Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
July 29, 2008
5. Agencies, Programs, People –
Feds pushing crackdown on wells tapping into Colorado River water
The Arizona Republic- 7/29/08
Sanders, Aguirre differ over water
Mobile park residents eligible for flood relief
The Desert Sun- 7/29/08
Issues of Eminent Domain Dominate NID Board Meeting; Water agency continues to deny funding for videotaping of public board meetings
YubaNet.com-7/29/08
++++++++++++++++++++++++
Feds pushing crackdown on wells tapping into Colorado River water
The Arizona Republic- 7/29/08
by Shaun McKinnon
Hundreds of people who illegally pump water from wells along the lower
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which oversees the river in
Most of the well owners are private citizens who have drilled their wells too close to the river. Instead of pumping groundwater, to which landowners have a right, they are drawing water from the river's subsurface flow. Well owners must get approval to siphon water from the river's surface or subsurface.
To comply with the new procedures, well owners can seek an individual water right, join an existing water district or become a customer of a city or other provider with rights to
Well owners who can't acquire water rights can't continue to use their wells.
The bureau is still trying to figure out how many wells have tapped the river or the exact amount of water pumped.
Hydrologists estimate the annual losses at 9,000 to 15,000 acre-feet, enough water to serve
More than half the wells identified are in
The federal crackdown comes at a time when the bureau and the seven
The states adopted a drought plan last year that outlines other efficiency measures, such as lining earthen canals to stop seepage and removing invasive plants that use too much water.
Bringing illegal wells into compliance would help ensure the river's long-term sustainability and protect users with a legal right to the resource, said Lorri Gray, director of the bureau's Lower Colorado Region.
"If someone is using Colorado River water without an entitlement, that harms the entitlement holders in
The new federal rules amplify the flaws in
"
Changes in the law, Harrington added, including requirements to recharge aquifers, "are essential to protecting the state's few remaining flowing streams."
Environmental groups have argued for years that the wells have damaged the rivers' health, and a federal judge agreed in southern
The state would have to change water laws to block private wells along in-state rivers.
The 1,400-mile
The bureau is targeting wells that pump water from that part of the river extending beyond its visible channel. The subsurface flow infiltrates aquifers that spread out away from the river banks. A well drilled too close to the river can divert water flowing into the river or pull water away from it.
Hydrologists have mapped the river's floodplain and determined how far its flow extends, which varies. Water pumped from there is considered river water.
Most of the unregulated wells along the
Under
Although state and federal officials were aware of most of the wells, the water pumped was not accounted for properly. The new rules are meant to resolve that problem.
Working with the bureau, the U.S. Geological Survey is compiling an inventory of wells along the lower
The wells are clustered around towns on the river, such as
Gray said the bureau will try to work with the well owners to keep a water supply.
"A key goal of this rule is to help those well owners who are using
In Arizona, as much as 10,000 acre-feet of water sits unallocated on the river and could be used to bring the well owners within the law. An acre-foot is 325,851 gallons, enough to serve one or two average households for one year.
The news is not as good in
The costs to well owners to comply with the new rules would vary, the bureau found. The Mohave Valley Irrigation and Drainage District has enough water to add new users and would charge $1.35 per 1,000 gallons.
The bureau is seeking comments on the proposed rule, which was published last week in the Federal Register.
The agency's preliminary studies indicated that the rules would have no harmful environmental effects and would be cost-effective.#
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2008/07/29/20080729river-illegal0729.html
Sanders, Aguirre differ over water
by Matthew T. Hall
The San Diego City Council will consider a formal declaration Monday afternoon calling for voluntary water conservation citywide.
Mayor Jerry Sanders supports the step, which would move the city one formal declaration away from a mandatory conservation measure. But City Attorney Michael Aguirre is calling for more aggressive actions by the city that would immediately curtail some water use to combat drought.
Sanders, worried about the economic impact of curbing water use by edict, wants San Diegans to voluntarily use 10 percent less water in 2008 than they did in 2007. At a Monday morning news conference he said they are only using 3 percent less despite many calls for conservation.
Water Department Director Jim Barrett said Monday the earliest he believes the city might be forced into a mandatory conservation declaration would be next spring, but he added a lot will depend on how much California's water supplies are bolstered by the rain and snow of winter.
Aguirre held a news conference Sunday urging more drastic measures, including re-evaluating whether developments of 500 units should proceed, because of the limited water supplies.#
http://weblog.signonsandiego.com/news/breaking/2008/07/sanders_aguirre_differ_over_co.html
Mobile park residents eligible for flood relief
The Desert Sun- 7/29/08
Rasha Aly
Flood victims can apply for financial assistance, Tramview Mobile Home Park residents learned Monday during a meeting with city and county officials.
The Senior Home Program and the Enhanced Repair Program can provide assistance of up to $6,000 per household, said Matthew Stevens, development specialist for the Riverside County Economic Development Agency.
Stevens and other county and city officials, including Mayor Kathy DeRosa and City Manager Don Bradley, spoke to about 30 Tramview residents Monday at
“We've got bugs I've never seen before,” said Kami Sawatsky, a Tramview resident. She added the mobile home park was flooded with 18 inches of mud and water.
Her dogs and cats were swimming in the water, she said.
“I grabbed them and threw them on the bed,” Sawatsky said.
Nancy Rossmiller said she can't do anything to save her home.
“Everything in my house was destroyed,” Rossmiller said.
She and her husband were in
The wall that separated Rossmiller's home from the Del Taco on
The natural disaster caused $200,000 to $250,000 in property damage in the park, Jaurequi said.
Ten of the 300 units in the park were affected by the high water, she said.
Residents can apply for one of two age-dependent assistance programs. Anyone 62 or older can apply to the Senior Home Program, said Matt Stevens, development specialist for the Riverside County Economic Development Agency. The Enhanced Home Repair Program is available for everyone else.
Residents do not need to be flood victims to apply for assistance from the two established programs, Stevens said. Assistance can be given to residents to make health and safety repairs, make a home more handicap-accessible and to fix code infractions.
However, qualifications include having a gross adjusted income of 50 percent or less than the median income for
The money for the programs comes from U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the county manages the money, Stevens said.
For information, call the Riverside County Economic Development Agency at 951-955-8916.#
Issues of Eminent Domain Dominate NID Board Meeting; Water agency continues to deny funding for videotaping of public board meetings
YubaNet.com-7/29/08
by, Susan Snider
According to Matthew Crowe, NID's Senior Right of Way Agent, staff has been successful in securing right of way easements from 44 of the 46 property owners along the project.
But in the case of the remaining two easements, while Crowe assured NID directors that communication with both owners remains open and and non-adversarial, there continue to be differences.
Prior to seeking resolutions of necessity which would authorize eminent domain proceedings, Crowe went back to NID staff to review the project and reconfirmed the need for both easements.
In the case of the parcel owned by the James E. Grassick, easement acquisition has been complicated by estate proceedings. The owner of record is deceased and according to NID the apparent successors have expressed no opposition to the project.
"Staff to date has made over 20 contacts on this," noted Crowe. "We are working with the estate successors to clear title."
But, so far, NID has been unable to reach all parties to secure an easement agreement.
For Jennifer Ellis who owns the other parcel NID seeks to encumber with a right-of-way easement, the issue is more specifically about compensation.
Speaking before the board, Ellis asked for a second appraisal to help her better understand how the value of the easement is assessed.
According to NID staff, Ellis was notified by mail in April that she could seek a second appraisal and that the water district would cover the cost up to $5000.
"So far, she has not been able to avail herself of this but we will be open to dialogue," NID surveyor Anthony Rondoni informed the board.
"We are just discussing the necessity for acquiring the easement to proceed with the project."
According to Matthew Crowe, eminent domain assures that a property owner can't unfairly hold up a project.
The proposed project consists of the replacement of treated water pipelines along several streets in unincorporated
The purpose of the project is to improve water system reliability in this area by eliminating leaks and water quality issues.
According to NID, the project "is planned or located in the manner that will be most compatible with the greatest public good and the least private injury."
"I think it is important that people understand we are taking over lines because of access and repair issues to old pipelines," said Nancy Weber, Division I director.
"It is a benefit to these people to have a reliable water system. And we are not charging them to put in new pipelines."
Resolutions to declare necessity and authorize eminent domain proceedings were approved unanimously for easements on both parcels.
State Budget Woes Threaten NID Property Tax Revenues:
Speaking of impasses, there is no bigger one than
With little progress on the horizon, the state is seeking ways to shore up its troubled finances. For special districts like NID, one of the proposed options could have dire repercussions.
According to NID General Manager Ron Nelson there are rumblings in
NID receives a portion of all property taxes collected from taxpayers who reside in the district's boundaries.
In turn, the water district uses a large percentage of these revenues to subsidize water rates, which keeps rates charged to NID customers far below the actual cost of service.
In past years water districts like NID have seen a sizable percentage of their property tax revenues appropriated through the Educational Revenue Augmentation Fund (ERAF) to aid the state's school funding obligation.
However, as Governor Schwarzenegger attempts to deal with the state's budget crisis, it appears even more likely that special districts like NID will be handing over 100 percent of their ERAF funds to the state.
But these dollars won't be going to help our schools. Instead, the state intends to shift usage of these revenues to fund realignment of
NID received over $10 million in 2007 tax revenues from property owners who reside in the district's boundaries.
"Another option just now being discussed is implementing Prop. 1A,"
Nelson told the board.
"The state would borrow funds from local jurisdictions and pay them back over time. But this would not resolve the state's systemic problems,"
Nelson noted.
"My position is, is the state creditworthy? We might not want to loan them money for this."
NID Water Contributions To Failing Delta:
It appears that while the
According to Director Scott Miller, discussions at a recent Mountain Counties Water Resources Association suggest that the state fails to recognize how much northern
"There are blocks of water from Shasta, for instance, that go to the Delta," Miller pointed out.
Conceding that NID needs to participate in the system that provides water to the Delta, he also insisted that the district's voice must be heard at a state level.
"They should give us credit for the amount we do give," Miller added.
"Our instream flows do help the Delta. We're just asking that the Department of Water Resources recognizes us."
Miller also said water conservation policies have impacts on what northern
NID's directors voted unanimously to approve a letter that will communicate these concerns to the DWR.
Is Transparency Still an Issue for NID?
9 a.m. on a weekday morning is often a difficult time for working people to attend a public meeting. And when you live in the far reaches of
Then there are those people within NID boundaries who live in
The
At the district's recent Administrative Practices Committee meeting, members again voted against funding outside contractors for purposes of videotaping public board meetings.
The committee of two, Directors John Drew and Paul Williams, also voted not to equip NID's board room with cameras.
Until recently, videotaping services were funded and provided by concerned citizens with tapes of board meetings available at the
Currently, videotaping services are donated and provided through a private individual.
Williams expressed concerns that because NID is a multi-county district videotaped proceedings should be made available in
While Drew stated he is not averse to the videotaping of board meetings, he is opposed to providing funding for the process.
Under Government Code Section 54953.5, commonly referred to as the Brown Act, "any person attending an open and public meeting of a legislative body of a local agency shall have the right to record the proceedings with an audio or video tape recorder."
Given this current decision by NID's Administrative Practices Committee, further discussion by the entire board is highly unlikely.
NID ranks as one of the largest water agencies in
The next regular NID board meeting will be held at 9 a.m. on August 13 at the
http://yubanet.com/regional/Issues-of-Eminent-Domain-Dominate-NID-Board-Meeting.php
DWR's California Water News is distributed to California Department of Water Resources management and staff, for information purposes, by the DWR Public Affairs Office. For reader's services, including new subscriptions, temporary cancellations and address changes, please use the online page: http://listhost2.water.ca.gov/mailman/listinfo/water_news. DWR operates and maintains the State Water Project, provides dam safety and flood control and inspection services, assists local water districts in water management and water conservation planning, and plans for future statewide water needs. Inclusion of materials is not to be construed as an endorsement of any programs, projects, or viewpoints by the Department or the State of
No comments:
Post a Comment