Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
March 20, 2008
5. Agencies, Programs, People
IMPERIAL IRRIGATION DISTRICT:
IID: Time for some stability -
OROVILLE RELICENSING:
Projects under review for state benefits fund - Oroville Mercury Register
WATER DISTRICT:
Oxnard to take over a water district - Ventura County Star
INFRASTRUCTURE ISSUES:
Guest Opinion: Critical needs: water, infrastructure - North County Times
IMPERIAL IRRIGATION DISTRICT:
IID: Time for some stability
By Brianna Lusk, staff writer
No organization is immune to its share of tumultuous times and the Imperial Irrigation District is no exception.
It’s a situation, incoming General Manager Brian Brady said, he’s seen at other organizations.
With no permanent head of the district for nearly a year and turnover at the highest levels of the IID, it’s time for some stability, board members have said.
“In my conversations with the board members they were very consistent in their view that they were looking for someone to unify the staff,” Brady said. “And someone who was going to give them the best unbiased professional recommendations for the issues they’re facing.”
But the IID Board of Directors has come under fire in the past for reportedly micromanaging high-level staff and in some cases changing policies to hire preferred candidates for top-level positions.
Most recently the board was taken to task for hiring a yet-to-be-named energy manager by using consultants who may have had a conflict of interest.
The contract negotiations for the energy manager position are said to be ongoing.
The announcement of Brady’s hiring comes when having leadership at the district is indispensable, said IID board President John Pierre Menvielle.
“He will help unite the board to work together and move the district forward. We’re all on the same page for a common cause,” Menvielle said.
The board’s unanimous vote came weeks ago but the announcement was made Friday as the details of Brady’s contract were solidified.
The 59-year-old is general manager of the Rancho California Water District in Temecula. He has more than 35 years experience in water and energy.
Brady has spent time in the public and private sectors of the utility industry, working with Southern California Edison and serving as the assistant general manager of
He is slated to make $275,000 a year on a four-year contract.
Brady will replace interim General Manager Mike Campbell, who was replacing another interim, Elston Grubaugh, who left the district in September.
Grubaugh’s exit from the district followed General Manager Charles Hosken’s firing after an investigation into the district’s failed natural gas hedging program.
That investigation revealed controls were not in place and millions of dollars were spent beyond established policies.
Hosken was making a reported $232,000 a year in his position and was given six months severance pay when he was terminated.
Brady said he has followed the district’s issues in the past year.
“One of the key issues is the power resources including gas procurement and I certainly want to assure myself and the board that we have no lingering loose ends on the way we procure energy,” Brady said.
When asked if he was referring specifically to the hedging scandal, Brady said yes.
Brady also has experience in energy transmission issues, a hotbed of debate that has flared recently as IID is trying to prevent privately owned utilities from bypassing the system.
“IID is not only a major player now in both water and electric areas, it is only going to become more important to the state,” Brady said.
Director Anthony Sanchez said having the top position at the district filled permanently is crucial.
“The board has high expectations of him but I think the type of person he is, he’s going to have his own high expectations of what he wants to accomplish,” Sanchez said.
Getting upper level management and staff to back Brady, Sanchez said, is important.
“Our upper staff is relatively new. We’ve been putting this team together to function and I think they’re going to be well-prepared to receive a new general manager,” Sanchez said.
Menvielle said with the board’s decision comes the responsibility to allow Brady to lead.
“The board needs to stand behind him 100 percent and I believe we will do that. We need to let him lead the district,” Menvielle said.
The climate at the district, he added, is ready for some steady change.
“If the board backs the G.M., the staff has to back the G.M. If they don’t want to play ball they can hit the road but that’ll be Mr. Brady’s choice,” Menvielle said.
Directors Mike Abatti, James Hanks and Stella Mendoza could not be reached for comment.
Brady is expected to start at the IID mid-April. #
http://www.ivpressonline.com/articles/2008/03/20/local_news/news05.txt
OROVILLE RELICENSING:
Projects under review for state benefits fund
Oroville Mercury Register – 3/20/08
By Mary Weston, staff writer
Nine large projects are seeking a share of the stream of money coming into the local community as a result of the California Department of Water Resources' bid for a license to generate electricity at the
If the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issues a hydro-electric license to DWR, the state agency will put $1 million a year into the Supplemental Benefits Fund. However, about $2.2 million in upfront money is available for projects.
The city of
The panel is comprised of voting members from the city and the Feather River Recreation and Park District.
Advisory members come from state agencies, local agencies and recreation groups.
Among the projects are:
-- About a million dollars sought by the park district for a 12-acre turf area for soccer fields. According to the city's evaluation, it's unclear if FRRPD is requesting $927,000 or $1.02 million.
-- Oroville Pageant Riders is seeking $3,124,000 to develop an equestrian facility along the Feather River at
-- Oroville City Fire Department wants $27,928 to buy rescue equipment for its All Terrain Rescue Team.
-- The Lake Oroville Bicyclist Organization wants $10,000 to help with the Lake Oroville Gold Rush 24-hour mountain bike race.
-- The city has applied for $500,000 for phase two of
-- The park district applied for $1,489,000 for improvements to
-- The Birdcage Theatre wants $20,000 for phase two of a project to renovate the lobby. In addition, the want to create the
--
-- The OASIS Group has proposed using $56,675 for planning to restore
The city evaluations found all the applications lacking some elements. The other agencies represented will also be reviewing the proposals.
The SBF committee will meet on April 2 to select projects. #
http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20080320/ts_csm/airaqthree;_ylt=AoJZ8ftXqomx9cO4jSmJrqGs0NUE
WATER DISTRICT:
By Rachel McGrath, staff writer
A county-level commission agreed Wednesday to end a public water district on the Oxnard Plain.
The Local Agency Formation Commission voted unanimously to dissolve the Ocean View Municipal Water District with the full support of the district's elected, five-member board.
In a bid to stabilize water rates and protect groundwater, the city of
"The district was insolvent and getting deeper into a hole," said LAFCO Chairman John Zaragoza, a member of the Oxnard City Council.
In September,
That put in motion the proposal to dissolve the district, something that LAFCO Executive Officer Kim Uhlich said the commission has suggested several times in more than 30 years.
LAFCO, an independent agency created by the state, oversees boundary changes to cities and special districts, and other matters.
"The commission approved the dissolution proposal based on the timeliness and appropriate nature of the request, given the district's financial and funding constraints and the willingness of the city of
"The water district received minimal property tax revenue and lost customers due to the high rates," she said. "The dissolution promotes greater fiscal and governmental efficiency."
The city of
The district provides potable water, and the cost of it has increased over the years, while demand has decreased over the past 20 years. Landowners have constructed private wells instead of buying increasingly expensive water from the district.
A local agency, the Fox Canyon Groundwater Management Agency, determined that groundwater pumping in this part of the Oxnard Plain is a "significant contributor" to the problem of seawater intrusion, according to a LAFCO staff report.
Dissolving the district, in effect, will eliminate the middle man, allowing the city to deliver and supply potable and reusable water at more affordable rates.
"This is a win-win situation,"
The district, which was created in 1960, covers 9,390 acres. It has no material assets and no employees, LAFCO said. #
http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2008/mar/20/oxnard-to-take-over-a-water-district/
INFRASTRUCTURE ISSUES:
Guest Opinion: Critical needs: water, infrastructure
By Jerome Kern,
Infrastructure is the basic facilities, services and installations needed for the operation of a community, such as transportation, communications systems, electricity service, and water/wastewater treatment and delivery.
The building and maintenance of these systems are critically important to our ability to maintain our expected standard of living.
Water and wastewater are the lifeline for health and prosperity in our community.
Much of the drinking water and wastewater infrastructure in the
Our infrastructure is aging; pipes are reaching the end of their life expectancy, just when economic and population growth is creating an increase in demand. Concurrently, we must also account for increasing regulatory requirements that protect threatened fish such as the delta smelt, and identifying and treating for other constituents like pharmaceutical pollutants.
Also, our water use is rising.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, a century ago, the average American used about 10 gallons of water a day to drink, cook, clean, and bathe. Today, Americans use 100 gallons a day, causing stresses on our drinking water supply and delivery systems.
The American household spends, on average, only $523 per year on water and wastewater, in contrast to an average of $707 per year on carbonated soft drinks and other refreshment beverages. Because of this relatively low cost the public has been led to believe that water is readily available and will remain cheap.
We are rapidly approaching a time when this will no longer be true.
Compared to other developed countries, the
To meet future essential infrastructure needs we need to fundamentally shift our thinking and ensure that pricing of water recovers the costs of building, operating, and maintaining a sustainable system.
The importance of ensuring a safe, reliable supply of drinking water cannot be overstated. The piping and delivery systems may be expensive, but they are relatively easy to build.
Our major threat, and opportunity, is in supply.
We must conserve, reuse and recycle the water we do have. The use of the "purple pipe" system for reclaimed water must be instituted now for all major water users: golf courses, parks, public roadways, and cemeteries.
It is also imperative to identify long-term, reliable supplies of water.
This would be possible by increasing the treatment of our wastewater and injecting it into the ground. But the most obvious source lies in the
Desalination can and should be an option in planning for our future water needs.
The discussion on how to best address our future water requirements must begin now. We must be proactive, not reactive.
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