Department of Water Resources
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
October 2, 2008
4. Water Quality -
Valley likely to get millions for water cleanup
Whittier
By Rebecca Kimitch, Staff Writer
Efforts to rid
The money is part of an $842 million water package approved by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger Tuesday.
"This is an historic moment, the first time ever any bond money has been allocated to the
The measure partially distributes funds from two bond initiatives passed by voters in 2006 for water infrastructure projects. Though local water agencies are eager to apply for the funds, leaders are frustrated with how long it has taken for the voter-approved funding to be distributed.
"This demonstrates how woefully slow these funds are being distributed throughout state - two years after they were approved by voters," said Peter Rodriguez, who is responsible for community and government affairs for the Upper San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District.
The San Gabriel Basin Water Quality Authority will likely get $10.4 million for its efforts to clean groundwater of perchlorate and other contaminants that stem from the
The funding is a small step toward the $420 million still needed for the cleanup endeavor, but Gabriel Monares, WQA director of resource development, is confident more funding from bonds is on the way. State legislators are now aware of the area's plight, he said.
"In the past, we have not been in the picture, we have not been part of the conversation," he said. "Now we are in the game. Every time there is a water bond, we can become part of the package."
The $10.4 million is not a direct earmark, but because of the way the legislation is written, the WQA is the likely recipient.
Water agencies in the
Although he gave his approval, Schwarzenegger called the funds a "band-aid" solution for water agencies to deal with the state's immediate drought.
"(It) will not solve our long-term water supply problems, which require a more comprehensive solution," he said in a statement.
The governor used the signing ceremony to instead push for the controversial $9.3 billion water bond he has proposed with Senator Dianne Feinstein and hopes to bring to voters sometime next year.
The Schwarzenegger/Feinstein water bond package has as much as $80 million for the WQA's groundwater cleanup, Monares said.
The new bond measure, which its authors call a compromise solution to the state's water woes, is opposed by some environmentalists who object to its potential funding of new surface reservoirs and a peripheral canal around the imperiled Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.
The governor has signed several other pieces of water- related legislation in recent days, including measures to increase groundwater quality monitoring; encourage water rate structures that promote conservation; and increase monitoring of lead plumbing. #
http://www.whittierdailynews.com/news/ci_10613833
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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