A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
February 13, 2008
2. Supply
Water board approves drought plan; Officials in southeastern L.A. County suggest that they might challenge the decision, saying it would penalize low-income residents - Los Angeles Times
LONG TERM WATER SUPPLY ISSUES:
Making every drop count; The rains came, but
GROUNDWATER SUPPLY:
Agency's well keeps supply up - Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
DEVELOPMENT:
Valley Center water district assures developers they will have water - North County Times
LOCAL WATER SUPPLY ISSUES:
Innovative partnership to bring water to dry Rodeo Flat - Grass Valley Union
PRECIPITATION:
Experts say it's hard to get accurate rain measurements - Ventura County Star
Water board approves drought plan; Officials in southeastern
By Deborah Schoch, staff writer
The Metropolitan Water District board Tuesday approved a much-disputed drought plan despite protests from officials in some southeastern
Using a weighted voting system that is keyed to property valuation and not population, the 37-member board voted 176,523 to 14,265 to support the plan.
The cities of
"No" votes were cast by Long Beach and the Commerce-based Central Basin Municipal Water District, which serves 2 million people in cities along the Long Beach and San Gabriel River freeway corridors. They suggested that they might challenge the vote in court.
The cities of Commerce,
"The plan, while intending to conserve water during shortages, ultimately provides those who can afford to pay the steep penalties with as much water as they want, and places severe financial hardship on ratepayers who cannot afford the high price of water," De la Torre wrote.
South Gate Mayor W.H. DeWitt and Signal Hill Councilman Larry Forester spoke to the board Monday in favor of a 60-day postponement.
MWD General Manager Jeff Kightlinger defended the decision not to delay the vote.
"We've sat and worked with folks for eight months," he said. "The plan does not treat anyone disproportionately. . . . It's time to move on and address the more important issues."
If current water shortages worsen, the plan would determine the amount of imported water that the MWD would deliver to its 26 member cities and districts serving 18 million people in six counties. #
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-mwd13feb13,1,6477571.story
LONG TERM WATER SUPPLY ISSUES:
Making every drop count; The rains came, but
The Almanac Online (
By Renee Batti, staff writer
Relief has shown its wet, wonderful face, smiling on the Bay Area in recent weeks in the form of abundant rainfall.
After a steady drumbeat of warnings that
With the rainfall level now at least an inch higher than normal to date, the long-term outlook for the state's water supply is as sunny as the days that followed the series of storms that began early last month, right?
Think again, say water officials — and please don't plant that oceanic expanse of lawn that you've been considering for your front yard.
"We're probably fine this year [with water supply], but we're really trying to get people to understand that water conservation is a way of life," says Darin Duncan, district manager for the Bear Gulch branch of California Water Service (Cal Water) agency.
Faced with the state's growing population, environmental concerns and, on a grander scale, climate change, Mr. Duncan and other water professionals want the public to know: Water supply is a long-term challenge in California, and conservation is key to meeting that challenge if we want to avoid rationing and further degradation of rivers and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, whose health affects the well-being of salmon, trout and other fish populations now threatened by the state's water demands.
Art Jensen, general manager of the Bay Area Water Supply and Conservation Agency (BAWSCA), says our strategy for dealing with the state's water supply should be similar to how we maintain our household. "You have a certain level of spending, your checking account gets you through the month, and your savings account can get you through hard times," he says.
"If you live hand-to-mouth, you can't survive the hard times."
Mr. Jensen insists that water agencies — and the state's residents, businesses and farmers — "need to focus more on using the water we have more judiciously."
BAWSCA represents the 27 water agencies in three counties that buy water from the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, which takes the water from the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in
Both local water agencies have been scrambling in recent years to put in place water conservation measures that include rebates on low-flow appliances and a range of educational and outreach programs. Some of the efforts have been made in partnership with BAWSCA, which has its own rigorous conservation program and more resources than many of the agencies it represents.
Although the Menlo Park Municipal Water Department (MPMWD) has been engaged in water conservation programs for some time, there's a new push to bolster the city's efforts. Last fall, council members Kelly Fergusson, then the mayor, and Heyward Robinson proposed a study session to look at water issues and how the city is addressing them.
At the study session, which took place on Jan. 29, MPMWD staff, headed by Public Works Director Kent Steffens, delivered a report that showed city spending on water conservation increasing each year since fiscal year 2004-05 — from $24,260 that year to $113,988 this fiscal year.
The city's efforts include participation in several BAWSCA-led programs, including rebate programs for both residential and commercial washing machines; a school education program that sends fifth-graders home with a "Water Wise" kit used to audit their household's water use; and a landscape audit program aimed at the city's largest water users.
Mr. Steffens said later that the audit program will "help customers make adjustments to their (irrigation) systems to help make them the most efficient possible." Although he said he couldn't identify which customers use the most water, the
Councilwoman Fergusson, who is the city's representative on the BAWSCA board, said after the meeting that she'd like to see the city landscape its downtown with water-wise plants. "We could lead by example," she says.
She also supports a recommendation by the city's Green Ribbon Committee to enact a water-efficient landscaping ordinance that would apply to new development and renovation.
The city, she says, should "take an aggressive stance in terms of water conservation," and to that end, she pushed, at the study session, for having the staff do more analysis on the costs — both financial and in resources — of putting more conservation measure into place by adopting a set of strategies known as "Best Management Practices."
The staff is expected to bring an analysis back to the council within the next month or two.
Mr. Steffens notes that the city has installed equipment designed to save water on city-owned sites: a weather station that sends messages to an "irrigation controller" system, which prevents automatic irrigation systems from activating during wet weather. The system also has a leak detector, which triggers the shut-off of irrigation water when leaks in pipes are detected, he says.
Cal Water
Darin Duncan of Cal Water says his agency has conservation programs similar to Menlo Park's, but Cal Water, an "investment owned agency" rather than a public agency like MPMWD, is regulated by the state Public Utilities Commission, and therefore doesn't have as much autonomy in its budget-setting.
As a result, Mr. Duncan says he and other Cal Water officials have focused in recent years on working with the PUC to make conservation programs more economically feasible and water rates more effective in promoting conservation.
The results of those efforts could be seen later this year, Mr. Duncan says. Specifically, he says, the PUC now appears poised to allow Cal Water to convert its rate system from the legally required flat rate to a tiered-rate structure that would charge a higher rate for water use beyond certain thresholds.
"We urged a tiered-rate structure because it encourages conservation," he notes. The district is set to convert to the proposed rate system if, as expected, it's approved, he says. The new rates would keep the district "revenue neutral," he says, because customers who use less water are likely to see their bills go down even as bigger users pay more.
The PUC also appears ready to sign off on proposals to allow more spending on conservation programs, Mr. Duncan says.
The players
BAWSCA. Bay Area Water Supply and Conservation Agency, which represents the 27 water agencies in three counties that buy water from the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission.
MPMWD. Menlo Park Municipal Water District, a city-operated agency supplying water to
SFPUC. The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, which supplies water to
http://www.almanacnews.com/story.php?story_id=5666
GROUNDWATER SUPPLY:
Agency's well keeps supply up
By Neil Nisperos, staff writer
The well, which injects imported water into the aquifer, will help the water district keep its share of the underground reservoir full for the future. The new injection wells, which would also be able to pump out water, will also help clean nitrate-rich water under the district's eastern wells to be safe for the public to drink.
Half of the water used by the district is imported from Northern California and the other half is drawn from the
Although water officials say there is enough water in the aquifer to support the
The reduced supply of imported water has forced
"This is a proactive measure to improve our supply ability and reduce our reliance of imported water supplies from
The Monte Vista Water district will use the new injection wells to refill its supply capacity more quickly and store more water for future need.
The district has four aquifer storage and recovery wells, with one in operation since last June and three more expected to begin operating later this year.
The first well in operation on the southern edge of
When all four wells operate, injection would increase storage capacity in the
The Monte Vista district each year typically pumps between 15,000 and 18,000 acre-feet of water and delivers 27,000 acre-feet of water to its customers, district officials said.
Ken Manning, CEO of the Chino Basin Watermaster, the Superior Court arm that administers water rights in the
"Outside of natural replenishment of the basin, we also have to get water from the California Delta and with the delta pumps shut down we don't have water to put in the ground here," Manning said.
"What the Monte Vista Water District is doing is they're actually taking water ahead of time and treating water at a time when water is plentiful and pumping it into the ground to store it. It's like having a giant storage tank around when they need water to pump back out."
Manning was among 30 from throughout the nation who visited Monte Vista's operation well Tuesday after attending a water service conference in
"What the wells help avoid are shortages," Manning said. "They help the district maintain a good quality water source they can draw from at any time." #
http://www.dailybulletin.com/ci_8244133
DEVELOPMENT:
By Darryl Bennett, staff writer
VALLEY CENTER -- Water district officials pledged last week to guarantee water service to future South Village developments after two property owners preparing to spend a combined $500,000 to help build a sewer system said they needed the commitment.
Valley Center Municipal Water District directors voted unanimously to provide "at least minimal" levels of water service to properties whose owners have given the district deposits to participate in the
The project proposes a treatment plant for the commercial area along
The sewer project would use a treatment plant next to the Woods Valley Golf Club -- and the golf course itself -- to soak up reclaimed water. That will be a boon for the water district, which is 100 percent dependent on imported water, said district general manager Gary Arant.
Shortages had developers worried they wouldn't get the water needed for their projects. Growth in the
"The (sewer) project is important to the community and it wasn't going to happen without this (water supply) assurance," he said Friday.
Business owners consider sewer service necessary for the development of the
The estimated cost the sewer system could surpass $14 million, depending on the facility's size, district officials have said. Bell Enterprises and Alti Corp. agreed last year to pay $500,000 for design plans to accelerate construction. The district plans to form an assessment district stretching between
Earlier this year, Alti and
Citing recent concerns about the "reliability" of the regional water supply, the resolution approved last week by water district directors guarantees "at least minimal levels of service to support the approved development" in the South Village area.
The resolution states that the assurance can only be overridden by a state water supply emergency declaration, usually made by high-ranking government officials such as the governor, Arant said.
Water officials said the future developments wouldn't strain the district's water supply because nearly 50 percent of the water delivered would be treated and reused.
"The net impact on the water supply is really minimized," Arant said.
Lack of sewer service has prevented construction in some parts of
"Bottom line is the assurance moves forward the (
http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2008/02/12/news/inland/vc/16_25_322_11_08.txt
LOCAL WATER SUPPLY ISSUES:
Innovative partnership to bring water to dry Rodeo Flat
Grass Valley
By Laura Brown, staff writer
Residents of a dry, hillside community known as Rodeo Flat have been trying for eight years to get water through the Nevada Irrigation District.
As residents of the southern Nevada County neighborhood inch closer to getting piped treated water, their progress in forging an innovative partnership with NID offers hope to others in the foothills with unproductive wells.
Last year, five wells in the arid region failed, said NID Assistant Manager Tim Crough. Drilling a new well can cost between $10,000 and $20,000.
NID's board of directors is expected to agree to form an assessment district in Rodeo Flat at their regular scheduled meeting at 9 a.m. today at
An informal survey of the 36 parcel owners living in Rodeo Flat, west of
"If you don't have a well, your constantly living on the edge," Crough said.
If approved, it will be the first assessment district in NID's history and will serve as a pilot project for other hilltop communities suffering from wells that run dry, Crough said.
"We're kind of testing new water. This is a new way of doing things for the district and we're taking it slow," Crough said. He has experience establishing assessment districts and community facilities districts in Southern California and the city of
Late last year, registered voters of the much larger
A community facilities district is approved by residents who also are registered to vote in
In Rodeo Flat, fewer than a third of property owners are registered to vote in
The Rodeo Flat project will cost an estimated $1.8 million. NID will cover the first $1 million through funds from a community investment program from property taxes and capacity charges.
Property owners will pay the remaining $800,000 over a period of 25 years. Property owners will pay about $1,800 a year, or $150 a month plus additional costs for a water meter, Crough said.
If the board approves the resolution, the balloting process can begin and will culminate with a public hearing in April. After that, NID will move through the financiing process by issuing a tax-free bond with 5 percent interest. The district guarantees it will own the bond if a buyer can't be found.
Design work is scheduled to start in 2009, followed by construction in 2010.
"We're really excited to make this thing work," Crough said. #
http://www.theunion.com/article/20080213/NEWS/86815144
PRECIPITATION:
Experts say it's hard to get accurate rain measurements
By John Scheibe, staff writer
Getting a perfectly accurate rainfall reading is like trying to stop time or attain immortality.
"It can't be done," said Tom Ackerman, director of the
Everything from the wind to human error to the type of rain gauge used stands in the way of an accurate reading.
Accurate readings provide a way to gauge changes in rainfall amounts from season to season.
People have been measuring rainfall for thousands of years. Some of the earliest uses of rain gauges were around 100 A.D. to determine rainfall amounts in
Since then, rainfall measurements have been used for everything from gauging the size of storm drains to what size a reservoir needs to be to ensure an adequate water supply for a region.
Such measurements are especially important here in dry
So exactly how much rain did we get during this period? It depends on whom you ask.
The National Weather Service pegs the amount of rain that fell on El Rio, an unincorporated community just north of
Variations in time, location
Part of the difference in rainfall amounts is because the Watershed District measures rainfall over two days from 8 a.m. to 8 a.m., whereas the Weather Service uses the midnight to midnight period.
The two agencies often measure rain from different parts of the county, which leads to different readings.
"If I took 10 different measurements from places that are no closer than half a mile from each other, I would likely get significantly different rainfall amounts," Ackerman said.
The county's terrain of hills, valleys and mountains also produces different readings. Higher elevations tend to get more rainfall.
To compensate for the differences, meteorologists try to get average rainfall amounts over a period time.
Gauges closer to the ground are more likely to get better readings than those positioned higher up. A gauge situated on top of a 30-foot roof will, on average, be only 80 percent as accurate as one placed on the ground. Put it on top of a 150-foot tower and it will only be half as accurate. Much of the difference is due to stronger winds higher off the ground.
The ideal place for a gauge is on a flat area close to the ground, away from buildings and other large objects that can block the rain.
But care must be used to make sure leaves and other debris don't block the gauge's opening or clog it in other ways.
Both the National Weather Service and the county Watershed Protection District send out crews on a regular basis to make sure the gauges are working well and are clear of debris.
Depend on actual data
The agencies also carefully monitor the rainfall readings from the gauges. A gauge that provides significantly different readings from other nearby gauges could either be broken or clogged, said Mark Bandurraga, a senior hydrologist with the Watershed Protection District.
But meteorologists and others are reluctant or unwilling to change a rainfall reading to compensate for inaccurate readings.
"It's very difficult to know how to compensate," Bandurraga said. Do you add or take away from a reading? And if so, how much?
Despite all the chances for errors, it's still far better to depend on the actual data than change it, he said.
In the end, imprecision is something weather forecasters and others must accept, Ackerman said.
"Uncertainty is something that climatologists must live with on a daily basis." #
http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2008/feb/12/measuring-rainfall/
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