looking pure, goes through filtration and disinfection processes "to address any and all contaminants that are in the water."

 

"There are federal and state standards we have to comply with," he said. "They exceed that of the bottled-water industry."

 

Local tap water is treated with a combination of chlorine and ammonia.

 

"State water goes to millions and millions of people and, yes, there are plenty of potential contaminants in the aqueducts, but it is without question clean when it gets to the retailer," Masnada said.

 

After the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the East, an examination of potential West Coast targets pointed to the California and the separate Los Angeles Department of Water and Power aqueducts as areas of vulnerability. Patrols have increased and the agencies have urged their employees to keep vigilant, but it's impossible to keep an eye on the entire systems 24 hours a day, Laumbach said.

 

"First of all, the aqueduct covers an amazing amount of area, mostly in sparsely populated areas," he said. "We have security measures in place, we have patrols and surveillance, but there's always holes in the net."

 

Construction began on the aqueduct 50 years ago, with completion in 1973. Voters have approved $1.75 billion for the work over the decades.  #

http://www.dailynews.com/santaclarita/ci_5723209

 

 

INFRASTRUCTURE:

Warming threat fails to sway foes of dam; Survey finds strong support for water conservation

Auburn Journal – 4/22/07

By Gus Thomson, staff writer

 

Tying global warming and the possibility of increased flooding into efforts to build a multipurpose Auburn dam, a California State University, Sacramento survey indicates that the more people fear the threat of a shrinking ozone layer, the less they want the controversial flood-control project.

The poll of 1,100 adult residents, including nearly about 200 from Placer County, indicated that 74 percent of those taking the survey think the threat of global warming is a serious one. Forty-eight percent said it was very serious while another 26 percent said it was somewhat serious.

But Department of Sociology and Institute for Social Research Professor Amy Liu, the project's director, said that a "negative relationship" between belief in the threat of global warming and support for the Auburn dam cropped up in results.

"Those who think global warming is very serious are least likely to support construction of the Auburn dam, while those who think the threat of global warming is not serious are most likely to endorse the dam construction," Liu said.

Thirty-nine percent of people who believed global warming a serious threat supported the Auburn dam while 74 percent of those who didn't endorsed the dam's construction.

The survey was a computer assisted telephone interview in late February and late March of 1,106 randomly selected adults from Sacramento, Yolo, Placer and El Dorado counties by the Institute for Social Research. Results were released Friday.

 

While 86 percent of respondents favor water-conservation measures to address flood and drought control, and 88 percent believe local government should restrict construction of new homes in areas without adequate flood protection, the question of an Auburn dam continued to be a divisive one - with much of the division along part lines. A total of 43 percent of Democrats favored a dam while 38 opposed one. On the GOP side, 68 percent favored a dam and 15 percent were in opposition.

Men were also more likely to favor the dam concept - 54 percent - while women were 49 percent in favor.

There was also more support the longer a person had lived in the area, with 56 percent of people living in the region 20 years or longer for a dam. People who had lived in the region six years or less were 36 percent in favor of a dam but many (36 percent) admitted that they were undecided or had limited knowledge of the long-delayed, much-debated project.

The Hurricane Katrina flooding in 2005 resulted in an increase in interest in Congress for dam-related flood protection but the recent turnover in the House and Senate from the Republican to Democratic Party slowed any momentum that had been building. A report issued this year by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation estimated dam construction could reach from $6 billion to $10 billion.

 

U.S. Rep. John Doolittle, R-Roseville, said earlier this month in a meeting with the Auburn Journal editorial board that his attempt to gain $3 million in federal funding to start a feasibility study on the dam and a study of Highway 49 re-routing options in the American River canyon had reached a dead-end during the current budget cycle. Breaking the numbers down into ages, the survey showed 43 percent of those 40 or under favored the dam but 32 percent of people in that category were undecided. People ages 41 to 64 were 50 percent in favor of a dam while those 65 and over were 61 percent for it.

Yolo County residents as a group were least likely to support a dam (38 percent) and most likely to know little about it (28 percent). El Dorado County residents had the strongest support (60 percent) while survey respondents in Placer County and Sacramento County were 52 percent in favor of a dam.

A second question asked people if they were familiar with the Auburn dam or its debate. Nineteen percent said they were very familiar, 44 percent were somewhat familiar, 33 percent were not at all familiar and four percent had not heard about it.

Liu said a majority of area residents "very" or "somewhat" familiar with the dam support the project, while just more than a third of those who are not familiar with the project endorse it.

http://www.auburnjournal.com/articles/2007/04/23/news/top_stories/02survey23.txt?pg=3

 

 

NAPA VALLEY FLOOD ISSUES:

St. Helena flood project should take two years

Napa Valley Register – 4/23/07

By Jesse Duarte, staff writer

 

St. Helena officials held a public meeting last Friday to present the latest version of the city's flood control project, which will be constructed in two phases during the next two years.

The first phase of construction, to be completed by the rainy season using the $8.5 million available to the city, would provide 100-year flood protection for the targeted properties.

To allow more water to pass through the river without flooding, the Napa River channel will be widened through excavation and the construction of a terrace on "the point" -- the area now occupied by 17 Vineyard Valley homes, which are slated for demolition.

 

The excavated earth would be used to build a levee northwest of Vineyard Valley and Hunts Grove Apartments.

During the first phase, the floodwall would be built downstream from the levee until a point adjacent to the Redondo Court cul-de-sac.

A detention basin would also be constructed during the first phase. Located behind the levee and adjacent to Vineyard Valley, it would collect water from the storm drain that would start at Hunt Avenue. That water would be filtered before being discharged into the Napa River.

The second phase of construction, beginning next year when the rainy season is over, would involve finishing the floodwall along the Napa River, and along Sulphur Creek. Excavation of the terrace, begun during the first phase, would be completed.

The estimated costs, prior to bids being received, are $8.5 million for the first phase and $8.1 million for the second phase. When finished, the project would achieve 200-year flood protection for the targeted properties.

The city council is scheduled to approve the design and authorize the advertisement of bids on Tuesday, April 24. Construction could begin by July 1, with the first phase completed in mid-November.

Critics remain

The numerous changes the project has undergone during the last few years, primarily in response to funding shortages and legal challenges from the Living Rivers Council, have not eliminated criticism of the project by its neighbors, with many fearing that it will increase the possibility of their properties flooding.

On Friday, flood project planners said the project is designed to provide flood protection for Vineyard Valley and Hunts Grove, while not increasing water levels upstream and downstream.

Engineers assured property owners that the widening of the river channel would improve the ability of the river to convey water, decreasing water surface elevations.

Residents along the east bank of the river opposite Vineyard Valley -- who joined forces last year to voice their concerns about the project -- worried that the project would increase erosion on their side of the river and result in flooding, even though their homes have been raised.

East bank resident Bonnie Durrance said the project's terrace looks like a funnel that will result in increased erosion and potential flooding downstream where she and her neighbors live.

"If a 100-year flood strikes before Phase 2, we'll be in a world of hurt," she said.

Engineers disagreed, saying the terrace will increase the river's carrying capacity and decrease water velocities.

"We've asked (the engineers) to develop a project that their reputation, their license, their business, stands behind," said City Manager Bert Johansson. "And we have a comfort level that they know what they're doing."

St. Helenan John Milliken was concerned that the project will result in the full protection of the privately owned Hunter parcel, which sits behind the new levee northeast of Adams Street. With its medium-density residential zoning, the Hunter parcel would be a likely candidate for development once the project is constructed, Milliken said.

Johansson said that the property owner, Dennis Hunter, could try to develop it, but given the recent difficulties faced by other proposed developments, "it's not a slam dunk."

The city council agreed last June to pursue the current plan, which planners then hoped to construct in one phase. Milliken said the city should instead adopt the previously formulated Minimum Plan, which would construct a levee along Hunts Grove, and would not protect the Hunter parcel.

Carol Troy, whose Vineyard Valley home sits alongside Sulphur Creek, was concerned about a 12-foot-wide road that would be built behind the Sulphur Creek floodwall during the second phase. The eight-foot walkway and four-foot easement would end one foot away from her house, she said.

Flood project planners said the access road is necessary to allow engineers to patrol the floodwall for weaknesses when heavy rains fall and water levels begin to rise.

Another maintenance and emergency access road, elevated about six inches, would extend from the terminus of Adams Street and run along the top of the levee, which would begin about 300 feet northeast of Adams.

Like the road along the Sulphur Creek floodwall, it would allow engineers to patrol flood control structures, and make emergency repairs if necessary. Neither road would be used for evacuation. #

http://www.napavalleyregister.com/articles/2007/04/23/news/local/iq_3921295.txt

 

 

HAMILTON CITY LEVEES:

$621,000 grant keeps J levee design on track

Chico Enterprise Record – 4/21/07

By Barbara Arrigoni, staff writer

 

HAMILTON CITY — A project to replace Hamilton City's aging, deteriorating J levee is still on track for the 2007 fiscal year, thanks to federal funds allocated recently for the project.

 

In addition, Rep. Wally Herger, R-Chico, announced Thursday the House of Representatives approved a bill that authorizes several U.S. Army Corps of Engineers projects, including flood control measures. It includes language Herger offered to authorize construction of the "Hamilton City J Levee" project.

 

Reclamation District No. 2140 announced Wednesday the Corps of Engineers will allocate $621,000 to continue the design phase of the Hamilton City Flood Damage and Ecosystem Restoration Project.

 

The project includes building a new setback levee to replace the 100-year-old J levee, which has been damaged over time by flooding, and deteriorated severely after storms in 2006.

 

District representative LeeAnn Grigsby-Puente said Wednesday the funds will keep the project on the established timeline. Construction is projected to start in 2008.

 

Grigsby-Puente explained that Congress provided the Corps of Engineers with a lump sum allocation for projects nationwide. The Corps developed a list of proposed allocations that included the Hamilton City levee project. That list was submitted to the Office of Management and Budget.

 

Grigsby-Puente said she is relieved and very thankful Congress approved the funds. Recently she flew to Washington D.C. and got to see how the appropriations process works.

 

"I have a more appreciative attitude because I got to see it hands-on this time," she said.

 

The visit included seeing Sen. Barbara Boxer in action at the Senate. She said the trip revealed just how difficult a process it is to obtain funds, and voiced gratitude to Boxer, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Herger and the Corps for pushing hard for the levee project.

 

"They have proven they hear what we're saying," said Grigsby-Puente. "They know we're in a critical situation. So many in the country are in a critical situation. There's not enough money."

 

Sponsors of the Hamilton City project have already submitted their fiscal year 2008 funding requests to Feinstein, Herger and Rep. John Doolittle, R-Granite Bay.

 

Authorities are hoping the levee will last until the new levee can be constructed. Grigsby-Puente said hopefully there will be light rain next winter and the project will make it through the preconstruction and design phase.

 

"This will keep us on track."

 

The Water Resources Development Act of 2007 also includes authorization to investigate alternatives to protect the fish screen and pumping plant that provides water to farmers in the Princeton-Codora-Glenn and Provident irrigation districts in Glenn and Colusa counties.  #

http://www.chicoer.com/fastsearchresults/ci_5718941

 

 

MANTECA FLOOD CONTROL:

Manteca joins rest of county in flood control

Manteca Bulletin – 4/20/07

By Dennis Wyatt, Managing editor

 

It was just a year ago that nervous residents and farmers in the River Junction area 10 miles southeast of Manteca spent their weekend preparing for possible evacuation while keeping an eye on the rising San Joaquin River.

 

Across the river, crews were dumping large rocks to shore up the levees protecting the DVI state prison and rural Tracy farmland. California Conservation Crews — augmented by prison labor — worked from dawn to dusk to sand bag and tarp various weak points on levees protecting the Manteca side.

 

It is in this rural pocket near the confluence of the Stanislaus and San Joaquin rivers where the first breaks occurred on Jan. 5, 1997 that eventually ended with a series of levees failing and the flooding of more than 35 square miles. Levees protecting River Junction have failed 11 times since 1929.

 

It is against that background that the Manteca City Council Monday night joined other San Joaquin County jurisdictions in embracing a unified, c countywide approach to the flood control problem.

 

The united front is designed to make sure San Joaquin County receives sufficient funding from the latest state flood control bonds. The group also wants to raise the issue of flood control at the national level during the San Joaquin One Voice lobbying trip to Washington, DC., that starts Sunday.

 

The 1997 rural Manteca floods and the close call in April 2006 reflect how various conditions can create flood safety concerns in the Manteca-Lathrop area.

 

River Junction was at ground zero of the 2006 spring flood watch due to extraordinary high snowpack, forced early releases from dams that feed the San Joaquin River, and what had been virtually non-stop spring rains since early March.

 

Adding to the mix were periods of high tides that can raise the water level in the South Delta and effectively create a “two-foot” higher hurdle for run-off to deal with putting more pressure on the levees.

 

It was a different story 10 years ago.

 

Warm rains in late December of 1996 created a huge mid-winter run-off that officials at one point thought could force water over the top of New Melones.

 

Back in 1997, state emergency officials were bracing for the worse.

 

Secondary levees south of Woodward Avenue and those at the Mossdale bend on the San Joaquin River showed signs they were nearing failure.

 

The disaster scenario was quickly drawn up. Failure of the San Joaquin River levee where new boils seemed to be popping up every hour could send water rushing north to Weston Ranch where it would reach the first homes in that south Stockton neighborhood within seven hours.

 

The same break could inundate nearly a half of Lathrop.

 

The assessment of the potential damage from the secondary levee south of Woodward Avenue failure was somewhat better. The Office of Emergency Service envisioned a break sending water rushing toward the Highway 120 Bypass that has been designed for conversion into an emergency levee. Once there, it would pour through the McKinley Avenue undercrossing and spread out threatening the Manteca-Lathrop wastewater treatment plant, a large chunk of the Airport Way corridor and could possible send two to three inches of water into the Sierra High neighborhood.

 

The orders went out: Plug the McKinley Avenue undercrossing of the Highway 120 Bypass and do the same for the Louise Avenue undercrossing of Interstate 5 in Lathrop. Caltrans crews also would be ready to close the Lathrop Road undercrossing of Interstate 5 at a moment’s notice. #

http://www.mantecabulletin.com/articles/2007/04/20/news/news4.txt

 

 

RECREATION FACILITIES:

Hemet, San Jacinto demand promised recreation facilities from water agency

Riverside Press Enterprise – 4/22/07

By Steve Fetbrandt, staff writer

 

SAN JACINTO - San Jacinto officials have joined Hemet city leaders in demanding that Metropolitan Water District keep its promise to build regional recreation facilities on 1,000 acres immediately east of Diamond Valley Lake.

 

Urging the Southern California water wholesaler "in the strongest of terms" to promptly fund and implement the long-awaited East Side Recreation Area, San Jacinto City Council members said Metropolitan needs to make good on the carrot it dangled in front of residents more than a decade ago to garner support for the massive reservoir south of Hemet.

 

Diamond Valley Lake, a $2 billion project on 4,500 acres, opened in 2003. Providing emergency water storage, it is the largest man-made facility of its kind in Southern California.

 

At a meeting with MWD officials in 2005, Hemet officials pointed to the sacrifices residents made to allow the lake's construction, including submersion of sizable tracts of local farmland.

 

Metropolitan spokesman Bob Muir said the water agency is aware of both cities' concerns and has been meeting with Hemet officials.

 

"At this point, we're kind of following the board decision we had in January," he said. "We're in the process of revising our business plan. Right now, the discussion regarding recreation is more internal. But we'd certainly welcome any input the city of San Jacinto wants to offer during the process."

 

Hemet Mayor Marc Searl said earlier that the city is unhappy with Metropolitan's handling of the recreation issue. The city recently hired an attorney to let the water agency know about its displeasure.

 

Irvine attorney Susan Trager did not returned phone calls regarding the legal tack. But in a letter describing her work, Trager said she would help the city in "developing, refining, and implementing a plan of interacting" with the water district. Trager noted that those efforts may lead to litigation.

 

Duane Baker, Hemet's senior assistant city manager, said that while Hemet does not plan to sue Metropolitan at the moment, all options remain open. At the same time, hiring Trager was not just saber-rattling, he said.

 

"It sends a signal. How that signal is taken, I'll leave that up to the folks at Metropolitan Water District to decide," he said. "The first approach is to talk and communicate with them."

 

San Jacinto Mayor Jim Ayres said Searl asked him for support:

 

"Metropolitan's a pretty powerful organization," Ayres said. "If you're going to go to them in a circumstance like this, you need to have your arguments set. Hemet has a pretty fair and just issue, otherwise I wouldn't have supported it."

 

While giving its moral support, San Jacinto did not offer to help Hemet defray legal costs.

 

Metropolitan originally brought leaders of San Jacinto, Hemet and the surrounding area together in 1992 to discuss recreation issues related to the reservoir's construction. The group spent five years working with an MWD consultant to develop a recreation vision and ultimately agreed on the need for a separate lake and swimming lagoon, RV resort and campground, equestrian center and sports field east of the reservoir.

 

The idea of separate swimming facilities grew out of Metropolitan's decision not to allow body contact in the reservoir.

 

Metropolitan has set aside nearly 1,000 acres immediately east of the lake for recreational use. The agency also has earmarked another 731 acres to the north for residential construction along Domenigoni Parkway west of State Street. Both parcels were left over from development of the reservoir.

 

Over the years, the agency has spent millions of dollars on various aspects of recreational planning and construction. It also sought ideas from private developers only to see two ambitious recreation proposals fall through when the builders, following lengthy negotiations, suddenly backed out because of the declining housing market.

 

"We do have a lake that's 4,500 surface acres that's becoming one of the hottest fisheries in the west," Muir said.

 

To date, Metropolitan has spent $60.1 million for recreation-related planning and construction at Diamond Valley Lake, he said.

 

Last June, Valley-Wide Recreation and Park District opened its new $3.5 million aquatic complex on five acres off Searl Parkway. In addition, the nonprofit Western Center for Archaeology and Paleontology launched its new museum and educational center late last year across the street on land leased from Metropolitan for $1 a year.

 

Metropolitan created its own foundation to raise money to construct and operate a Center for Water Education next door on the same campus. Although the water agency actually paid the lion's share of constructing the $24 million facility, it has not opened full time to the public because of financial problems at the foundation. #

http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_B_lake23.3e99e98.html

 

 

STEELHEAD LAWSUIT:

Casitas water board to pursue lawsuit over flow for steelhead

Ventura County Star – 4/21/07

By Zeke Barlow, staff writer

 

The Casitas Municipal Water District board voted Thursday night to continue its lawsuit against the federal government and appeal a decision that put a massive crimp in the district's suit last month.

 

After 25 citizens most of whom were against continuing the suit spoke at a public hearing, the board voted in closed session to move forward with an appeal, which the district's lawyer has promised will cost $45,000. The vote count was not announced.

If the district wins the appeal, it still faces at least an additional $100,000 in legal fees during the trial.

 

While most citizens opposed moving forward, many said water is too precious a resource not to spend the money needed to win a suit and guarantee water for the district, which serves much of western Ventura County.

 

Board member Pete Kaiser said the decision was based on making the best financial decision for the future.

 

So far, the district has spent about $500,000 in the case, claiming the federal government should reimburse the district for water it is mandated to send down a fish ladder for the endangered steelhead trout. The $9 million ladder goes around the Robles Diversion so that steelhead can migrate up and down the Ventura River.

 

The board is appealing U.S. Court of Federal Claims Judge John Wiese's decision handed down last month that said the federal government has a regulatory right to the water, and, therefore, it is not obligated to reimburse Casitas for the water that goes down the ladder. Casitas is claiming the water constitutes a "taking," and the district should be compensated.

 

"The case has not gone as well as many had originally hoped," the district's lawyer, Rob Sawyer, said to the crowd of about 40 people Thursday. The district was originally hoping that Wiese would follow an earlier decision that said the federal government should reimburse a different district for taking water. A settlement of $17 million was later reached.

 

Fifteen of the 25 speakers spoke against continuing the suit and said the district has an obligation to be good stewards of the land and not be involved in what they called a losing battle.

 

"It's time for us to say we are not going to spend any more money and spend our money on conservation," said Ojai resident Kathy Bennett.

 

Paul Jenkin, environmental director for the Ventura chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, who has been fighting the board to protect the steelhead for years, said either way, the district loses.

 

"I don't mind which way you go because if you appeal it you are going to lose, and that will set the issue straight," he said.

 

Former Ojai Mayor David Bury said the district has fought the fish ladder too much, and it needs to move forward and "show we have the vision and foresight to implement policies to preserve the environment."

 

Those in favor of moving forward with the suit said the district has an obligation to look out for the ratepayers' best financial interests and that in the long run, the legal costs are justified.

 

"Water is going to be the big thing," in the future, said Roberta Baptiste. "To spend this amount of money is nothing."

 

Roger Myers, an attorney, said he thinks the case might still be winnable and that the cost of saving the steelhead shouldn't fall on the heads of a few.

 

"In fairness to all taxpayers, they should all pay for the preservation of the steelhead and not just the local ratepayers," he said.

 

Former board member Jim Coultas said if the government wins this case, there is no telling what may happen in the future.

 

"My biggest fear is they will come back in five years and take a whole lot more," he said. After the vote, board member Richard Handley said the district's water delivery budget is now running about a $482,000 deficit about the cost of the case so far and that capital improvements are not being done.

 

Those on the board in favor of the suit liken it to a high stakes poker game where big gambles must be made to win. #

http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2007/apr/21/casitas-water-board-to-pursue-lawsuit-over-flow/

 

 

PROFILE:

Keeping water flowing; Irrigation manager tackles growth, maintenance, communication

Redding Record Searchlight – 4/23/07

By Marc Beauchamp, staff writer

 

Stan Wangberg, general manager of the Anderson Cottonwood Irrigation District (ACID), knows his water is crucial for many in the north state.

 

"This district is a huge asset to this community and an integral part of the lifestyle of a lot of the residents up here," he said.

 

Wangberg, a 56-year-old native of the Chico area, was hired in November 2005. He knows water and its importance to agriculture. He was raised on a 75-acre rice farm, which he ran for 13 years. Before joining ACID, he spent 20 years with the Western Canal Water District, which gets water from the Feather River.

 

Founded in 1914, ACID owns and maintains a 35-mile-long mostly earthen-lined canal that winds its way south from a diversion dam near Redding's Caldwell Park to near the confluence of Cottonwood Creek and the Sacramento River.

 

Water supplied by the canal and several hundred miles of laterals is used by the district's 850-odd customers, who are as varied as owners of one-acre backyard farms to the 606-acre Cottonwood Creek Ranch owned by developer Rod Rodriguez. The water irrigates 6,700 acres in all. Most of it is used for grazing land, a bit for walnut groves.

 

"We do help sustain the agricultural lifestyle," said Wangberg, a soft-spoken man clad in blue jeans and a cowboy shirt, sitting in the district's modest cinderblock building near Anderson City Hall.

 

Issues related to growth in the north state occupy much of Wangberg's attention. Subdivisions and retail centers are taking land that used to be served by ACID. "We don't irrigate nearly as much around Redding as we used to," he said.

 

In addition, he needs to worry about maintaining the canals and pipelines as urban areas spread.

 

"We want to make sure there are no permanent structures over our easements," he explained. "We don't want to knock down someone's garage to maintain our pipeline."

 

Development plans are "stacked everywhere" in the district's office, Wangberg said.

 

Liability issues loom as houses and people encroach on the ACID canal, Wangberg said. The city of Redding, for example, is exploring the idea of a trail along the canal in the Parkview neighborhood.

 

"If children are using that ... that 56-degree water is very cold," he said. "It's a concern."

 

The district's customers pay $69 an acre for water plus a $115 annual application fee, which helps offset administrative costs.

 

About a quarter of ACID's annual $1 million annual budget is used to operate and maintain the canal and related infrastructure.

 

More than half the budget goes to salaries and benefits for the district's 11 full-time and seasonal employees. Inmates from Sugar Pine Conservation Camp are used to clear vegetation from the canals and laterals.

 

Under a new 40-year contract with the federal Bureau of Reclamation, signed in 2005, the district gets 121,000 acre-feet at no charge. Additionally, it gets another 4,000 acre-feet from the Central Valley Project (CVP), for which it pays $27.86 an acre-foot, roughly $12 more than what it paid under a 40-year contract negotiated in the early '60s.

 

"CVP water (which costs the district about $83,000 a year) is very expensive," Wangberg said. (An acre-foot is 325,900 gallons, enough water to cover an acre to the depth of one foot.)

 

Some ACID customers complained that negotiations for the new contract were conducted largely in secret, leading to several investigations by the Shasta County grand jury. Former general manager Dee Swearingen's contract was not renewed 2005.

 

For his part, Wangberg is trying to stress customer service. In a Jan. 27, 2005, letter to customers, he wrote: "One of our goals at ACID is to promote and improve communication with our customers." The district's responsibilities include "prompt attention to problems and concerns that its customers may be experiencing," he said.

 

He's also implemented new regulations governing public comments at the monthly meetings of ACID's five-member board of directors. In its 2005 report on ACID, the Shasta County grand jury wrote that it "witnessed arguing between board members and rudeness toward public attendees ... public input was not encouraged during the consideration of agenda items." The jury exhorted board members to "adopt and maintain a professional demeanor during public meetings."

 

One of Wangberg's most daunting challenges is ACID's aging infrastructure, including the unlined canal, which ACID itself described as "inadequate or antiquated."

 

The district has about $1.5 million in reserves.

 

"The need for capital improvements far exceeds our capital funds," Wangberg said. #

http://www.redding.com/news/2007/apr/23/keeping-water-flowing/

 

 

WATER SAVING WASHING MACHINES:

State plans suit over washing machine rules

Los Angeles Times – 4/21/07

By Elizabeth Douglas, staff writer

 

Hoping to salvage strict water-saving rules for washing machines, the California Energy Commission said Friday that it had notified the agency that blocked the rules that it would be filing suit.

The commission also said it had asked a federal court to review the action by the U.S. Energy Department, in the latest legal skirmish stemming from California's push for more stringent regulations covering water and energy use, air emissions and other environmental threats.

In this case, California asked the Energy Department for permission to set more stringent rules on water efficiency for household clothes washers, contending that the state has unique water and energy challenges that make federal regulations insufficient.

Without a waiver from the federal agency, states are prohibited from imposing efficiency standards that conflict with federal requirements.

"It is undeniable that California faces special, urgent and important water and energy challenges," the state told the agency. "In this era of dangerous and precarious energy dependence and dwindling water supplies, such specialized state efficiency standards matter."

Energy Department officials rejected California's waiver request in late December, ruling that the state failed to establish that it had "unusual and compelling water interests" and that the proposed state rules probably would eliminate cheap and popular top-loading washers from the California market.

The department denied California's request to reconsider the decision in late February, said Jonathan Blees, assistant chief counsel for the Energy Commission.

Blees said the state would argue in court that the federal government failed to consider information submitted by the state and mischaracterized the effective dates of the California regulations. He disputed the notion that top-loading washers wouldn't be able to comply with California's rules.

"An agency ignoring evidence in the record that's counter to its decision … is simply illegal," Blees said. "You're not allowed to do that when you make a decision."

Under federal law, an intent-to-sue notice must be sent to the agency 60 days before the state can sue in federal court.

Attempts to reach an Energy Department spokeswoman for comment were unsuccessful.

A 2002 state law ordered the Energy Commission to set rules for washing machines that would substantially cut water usage. The rules were set to kick in next year and required household washers to use no more than 8.5 gallons per cubic foot of laundry, a nearly 50% reduction in water use compared with models on the market in 2004, the commission said. The limit was to be lowered further in 2010.

The state hoped that the rules would help cut water use. But it also was eyeing the amount of energy that could be saved if less wastewater from washers had to be pumped to and processed at sewage treatment plants. There also would be less electricity and natural gas expended heating water for washing machines.

Appliance makers urged the Energy Department to reject the waiver request, arguing that the state "failed to show that a residential clothes washer water standard would significantly alleviate California's water or energy problems."

In addition, manufacturers said the standards would hurt the appliance industry and lower-income buyers by in effect prohibiting the sale of top-loading washers in California.

Blees said that the state's appeal of the waiver rejection was filed in the 9th District Court of Appeals in San Francisco and that the lawsuit would be filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-washers21apr21,1,1025604.story?coll=la-headlines-business

 

 

LOCAL WATER DISTRICT ISSUES:

Editorial: Fruitridge's Uncity; Water problems point to neglected 'pocket'

Sacramento Bee – 4/23/07

 

An old water main broke the other day in a neighborhood known as Fruitridge Vista, outside Sacramento's city limits. The gushing water started to flood nearby yards and garages. The Sacramento Fire Department showed up, but it didn't know how to turn off the water mains.

 

Firefighters called the small private water company that provides water to the area. They had to leave a message. Eventually the Fruitridge Vista Water Co. realized it had a problem. Once again, the company and firefighters pledge better communications.

 

Yes, the incident exposed a glitch in the water company's 24-hour customer service system but, more important, the problems of government boundaries and government services.

 

This community, part of what is known as the Fruitridge Pocket, belongs in the city of Sacramento. Its services, including water, should be provided by the city. Its leader should be a member of the Sacramento City Council fighting hard for the community, just as Bonnie Pannell does for Meadowview and Lauren Hammond for Oak Park.

 

On a map, the area juts like a strange finger surrounded largely on three sides by Sacramento. The tip is to the north, at 14th Avenue. And then it jigs southward, bordered at times by Stockton Boulevard to the east and the old Western Pacific railroad tracks to the west.

 

If city limits were drawn sensibly for residents, fire departments and water providers, this pocket wouldn't exist. A key southern boundary for Sacramento would be moved, possibly to Florin Road or beyond. It would take some experts at the Sacramento County Local Agency Formation Commission to help figure that out.

 

In any unincorporated community, there are longtime residents who don't want to join anything. The turf of the water company and some small government districts would be challenged. The same goes for Sacramento County, nominally in charge of that area. It is far easier to neglect the struggling neighborhoods of the Fruitridge Pocket than for Sacramento to try to adopt them.

 

Maybe, however, Sacramento leaders will find the gumption to take on this project. The city is reviewing its growth document, known as the general plan. So it's the right time to consider boundary changes.

 

The Fruitridge Pocket neither makes sense on a map nor in reality. When the Fire Department doesn't know how to turn off a water main or whom to call, that is a sign of a dysfunctional community. This community needs a home and a government looking after the people who live there. #

http://www.sacbee.com/110/story/159431.html

 

 

LAKE OROVILLE FACILITIES:

Lake Oroville dam overlook mystery

Oroville Mercury Register – 4/23/07

By Mary Weston, staff writer

 

Residents like Paul and Cindy Tyler have wondered about the big hole in the parking lot above the Upper Overlook of the Lake Oroville Dam.

 

"Right now there is a two-foot-deep hole maybe 10 feet by 20 feet with lots of large re-bar in it," Paul Tyler wrote in an e-mail. "Yesterday they installed what appears to be a pedestal for something very large."

 

The mysterious hole is located in the parking lot above the restrooms at the upper intersection of Canyon Drive and Royal Oaks Drive.

 

It was an overlook that was used during the construction of the Dam in the 1960's and has since been abandoned, Tyler wrote. Locals use the area to walk and as a place for their children to ride bikes.

 

Sometime in the near future, DWR will be moving the pump/turbine wheel, previously removed from Hyatt Unit 6, to this location, the Upper Overlook, where it will be placed for public exhibit, said Bill Cochran of the California Department of Water Resources.

 

Ultimately, the old wheel will be a part of the interpretive exhibit also to be placed at this location. This work will be just one of the many improvements to be made at this site, Cochran said, as part of relicensing.

 

As a part of the settlement agreement now under consideration by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission as new license conditions for the Oroville Facilities, DWR has proposed making a wide variety of enhancements to recreation facilities throughout the project area, Cochran said.

 

Enhancements at the Upper-Overlook area would include improvements to the trail leading from the Overlook down to the Dam, 4-5 picnic tables, shade ramadas and interpretive panels.

 

"The pump/turbine wheel is an impressive piece of equipment," Cochran said.

 

Weighing 212,000 pounds, it is a massive piece of steel, more than 19 feet in diameter. The wheel was installed during the initial construction of the Hyatt Powerplant in Oroville Dam, and was in service from 1968 through 2006 when it was removed, Cochran said.

 

Generating over 132 megawatts of clean, hydroelectric power, the Hyatt Unit 6 is being refurbished to be even more efficient. The wheel replacement is a part of this refurbishment. #
http://www.orovillemr.com/search/ci_5729134

DWR's California Water News is distributed to California Department of Water Resources management and staff, for information purposes, by the DWR Public Affairs Office. For reader's services, including new subscriptions, temporary cancellations and address changes, please use the online page: http://listhost2.water.ca.gov/mailman/listinfo/water_news. DWR operates and maintains the State Water Project, provides dam safety and flood control and inspection services, assists local water districts in water management and water conservation planning, and plans for future statewide water needs. Inclusion of materials is not to be construed as an endorsement of any programs, projects, or viewpoints by the Department or the State of California.