A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
April 10, 2009
2. Supply –
Metropolitan Water District to vote on reducing supply to agencies, raising rates
Water supply for fires in question with pulp mill closure
The
Water in short supply
The Tracy Press
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Metropolitan Water District to vote on reducing supply to agencies, raising rates
The Inland area's largest water wholesaler is poised to cut supplies to its member agencies by at least 10 percent and hike its wholesale rates nearly 20 percent, steps that could translate into big rate increases for many Inland consumers.
The cut in allocations would be Metropolitan Water District's first in 18 years and illustrates the gravity of
District staff has recommended a 10 percent cut in supplies, starting July 1, and a 19.7 percent rate increase for its member agencies beginning Sept. 1, followed by a 21.5 percent increase in 2011. Those follow a 14.3 percent jump imposed three months ago.
Most people in
Local water agencies set consumer rates, which vary widely depending on what percentage of water comes from MWD and what proportion is from groundwater and other sources. But agencies typically pass on the costs of MWD rate hikes to consumers.
Many Inland residents will likely see their bills rise by several dollars a month if the MWD proposal is adopted. An MWD board vote is scheduled Tuesday.
The district will impose huge financial penalties on water agencies that don't reduce water usage by at least 10 percent, and that is causing some to institute measures that would punish consumers who don't conserve.
MWD would not cut off water to any agency, said MWD Chief Operating Officer Debra Man.But if local and regional water districts go over their limits, MWD would more than double the price for excess water, she said. Agencies that exceed limits by more than 15 percent would pay five times the regular price, she said.
Riverside-based Western Municipal Water District, which serves more than 825,000 people in western
"It's a budget-buster if you don't get the conservation you need," he said.
In the next several months, Western is planning to adopt tiered rates, with higher prices for excess water use, Rossi said.
Agencies' Measures
Perris-based Eastern Municipal Water District, which helps supply water to 675,000 consumers in west-central
Eastern officials are also considering mandatory conservation, which would limit the hours and days that customers could water lawns, among other restrictions, Odencrans said.
MWD's rate-increase proposal already is causing agencies to pass on costs to consumers.
One Inland agency, Rancho California Water District, approved rate increases Thursday. The district, which serves Temecula and part of Murrieta, boosted rates more than 17 percent for part of its service area, and more than 13 percent for the other part. A public hearing and final vote is scheduled for June 11.
The average bill for some of the district's customers will rise from $34.66 a month to $40.57, district spokeswoman Meggan Reed said. Residents in the other service area will see bills go from $55.32 a month to $62.66.
Rancho
Western is planning a 21 percent rate increase effective May 11. The district's board is scheduled to vote on the measure May 6.
Eastern's rates are also expected to rise. Typically, Eastern passes on MWD's rate increases directly to its wholesale customers, Odencrans said.
Higher costs
About 130,000 residential and business customers in
The Inland Empire Utilities Agency, serving
Like other water districts, Western has encouraged conservation through subsidies for low-water-use washing machines and outdoor watering systems, Rossi said. But some customers continue to use far too much water, especially outdoors, he said.
MWD currently sells about 2.2 million acre-feet of water a year. Under the proposal, the district would sell 1.98 million acre-feet, Man said. The average household uses about ½ an acre-foot of water per year, Man said.
MWD is increasing its water purchases from agricultural districts and other sources to make up for the drop in state water deliveries from
Cutting deliveries to member agencies allows MWD to conserve water in its reservoirs, Man said. The three largest reservoirs --
http://www.pe.com/localnews/rivcounty/stories/PE_News_Local_S_water10.4552f4e.html
Water supply for fires in question with pulp mill closure
The
By Donna Tam
The
At the district's meeting Thursday, Bob Simpson of the Freshwater Pulp Co. encouraged the water district to put pressure on Danco, co-owner of the Samoa Pacific Group, and the California Redwood Co., to fix leaks on a pipeline from the mill's industrial water supply.
Freshwater Pulp is not expected to renew its contract after April 30.
The district said it has been putting pressure on Danco since 2005 to address the possibility of the mill shutting off the industrial water supply.
The pulp mill's line pumps water used for fire suppression throughout Samoa through agreements and hook-ups between Samoa Pacific Group and other entities such as the Samoa Cookhouse, the
”It appears the only way to get fire water to the peninsula is through the use of our facility,” Simpson said, adding that the group is willing to let the water tank be used for free if the leaks are fixed.
According to Simpson, the pipeline is losing about 24,000 gallons a day and Freshwater Pulp can no longer afford to shoulder the costs.
Danco spokeswoman Lindsey Myers said the issue is not currently a concern -- the company is in the process of repairing the leaks.
While the district's board of directors said it is important for
”It's not our business to look out for their interests -- they're not our customers,” said Director Alderon Laird.
Samoa Fire District Chief Kevin Pope said if the line was to be shut down, early notification for fire emergencies and the help of other departments will be key to fighting fires.
”If they shut the water off it's going to mean calling for help earlier,” Pope said, adding that the fire district will have to talk to neighboring departments to set up automated response calls.
Pope said prevention will also be very important -- residents should be extra cautious by making sure smoke detectors are working and chimneys are clean, as well as avoiding the disposal of fire ash in combustible containers.
Mark Loughmiller, executive director of the
”We're just kind of being aware of all our options,” Loughmiller said, adding that the plant does not have a high chance of a fire occurring.
A bigger concern may be the loss of an industrial water line, Loughmiller said.
”We all know the water rates will go up because of it, but it also will be very difficult to attract industrial users,” he said.
With the mill possibly leaving the district, the costs of water would get passed on to municipal customers.
Karen Diemer, deputy director of Arcata's Environmental Services Department, said the district told the city to expect an estimated increase of $130,000 a year if the industrial line is shut off.
Diemer said how that increase would be passed on to users is still being calculated. #
http://www.times-standard.com/ci_12114219?IADID=Search-www.times-standard.com-www.times-standard.com
Water in short supply
The Tracy Press – 4/10/09
By Sam Matthews
Longtime
The alfalfa was stunted and turning brown. The 45-acre field is laying fallow, because of a lack of irrigation water.
The problem that the 82-year-old Moniz and his 58-year-old son, Mark, are facing won’t be unique for farmers of land of what was originally the Plain View Water District along the
And even if that figure is raised a bit to 5 percent or 15 percent of the normal allocation — possibly in a few days, following recent snowfall in the Sierra — water will be in the shortest supply in the 58-year history of districts contracting for water from the canal, which is the principal water-conveyance vehicle of the Central Valley Project.
For many growers like the Monizes, it will be too little, too late.
“Even if we get a little water this year, it’s too late to help us in this field,” Bob Moniz said. “We spent about $10,000 to plant the alfalfa, and that’s now money down the drain.”
His son, Mark, who is co-operator of the dairy, explained that the Moniz Dairy, off Schulte Road about two miles east of the leased land where the alfalfa field is located, is a relatively small operation — by California standards — milking 280 cows.
“In order to stay in business as a small, family-owned dairy, we have had to be very efficient and cost-conscious,” he said. “One way of doing that is raising our own alfalfa for feed.”
Now the Monizes will have to find another producing alfalfa field to lease or buy hay on the market, both options adding costs to their operation, which already is coping with a dramatic decrease in the price of milk in the past year.
The plight of the Moniz father-and-son dairy team in not having sufficient water this year will be a common condition for farmers who grow row crops along the Delta-Mendota Canal, said Rick Gilmore, general manager of the Byron-Bethany Irrigation District, which annexed the Plain View land in 2004.
“The 6,000 acres of the original Plain View District relies on water from the
The district has an annual contract for
Water acquired elsewhere is made available from the canal through paper transfers.
Gilmore said a few farmers along the canal have wells, but that is a spotty, expensive proposition. The water from “elsewhere” could come from purchased water from Sacramento Valley growers not planting rice this year or from the drought water bank established by the state Department of Water Resources.
“I’m working every day at acquiring additional water, but right now I don’t know how much we can acquire; obviously, it can’t be enough for all the land,” he said. “There will be a lot of fields that normally would be growing hay or beans left fallow.”
Outside the land of the original Plain View Water District, other land in the Byron Bethany Irrigation District receives water pumped from the Delta. And that land — some 24,000 acres — should have sufficient water.
One possibility, as yet only a possibility, is building a 960-foot pipeline from a Byron-Bethany canal to the
Russell Kagehiro, president of the Byron-Bethany Board, said this year’s water situation is the worst he has seen for districts contracting for water from the
“Never in the history of the Central Valley Project have we had a zero allocation for contracting districts,” he said. “Yes, we have drought conditions because of the short snow pack in the past three years, but even more serious is a regulatory drought.”
Kagehiro is referring to restrictions on pumping water into the
Jim McLeod, president of the Banta Carbona Irrigation District’s board of directors, noted that wildlife refuges are receiving 100 percent of their Central Valley Project allocation, while contracting irrigation districts won’t get any, or at least very little water.
“This situation of taking water away from agriculture has been building for years,” he said. “It started with the Central Valley Project Improvement Act 20 years ago and has gotten worse since then. But few people seem to care.”
McLeod said BCID, which normally augments water pumped from the
West Side Irrigation District also normally has
“We’ve got to be very careful how we use our water,” he said. “But somehow I think we’ll manage to get through.”
Districts such as Banta Carbona and West Side are more fortunate than ones taking water solely from the
“Districts without a major alternative source of water will be hit hard,” she said. “That will be especially true from districts south of Los Banos such as Westlands and San Luis districts, where a lot of tomatoes, cotton and melons are usually grown.”
For the city of
“Our best estimate is that we will receive something close to 65 percent of our normal
The wells, he said, are normally used sparingly, but can be cranked up if situation demands it. So far, the underground aquifer seems to be stable.#
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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