[Water_news] 5. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS: AGENCIES, PROGRAMS, PEOPLE - 1/28/09

Department of Water Resources

California Water News

A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment

 

January 28, 2009

 

5. Agencies, Programs, People –

 

Water tops county agenda

The Stockton Record

 

Septic system proposal attacked in Placer

The Sacramento Bee

 

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Water tops county agenda

The Stockton Record – 1/28/09

By Zachary K. Johnson

 

STOCKTON - Water issues in San Joaquin County floated to the top of the state and federal legislative platforms approved Tuesday by the county Board of Supervisors.

 

Flood protection, water supply and the fate of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta ranked highest on the list of issues and concerns the county wants elected officials in Sacramento and Washington to consider when crafting legislation and regulations over the next year.

 

The platform distills and focuses county issues so the annual trip by supervisors and other officials to Washington can be more effective, Chairman Leroy Ornellas said.

 

"You have to focus on the most important two or three issues," he said, noting that the time spent with lawmakers and key staff members in the federal government can be limited. Focus and face-to-face meetings build relationships and can result in attention to county issues and money for county projects, he said.

 

The county singled out six priorities of 45 items on the county's federal platform. Included among the priorities is the county's desire to see a new regional medical facility for veterans in French Camp, upgrades at Stockton Metropolitan Airport and improvements to Highway 4.

 

The other three priorities focus on water: flood protection along the Lower San Joaquin River, a plan to capture Mokelumne River water and positions on other water issues that include protection of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

 

Three of the four priorities listed in the county's 62 items of its state platform were the same water issues found in the federal platform. The fourth priority was to collect promised funding for the expansion of the overcrowded San Joaquin County Jail.#

 

http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090128/A_NEWS/901280315/-1/RSS02

 

Septic system proposal attacked in Placer

The Sacramento Bee – 1/28/09

By Bob Walter

 

Placer County's message to the State Water Resources Control Board was loud and clear Tuesday as staff, supervisors and residents took turns trashing proposed statewide septic regulations.

 

Shouts and applause greeted each speaker, from Jill Pahl, Placer's environmental health director, to a parade of residents from a county with about 26,000 septic systems.

 

Pahl said the regulations include no funding or enforcement provisions and that Placer's existing regulations provide ample protection for waterways.

 

"Many of the regulations lack scientific basis," said Pahl. "(They) are unnecessary and very costly to citizens and the county."

 

A sampling of comments heard Tuesday:

 

• "The proposed regulations are intrusive, expensive and unneeded," said Supervisor Jennifer Montgomery. "They are addressing a problem that doesn't exist in Placer County."

• "They are using a scatter-gun approach," said Wally Reemelin, president of the League of Placer County Taxpayers.

• "We are united in our opposition," said board Chairman F.C. "Rocky" Rockholm. "It's ridiculous … . If it's not broken, don't fix it. And the state doesn't know how to fix anything."

 

Not a word of support was spoken for the statewide septic regulations that were spurred by sewage discharges along the coast and mandated by legislation in 2000. They are scheduled to be implemented July 1, 2010, and will affect all existing and new systems.

 

As proposed, the regulations' myriad impacts include forcing owners of septic tanks to have them inspected every five years – at a cost of some $325. They also could force owners of an on-site domestic well to have the water analyzed every five years, also at a cost of about $325.

 

Supervisors enthusiastically endorsed Pahl's plan to send written comments to the state water board and to coordinate with legislators and lobbyists to fight the proposed rules.

 

Montgomery said she will speak at a hearing on the regulations and the draft environmental impact report at 1:30 p.m. Feb. 9 in the California EPA Building, 1001 I St., Sacramento.

 

The final version will be presented next fall, with an effective date of Jan. 1, 2010.#

 

http://www.sacbee.com/ourregion/story/1578723.html?mi_rss=Our%2520Region

 

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