Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
December 18, 2007
5. Agencies, Programs, People
DELTA ACTION URGED:
Task force urges immediate action to save the Delta -
Blue Ribbon Task Force Releases Vision for the
RATE CHANGES:
Cal Am proposal targets heavy users; Company says plan may ease water costs for average home - Monterey Herald
DELTA ACTION URGED:
Task force urges immediate action to save the Delta
Immediate and coordinated action is needed to preserve
The report makes 12 recommendations and several proposed near-term actions to protect the Delta ecosystem and the state’s water supply. About 23 million Californians – from the Central Valley and Bay Area to
“The Delta is in crisis and each day brings us closer to a major disaster, be it from flooding, from the decline of important fish species, or from court-ordered reductions in the amount of water that can be pumped for the state’s water supply,” says Phil Isenberg, chairman of the task force, which was appointed in February by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to develop a long-term sustainable vision for the Delta by the end of the year, and an implementation plan by October 2008.
The Delta, formed by
The report says the recommendations are linked and meant to be implemented together. “The Delta cannot be ‘fixed’ by any single action. No matter what policy choices are made, we Californians are compelled to change the ways we behave toward the environment and water,” the task force says in a letter to the governor.
“New facilities for conveyance and storage, and better linkage between the two, are needed to better manage
It says major investments should go to strengthen selected levees, improve floodplain management, and improve water circulation and quality.
It also says that the current boundaries and governance system of the Delta must be changed. “It is essential to have an independent body with authority to achieve the co-equal goals of ecosystem revitalization and adequate water supply for
With some 400,000 people living on land reclaimed over the past century from what was the original Delta, the report also calls for restrictions on further development.
“Discouraging inappropriate urbanization of the Delta is critical both to preserve the Delta’s unique character and to ensure adequate public safety,” it says.
The report urges immediate action.
“This is the time to act. The difficult choices we face today will become even more difficult in the future. Procrastination will result in irretrievable losses: severe reductions in water uses and severe damage to the estuarine ecosystem,” it says. #
http://www.centralvalleybusinesstimes.com/stories/001/?ID=7303
Blue Ribbon Task Force Releases Vision for the
News Release: Delta Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force – 12/17/07
Contact: Keith Coolidge (916) 445-0092, (916) 275-6809 (cell)
The Delta formed by
“We've got to turn the water debate in
Governor Schwarzenegger appointed the seven-member Task Force in February to develop a long-term sustainable Vision for the Delta by the end of the year, and an implementation plan by October 2008.
“We started from the premise that the Delta ecosystem and a reliable water supply for the state are co-equal values, and that conflicts between them should be resolved by applying the state constitutional principles of ‘public trust’ and ‘beneficial use,’” said Isenberg.
From there the Task Force recommends a significant increase in conservation and water system efficiency, new facilities to move and store water, and likely reductions in the amount of water taken out of the Delta watershed. The Task Force also recommends a new governing structure for the Delta that would have secure funding and the ability to approve spending, planning and water export levels.
In addition, the Task Force recommends several near-term actions. These focus on preparing for disasters in or around the Delta, including emergency flood protection and disaster planning, protecting the Delta ecosystem and water supply system from urban encroachment, and making immediate improvements to protect the environment and the system that moves water through the Delta.
Task Force members cautioned that their recommendations are linked and meant to be implemented together. In their cover letter to Governor Schwarzenegger they noted that “The Delta cannot be ‘fixed’ by any single action. No matter what policy choices are made, we Californians are compelled to change the ways we behave toward the environment and water.”
Addressing the inevitable questions about water conveyance facilities the Task Force members wrote: “For those who rush to discuss Delta water conveyance as if no other issue is of importance, we caution that decisions about storage and conveyance flow from all twelve recommendations in our Vision, and cannot be decided by themselves. To that end, we have recommended an assessment process focused on dual conveyance as the preferred direction, allowing an ultimate decision which fits into the other elements of this Vision.”
Developed during 14 days of public Task Force meetings since March, the full report is available at www.deltavision.ca.gov. In addition to Isenberg, Task Force members are: Monica Florian, Richard M. Frank, Thomas McKernan, Sunne Wright McPeak, William K. Reilly, and Raymond Seed. #
RATE CHANGES:
Cal Am proposal targets heavy users; Company says plan may ease water costs for average home
By Daniel Lopez, staff writer
California American Water is proposing changes to its rate structure it hopes will promote water conservation with incentives — and will force heavy water users to pay considerably more.
The rate increases submitted Friday to the state Public Utilities Commission come less than a month after Cal Am proposed a general rate increase of 120 percent for capital improvements and operations over a three-year period ending in 2011. The latest proposal addresses water conservation efforts in the utility's
Among the proposed changes submitted Friday, Cal Am seeks to nearly double the rate it charges customers who use more than 8,976 gallons of water per month.
The water company also wants to bring its customers on the
On top of the 120 percent increase, Cal Am is seeking an additional 5 percent to fund $1.7 million for conservation programs.
But Cal Am spokeswoman Catherine Bowie said if the changes are approved, the conservation incentives could lower the proposed increases to the average consumer to 105 percent over the three-year period.
"We are proposing a formula in an effort for people to conserve water," said
The hefty rate charges would affect about 6 percent of residential customers in
Bowie said the latest proposed rate change is needed because of a court order for Cal Am to reduce pumping from the Seaside Basin by 2,200 acre-feet by 2021. The amount is nearly 15 percent of the overall water use in the Cal Am service area on the
The $1.7 million Cal Am hopes to budget for conservation programs would fund audits for residential, large landscape and commercial customers to help them identify ways to conserve water: residential plumbing retrofits, rebates for low flow toilets and washers, school education programs and a public outreach campaign.
If approved, Cal Am's proposed conservation rates would take effect in June 2009. #
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