Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation for DWR personnel of significant news articles and comment
May 3, 2007
1. Top Item
Water pump shutdown would have far-reaching consequences
By Alex Breitler, staff writer
The California Aqueduct ships water toward
A potential shutdown of the pumps at the head of the aqueduct would cut off water to the
"It would be very upsetting if we had nothing but a desert there," said Stockton Vietnam War veteran Tino Adame. His father-in-law is buried at the cemetery.
Merchant Marine Richard Lopez served in the Pacific during World War II.
The cemetery is just one example of the less obvious consequences of shutting down the pumps near
The Department of Water Resources has about 45 days to comply with the law or the pumps will be turned off, according to the judge's ruling.
Much attention has been given to the large users, like the Metropolitan Water District, which supplies 18 million people in
But court documents filed in an unsuccessful protest of the judge's ruling detail claims of impacts closer to home:
» Century-old vineyards near
The vineyards are watered through the Alameda County Flood Control and Water Conservation District's Zone 7, which gets 80 percent of its water from the state.
"It would be ugly," said vintner Phil Wente of Wente Vineyards, which dates back to 1883. "It would be devastating for us."
» The Oak Flat Water District near Patterson, comprising just a half-dozen farms, could lose its almond crops without state water.
The district is nourished by aqueduct flows upstream from San Luis Reservoir. That is key, because the reservoir could be used by the state to satisfy at least some downstream needs.
"We're certainly taking this threat very seriously," said Bill Harrison, Oak Flat's manager. "There are a lot of people who rely on those pumps."
» Bay Area cities such as
Some of these areas could see water rationing and poorer water quality if they lose deliveries from the state, court documents say.
» San Luis Reservoir and other lakes could be drawn down severely, the state says, harming fish and recreation and perhaps creating dust storms as the wind whips up exposed lake-bed soils.
Court papers warn of unsightly "bathtub rings" at reservoirs and even the possibility for American Indian artifacts, normally hidden beneath the water line, to be vandalized.
Bill Jennings, whose California Sportfishing Protection Alliance brought the lawsuit challenging the pumps, said the suit is not about depriving anyone of water.
"We're just saying you might want to think in terms of reducing the overall level of exports," he said.
Back at the cemetery, director Ralph Bennett said a project is under way to irrigate some burial areas that until now have been covered by native grasses that turn brown like weeds in the summertime.
The goal is to make the grounds more attractive, he said. Also on the property is a Korean War veterans memorial surrounded by irrigated gardens.
All that is needed is about 100 acre-feet per year from the aqueduct, nothing next to Metropolitan's allocation of 1.3 million acre-feet.
But losing even that relatively small amount of water would be a problem, Bennett said.
"People need to know about this," he said. #
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070503/A_NEWS/705030332
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