[Water_news] 5. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS: AGENCIES, PROGRAMS, PEOPLE - 7/31/07
Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
July 31, 2007
5. Agencies, Programs, People
SANTA CLARA VALLEY WATER DISTRICT:
Santa Clara water district limits CEO's power; EXECUTIVE REGRETS UPROAR OVER HIRING - San Jose Mercury News
IMPERIAL IRRIGATION DISTRICT:
IID facing challenges - Imperial Valley Press
Hosken: ‘I’m not bitter’ -
SANTA CLARA VALLEY WATER DISTRICT:
By Paul Rogers, staff writer
The Santa Clara Valley Water District's chief executive issued a public apology Monday for hiring one of the agency's board members to a newly created $184,000-a-year job without interviewing other candidates, a move that had brought charges of favoritism and bureaucracy run amok.
Even as CEO Stan Williams for the first time acknowledged mistakes, the district's board responded by stripping him of key powers and promising to keep closer watch on how the agency is run.
"I want to publicly apologize to the board for the time you're having to spend on this issue and that it's become such a hot potato," Williams said at a special meeting of the district's board in
By a 6-0 vote, board members approved a motion stating that Williams can no longer hire any of the agency's 33 top managers without their approval. They also removed the chief financial officer, clerk of the board and district counsel from Williams' authority, requiring the trio to report to the board instead. And they imposed a "revolving door" policy that bans the agency from hiring board members for at least one year.
"What we wanted to do was assure the public we are in control. What matters to the public matters to us," said Tony Estremera, chairman of the district board. "We are setting limits that weren't set previously."
The water district provides drinking water and flood protection to 1.8 million
Adviser to CEO
In June, controversy erupted when Williams hired board member Greg Zlotnick as "special counsel to the CEO" without advertising the job or interviewing other applicants. Zlotnick, 43, is a
Board members called Monday's special meeting to adopt reforms.
A chastened Williams told them he acted "precipitously" and regretted it.
"The way the decision was made, I think, appears not to have been correct at this time," Williams said. "`At the time it felt like it was the right thing to do. But it certainly brought attention to the fact that we may need to revise some of our policies."
Williams said that he hired Zlotnick to advise the district on delta water issues and global warming because the water supply from
Zlotnick was once a water adviser to the administration of Gov. Pete Wilson.
Williams told the board that although the water district already has 16 people working on delta issues, several other water agencies recently hired top delta experts.
"Seeing the other agencies are staffed at a higher level, I figured it would be good for us to bring somebody in at a higher level," Williams said.
He cited the Metropolitan Water District in
Williams said that Zlotnick's $184,000-a-year salary is comparable to what Philp is paid. Asked by the Mercury News, however, Bob Muir, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Water District, said Monday that Philp is paid $155,000 a year. In addition, the MWD is considerably larger than the Santa Clara Valley district, with 18 million customers - 10 times Santa Clara Valley's - and a budget of $1.8 billion - five times Santa Clara Valley's.
Throughout the four-hour meeting Monday, Santa Clara Valley Water District board members made it clear they weren't happy.
"It was legal," said board member Joe Judge of the decision to hire Zlotnick. "But I lost confidence in judgment, and I want to impose a limitation on what the CEO can do."
Longtime board member Sig Sanchez had other questions about oversight. He asked Williams to provide a list of all travel expenses from water district employees over the past year.
"I have to think our travel costs are high," he said.
The board members also approved a new rule requiring that any openings to the 33 "unclassified" positions at the district not only be approved by them but also filled after a competitive interview process. Board member Rosemary Kamei wanted all 33 jobs - which are not included in a union and which have been subject to hiring and firing at Williams' pleasure - to be publicly advertised.
But board member Larry Wilson and several other board members argued that Williams should continue to have some discretion.
Political reality
In a report last year, the
The water district's reforms now go to its staff, which will draft the legal language before coming back to the board for a final vote Aug. 14.
Underlying the change is a political reality.
http://www.mercurynews.com/localnewsheadlines/ci_6505662?nclick_check=1
IMPERIAL IRRIGATION DISTRICT:
IID facing challenges
By Darren Simon, staff writer
Two weeks after he was fired as general manager of the Imperial Irrigation District, Charles Hosken said he has no plans to leave the Valley.
“My preference would be to stay in the Valley.
“I’ve had some opportunities out of the Valley, but nothing is imminent,” he said.
Hosken said if there were opportunities in the Valley he would stay.
He plans to continue his service as board members of the Imperial Valley College Foundation and the
Hosken, who lives with his wife in the home they purchased in Holtville, said he loves the Valley and that is one reason he would want to stay.
He also said he wants to see IID thrive into the future but there are challenges.
For one, Hosken said the district needs to continue efforts to implement the 75-year quantification settlement agreement, a pact meant to end water wars over the use of the
But, he said it will not be easy.
“We have to conserve over 400,000 acre-feet a year of water,” he said. “It will be a challenge based on budget constraints.”
He also said the district has to work on improving its flow of information.
He said managers and the board need to make decisions on what he called “actionable information” from IID’s computer systems.
But, Hosken said, what the district computer systems are providing is data that is difficult to utilize for reaching informed decisions.
Also, Hosken said the district needs to do better planning as to the future of its energy service.
“There has been a lack of long-term strategic thinking,” he said.
Specifically, he said the district has a large energy-transmission system as well as a large energy-generation system, which he said is both costly and unusual.
He said most organizations either focus on transmission or generation to meet their power demands.
He said the district on its energy side has to decide “what we want to be when we grow up.”
For example, he said, the district could tap into energy from two American-owned power plants in
“These are economic decisions, they should not be emotional,” he said.
Hosken said if he had been given more time, he could have led the district through the issues it is facing.
That point aside, Hosken credited IID for its ongoing service to the community.
“I’ve been in the industry for nearly three decades,” he said. “This is one of the harshest climates for an electric system, must less a ditch irrigation system.
“Yet IID keeps the lights on and the water flowing,” he said. #
http://www.ivpressonline.com/articles/2007/07/31/news/news02.txt
Hosken: ‘I’m not bitter’
By Darren Simon, staff writer
When Charles Hosken speaks about the issues facing the Imperial Irrigation District, a force of habit causes him to speak in first person — “we” — as if he was still in a position to lead the district into the future.
He isn’t.
Two weeks ago the IID Board of Directors voted to fire him by a 4-1 vote less than two years into his three-year contract as district general manager.
His firing came about shortly after an investigation — one he initiated — found district policies had been violated in an IID energy-trading program and millions of dollars were spent beyond parameters.
But Hosken wasn’t at the helm of the district when the trading program began, and he was barely mentioned in the investigation.
So why was Hosken fired?
Board members have been mum because of a nondisparagement clause in Hosken’s contract.
What little has been said by some board members is that there were other concerns in the district beyond energy trading, like a lack of information.
Another concern was over an energy cost adjustment increase to ratepayers, a cost increase that has, in part, been linked to the energy-trading scandal. The ECA did occur during Hosken’s tenure.
The ECA is that cost paid by ratepayers for IID fuel expenses.
Despite directors raising such concerns, they have not specifically pegged those issues on Hosken or named them as reasons for his firing.
And Hosken, who received six months of pay worth more than $100,000 as a severance package, won’t say much about the board’s action to fire him — again in light of the clause.
POLITICS
Hosken, interviewed Monday about his tenure with the district, will not say whether he thinks his firing was wrapped around politics.
But he will say when he began his tenure he did not think his stay with the district would be long.
“I was concerned as to whether I would be able to fulfill my three-year contract,” he said.
“When I came here I would have liked to have retired here, but I did not see that in the cards,” he said.
A year into Hosken’s tenure there was a drastic shift in the makeup of the IID board as three new directors took office.
Hosken would not comment on the impacts of any internal politics on his tenure.
One IID director, John Pierre Menvielle, who cast the one vote to keep Hosken, said it was a politically motivated vote.
“There were certain things board members wanted done that weren’t good for the company, and Charlie wasn’t going to play ball,” said IID Director John Pierre Menvielle, the one director who voted against firing Hosken.
He declined to speak about what “certain things” board members wanted done, but Menvielle did say the two board members who wanted Hosken fired were directors James Hanks and Mike Abatti.
“They managed to get a third vote and the fourth vote got scared and ran with the pack,” Menvielle said.
Menvielle said the third vote he spoke of was issued by board President Stella Mendoza and the fourth vote came from Director Anthony Sanchez.
Menvielle also was critical of his fellow board members, saying: “They fired the general manager without a plan B.”
But, she said, “Each director is entitled to make his or her own decision. While I understand Mr. Menvielle’s decision in Mr. Hosken’s termination, I have my own reasons and I stand by them.
“Plan B was to appoint Elston Grubaugh as acting general manager,” she said. “Mr. Grubaugh has 17 years experience and he is capable of doing a fine job.”
Grubaugh, the district’s assistant general manager, was named acting manager a day after Hosken was fired.
THE HEDGING ISSUE
While
“When the report came out on hedging, I had a strong sense the board needed to take action. I was the only person basically the board could reprimand,” Hosken said.
He said the board needed to take some action against him, and it was either going to be time off without pay or termination.
When he was notified of the firing, Hosken said he was not surprised.
While Hosken wouldn’t comment much on his firing, he did say there is one issue in the district — aside from hedging — that could have played a role.
It is one issue board members have said needs to be improved. That issue is the flow of information.
“It was my responsibility to provide information and I did that to the best of my ability,” he said.
But, he said, there were times when board members had more information on issues than he did through their contacts in the district.
“They knew other information that I was not giving them,” he said, adding that made it look like “I was uninformed or I was withholding information, and both of those are bad things.”
Hosken said that could have had a bearing on his termination.
Of his termination, Hosken said: “I’m not bitter. I’m a big boy. I know the game. I love IID. There are a lot of really good people at IID. I want IID to do well.” #
http://www.ivpressonline.com/articles/2007/07/31/news/news01.txt
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[Water_news] 4. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS: WATER QUALITY - 7/31/07
Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
July 31, 2007
4. Water Quality
BEACH RUNOFF ISSUES:
Owners want their beach; Water board has ordered rock barrier be replaced - San Diego Union Tribune
WASTEWATER:
Editorial: Steam ahead; Sending more wastewater to Geysers is good in short term - Santa Rosa Press Democrat
BEACH RUNOFF ISSUES:
Owners want their beach; Water board has ordered rock barrier be replaced
By Janine Zuniga, staff writer
The property owners have appealed the Regional Water Quality Control Board's order requiring them to immediately replace the rocks, concrete and debris that was used to stabilize the shoreline with clean rocks. The owners prefer the sandy beach they found when the debris was removed last year.
“We've created this safe, environmentally friendly, wonderful place for people and we would hate to see this covered by rocks,” said Bill Dickerson, a
Officials from local, state and federal agencies say the Dickersons and their next-door neighbors, Larry and Penelope Gunning of Scottsdale, Ariz., didn't get government approval before creating the 162-foot-long beach. The owners' contractor also built a concrete-block wall without permits, a portion of which
Authorities discovered their makeshift mini beach in June 2006. In October, the regional water board ordered the neighbors to remove the wall and stabilize the shoreline. The deadline to do so was July 2.
Frank Melbourn, an investigator for the water board, said the agency postponed that deadline because it believed the owners were waiting for a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers allowing them to replace the rocks.
Dickerson said he is waiting for the corps permit, but also appealing the regional board's decision to the State Water Resources Control Board. He said he would like to keep the beach open for public use.
Dickerson said many people have enjoyed the beach since the rocks and debris were removed.
“People come here and swim and walk their dogs,” he said. “Someone set up an umbrella on the beach the other day. It was packed on the Fourth of July.”
The issue began more than two years ago after the Dickersons' contractor received approval from the port, the corps and water board to replace the riprap on their bayfront with clean rocks. The riprap – a mix of rock, concrete, asphalt and pieces of lumber – was dangerously sharp and filled with litter, Dickerson said. The riprap was removed and the wall built. Dickerson's contractor did similar work for the Gunnings, at
Port officials worry that the absence of riprap will destabilize the shoreline and harm eelgrass, a type of sea grass that grows in beds on marine floors.
Dickerson disagrees. A biologist contracted to observe and monitor the eelgrass recorded normal seasonal fluctuations, he said.
Dickerson differs with other rulings from the water board about the wall as well. Dickerson said his measurements show the wall is not 7 inches on state land as authorities have said. He also said the structure is a retaining wall that will support the underground portion of a home he is building. It was never intended as a sea wall, he said.
“Were mistakes made?” Dickerson said. “Yes. Let's rectify it. If they want us to cut the 7 inches off, then we'll do it. If they want us to put the rocks back on, then we will. But we're still going to appeal and try to get the beach back.”
He said more than 200 residents have signed a petition in support of keeping the beach. #
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20070731/news_1m31riprap.html
WASTEWATER:
Editorial: Steam ahead; Sending more wastewater to Geysers is good in short term
Santa Rosa Press Democrat – 7/31/07
Here are a few of the reasons why
The water will help create clean, green energy.
The amount of wastewater released into the Laguna de
The existing $250 million pipeline has the capacity to hold the proposed 50 percent increase.
Calpine would pay the city $300,000 annually to help offset pumping costs.
Given these benefits, the Board of Public Utilities and the City Council should move forward with the proposed new contract. In the long-term, however, the city needs to consider the high value of waste water as a substitute for potable water.
As
To that end, the city should continue talks with north county grape growers who want to siphon off some of the water being sent to The Geysers. By using wastewater to irrigate vineyards, farmers would no longer need to pump fresh water from wells near the
In addition, the city should pursue plans to irrigate urban landscapes with wastewater. It is critical that public spaces remain green as more Santa Rosans remove lawns out of economic necessity or with assistance from the "Cash for Grass" program.
Dramatically expanding the amount of wastewater used for irrigation presents financial and political challenges. Reservoirs and piping systems are expensive to build, and critics are concerned about both growth implications and the trace chemicals left in the water after treatment.
The final benefit of a new contract with The Geysers: It gives the city breathing room to address these issues, while working towards a future in which wastewater would replace potable water for many uses.
http://www1.pressdemocrat.com/article/20070731/NEWS/707310322/1043/OPINION01
[Water_news] 3. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS: WATERSHEDS - 7/31/07
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
July 31, 2007
3. Watersheds
Fishermen decry political tampering - Eureka Times Standard
Money adding up for sea fix - Imperial Valley Press
Fishermen decry political tampering
By James Faulk, staff writer
Congress, beginning today, is investigating Cheney's role -- if any -- in denying sufficient water for salmon in the Klamath River to support farmers in the upper
On Monday, several fishermen called in from their boats to attend a conference call with the group Earth Justice and described the impacts such management decisions had on their livelihoods.
Dave Bitts, a salmon fisherman out of
”When our opportunity to fish is attacked in this manner, it's not just us but it's the future of the fish themselves that's under attack,” Bitts said. “For 30 years, we've been learning to be stewards of the resources and do what we can to make sure that these fish can thrive in the rivers and in the ocean -- if we're driven off the ocean, we're not going to be able to do that anymore.”
The House hearing, scheduled before the House Natural Resources Committee, is being called “Crisis of confidence: The political influence of the Bush Administration on agency science and decision-making.”
House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Nick Rahall agreed to conduct hearings after Rep. Mike Thompson and 35 lawmakers from
The article covers Cheney's involvement in
Al Ritter, a fishermen out of
Those who have been in the business for a number of years can, maybe, withstand such a terrible season, but those younger fishermen who've just gotten into the business are really hurting, he said.
And there's already a limited number of young people in the business, he said.
”This is the closest we've ever come to losing this industry in all the years I've been doing this,” he said. “It'd be a crying shame to lose this.”
It's become political, he said.
”We're the ones that are paying,” Ritter said.
Larry Collins, out of
The mismanagement of water resources hurts the fishing industry, he said, and can hinder fishermen from keeping up with boat maintenance and making insurance payments. It can even force people to find land jobs to supplement their income, he said.
It also weakens the fishermen's associations, and dwindles
It's bad when the public loses access to its own resources, he said, “especially because of a cheap political stunt like this.”
Kristen Bolyes of Earth Justice, who moderated the teleconference, said political interference on matters surrounding endangered species has been a hallmark of the Bush Administration.
The 2002
Regulators then severely limited the amount of fish allowed to salmon fishermen to protect the dwindling stocks. Because authorities regulate for the least healthy river systems, fishermen had to dramatically curtail their catch -- especially in 2005 -- to protect Klamath salmon, despite the fact that salmon from other river systems were abundant.
For every Klamath fish saved by the fishing restrictions., fishermen had to pass up between 50 to 100 salmon from other rivers, Bitts said.
Fisherman Duncan MacLean of El Granada said he hopes the hearings aren't the end of the discussion.
”I think it's unreasonable and unfair and unjust what has happened here to us, and I think there should be more than just a hearing ... because what they've done to these coastal communities is criminal and somebody should have to pay for it,” he said.
The water management plan favored by Cheney, and eventually adopted for the
But a new plan is expected in 2008, and given the history, fishermen and others are worried about what will be proposed, she said.
Meanwhile, a broad group of parties with stakes in the
Tribes, irrigators, fishermen and others released a statement last week saying they have come up with a framework for addressing the wide-ranging issues. The groups should have a final agreement by November, they said. #
http://www.times-standard.com/local/ci_6506664
Money adding up for sea fix
By Jonathan Athens, staff writer
One million here, one million over there … pretty soon we’ll be talking about big money.
That may be the refrain when it comes to what state and federal lawmakers are now willing to spend on restoring the decaying
U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., is the latest politician to join the list of those announcing more money to pay for restoration of the largest land-locked body of water in
The Democratic chairwoman of the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee announced Friday there is $30 million available for restoration through the Water Resources Development Act.
That sum comes on top of a proposed $47 million in a bill sponsored by state Sen. Denise Moreno Ducheny, D-San Diego. Add in another $12.5 million that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is proposing, $13 million proposed by state lawmakers, plus $2 million from U.S. Rep. Bob Filner, D-Chula Vista, and the grand total being proposed at the state and federal levels amounts to $104.5 million.
“We’re on the cusp of exciting times,” said Rick Daniels, executive director of the Salton Sea Authority, one of the leading umbrella organizations pushing hard for the restoration to commence.
>From about early 2003 through May 2007, “a rough total of about $21.3 million has been spent on Salton Sea Restoration activities,” the California Department of Finance reported.
Finance Department Program Budget Manager Karen Finn, at the request of the Imperial Valley Press, provided a detailed list of what that money was spent on during those years.
“This figure represents both Department of Water Resources and Department of Fish and Game staff salary and wages and all costs associated with staff time. It includes a number of studies; data collection; meeting preparation, attendance and implementation; coordination with federal local and other state agencies; as well as public outreach meetings in and around the
Daniels said the proposed $104.5 million means lawmakers and stakeholders are reaching a major turning point in efforts to restore and revitalize the decaying body of water, considered in the 1950s to be
It means “the talking and studying is over and we’ll be able to start doing some the real work on the ground,” Daniels said.
State lawmakers, however, are at a budget impasse along party lines. Within the proposed $145 billion state budget is the $25.5 million for the sea proposed by Schwarzenegger and state lawmakers.
Daniels said he’s confident that money will be approved at some point. One side of the political divide will “blink” signaling the end of the showdown, he said.
The proposed $104.5 million, however, represents only a proverbial drop in the fiscal bucket when compared to the estimated $8.9 billion it will cost to completely restore and revitalize the
That plan, expected to take 75 years to complete, was crafted by the California Resources Agency, and is in the hands of state lawmakers. It outlines a long list of various mechanisms by which restoration efforts can be funded on the state and federal levels.
The first steps toward restoration include creating a wildlife habitat, reducing salinity of the water and building a dam to offset water transfers that are slated to begin in 2017. #
http://www.ivpressonline.com/articles/2007/07/31/news/news04.txt
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[Water_news] 2. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS: SUPPLY - 7/31/07
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
July 31, 2007
2. Supply
City's PUC accused of water grab - San Francisco Chronicle
DELTA WATER:
Water from Kern Delta staying in the county - Channel 29 News (
City's PUC accused of water grab
San Francisco Chronicle – 7/31/07
By Peter Fimrite, staff writer
Two major conservation groups accused the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission today of trying to siphon more water out of the
The Tuolumne River Trust and the Pacific Institute has released a 51-page report that says the PUC has overestimated future water demands and underestimated the effectiveness of conservation when coming up with its water plan for the next 23 years.
At issue is where the water will come from to serve 2.4 million residents and thousands of businesses in four counties -
"What we found is that all the increased water demand is from the wholesale customers, mostly for outdoor landscaping," said Eric Wesselman, executive director of the trust. "So we're talking about diverting water from a wild and scenic river and using it for lawns."
The issue stems from a $4.3 billion plan to rebuild the Hetch Hetchy system, the labyrinth of pipelines, pumping stations and tunnels built in 1923 that brings Tuolumne River water from O'Shaughnessy Dam to San Francisco.
The 10-year upgrade of the 167-mile aqueduct, which starts in
As part of that plan, the commission issued a draft environmental report last month on how it would meet water demands through 2030 of the 28 water agencies that buy its water.
The problem for conservationists is that the PUC's preferred plan calls for 25 million gallons of more water a day to be diverted from the
"One of the purposes of doing an ... environmental review is to look at the alternatives to meet the needs of our customers," said Tony Winnicker, spokesman for the PUC. "We have a responsibility to meet the projected water supply needs of the region for the future, but we also have a responsibility to protect the
The PUC delivers an average of 265 million gallons of water a day to customers. By 2030, the demand is expected to average 300 million gallons a day, Winnicker said.
The plan, as it stands, is to get 10 million gallons of that through conservation, recycled water and new groundwater projects. The rest would come from the
But the Tuolumne Trust report says the PUC used flawed data when it projected that water demand in its Bay Area service territory would increase 14 percent by 2030. It also said all the extra water would go to wholesale customers in
Heather Cooley, a senior research associate for the Pacific Institute think tank, said the PUC erroneously projected uniform growth in various industries. The commission also used different models for retail and wholesale customers, she said.
"The bottom line is that the analysis they did is inadequate," Cooley said. "There is still a tremendous amount of water conservation and efficiency that is possible and they should look at these before they consider going to the
The issue is particularly serious now, as climate experts warn global warming will cause smaller snowpacks - the source of most of the state's river water.
The Tuolumne winds 162 miles through mountains and wilderness before it joins the
Some 60 percent of the river's water is already being diverted for agricultural or urban uses. Environmentalists say any plan to increase reliance on such a sensitive river would be suspect. Making matters worse, though, according to Wesselman, is the fact that the long-term water sales agreement between
That means whatever plan is adopted now will be set in stone until 2030, even if a prolonged drought hits the region, he said.
"I think it is common knowledge that relying on this one source will be less reliable with global warming," Wesselman said. "We should be a leader in sustainable water use. Even if it turns out we do need more water, the cheapest and fastest way to meet our needs are through conservation and recycling locally."
Winnicker said several alternatives are under consideration, including more conservation and recycling.
Which plan is adopted, he said, will be hashed out in five public meetings in September. The 90-day public comment period for the environmental report ends Oct. 1.
Online resources
Learn more about the San Francisco PUC's water plans:
Read the report released today
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/07/31/BA5KR9UBQ2.DTL&hw=water&sn=001&sc=1000
DELTA WATER:
Water from Kern Delta staying in the county
Channel 29 News (
The City of
Friday, Judge Glen Reiser of the Ventura County Superior Court ruled the Kern Delta Water District can't radically change the use of the
The ruling says that Kern Delta violated state law by failing to review the impact of the change on the local environment and the community.
This comes in the midst of increasing worries over state water supplies in response to environmentalists' concern over delta smelt. #
http://www.eyeoutforyou.com/news/local/8778952.html
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