California Water News
A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
July 16, 2009
2. Supply –
Low rainfall has local farmers digging deeper for water
Lodi News-Sentinel
Marysville water costs surging
Marysville Appeal-Democrat
Heat driving up water use bringing warning from water agency
Santa Rosa Press Democrat
Year-end figures indicate Pasadena cut water use by 7 percent
San Gabriel Valley Tribune
Restaurants serving water only on request
The Desert Sun
Water bottling facility still a mystery in Orland
Chico Enterprise-Record
Workshop will show how to follow new water rules
Sacramento Bee
Corona council votes to increase water rates
Riverside Press-Enterprise
Marin residents want desalination
Marin Independent Journal
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Low rainfall has local farmers digging deeper for water
Lodi News-Sentinel-7/16/09
By Ross Farrow
A year ago, the water on Jon Tecklenburg's property was 80 feet below the surface. This year, it's 103 feet deep.
That increased Tecklenburg's electrical bill to irrigate his older winegrapes from $585 last year to $823.
"The grapes are still growing," Tecklenburg said. "Fortunately, they're old grapes, so the roots are way down there."
The spring rains that hit the Lodi area in April and May weren't enough to raise the water level in the groundwater basin or the Mokelumne River.
Farmers must go deeper in their wells to pump out irrigation water, and the North San Joaquin Water Conservation District had to rent two extra diesel pumps because its own pumps can't reach down far enough to suck up water from the Mokelumne River.
For Tecklenburg, it meant taking more time to irrigate his grapes.
"I could irrigate 20 acres last year in seven days in furrow irrigation," he said. "This year, it took me 16 days. It takes longer to get the same amount of water."
So what happens if we don't get a monsoon next winter and the water level is even lower?
"I'm going to have to put in a bigger pump and dig it even more," Tecklenburg said. "You have to survive. You have to do what you have to do."
There is a way to save water on Tecklenburg's younger crops, he said. That would be drip irrigation, which requires a lot less water. The water goes right to where the roots are and nurtures far fewer weeds, Tecklenburg said.
Along the Mokelumne River, the North San Joaquin Water Conservation District, trying to collect 6,000 acre-feet of water to serve farmers south of the river, rented two pumps from a Stockton firm to reach Victor-area farmers.
The pumps, rented from a firm called "Rain for Rent," lift Mokelumne River water about 12 feet up and transports it to a level ditch that takes the water to the North San Joaquin pump a short distance away, according to Rain for Rent foreman Terry Baca.
"In normal (rainfall) years, we've never had this problem," Watermaster Pete Weinzheimer said. "If I had another foot or two (of water), we could do away with the diesel pumps."
The city of Lodi, which has 26 wells, hasn't had the problems that some rural areas have encountered. Within the city limits, the water table goes down about four inches per year over a 20- to 25-year period, city spokesman Jeff Hood said.
A possible reason that city workers haven't had to dig deeper in the wells, Hood said, is that water consumption is down about 10 percent over last year.#
http://www.lodinews.com/articles/2009/07/16/news/3_water_090716.txt
Marysville water costs surging
Cal Water seeking nearly $23 more per month
Marysville Appeal-Democrat-7/16/09
Water rates for Marysville residents could rise as much as $23 per month by 2013, if California Water Service Co. gets the OK from the state Public Utilities Commission.
Rates would rise by 22 percent in 2011, 24.7 percent in 2012 and 19.8 percent in 2013.
The average residential customer's monthly bills would rise by an average of $6.24 in 2011, $8.43 in 2012 and another $8.43 in 2013.
Customers with large lot sizes, such as industrial users, would see monthly increases of $10.45, $14.71 and $14.71 again in the three years beginning in 2011.
Earlier this year, Cal Water officials announced plans to install water meters for 2,500 flat-rate customers in Marysville over the next 10 years, as part of a conservation effort.
In a press release, Cal Water officials said the rate increase is necessary to cover higher costs in providing water service, including state mandates for conservation, maintenance and centralized services; and for completed and planned water system projects.
An application by Cal Water for the increase filed earlier this month kicked off an 18-month review process by the PUC, with a final dec sion expected late next year. If approved, rate increases would begin in January 2011.
Cal Water officials said in the release they were sensitive to rising bills at a time when many customers may be experiencing economic difficulties, but the agency also has several water-conservation options customers can use to lower their bills.
Customers will be able to learn more about the proposed rate increase at a workshop planned for the fall and at public participation hearings to be held late this year or in early 2010.
Cal Water is the largest subsidiary of San Jose-based California Water Service Group, serving more than 460,000 customers in 83 California communities through 26 separate districts.#
http://www.appeal-democrat.com/news/water-84449-customers-cal.html
Heat driving up water use bringing warning from water agency
Santa Rosa Press Democrat-7/15/09
By Mary Callahan
Turn off the hose!
That’s the message from the Sonoma County Water Agency, which has notified cities and other entities it supplies that storage levels are growing dangerously low because of increased watering during recent hot weather.
“This is where the rubber meets the road,” Sonoma County Water Agency spokesman Brad Sherwood said Wednesday, a day after cities and other wholesalers were notified of a sudden decline in water storage.
The spike in temperatures Monday and Tuesday caused a surge in water demand large enough to cut stored supplies by an average of 5.8 million gallons a day, enough to consume the available stored water in 14 days, Sherwood said.
The message? Turn off the faucets, fix the plumbing and irrigation leaks, and learn to let your lawn go brown, or at least not as green.
Conservation experts said it may not be necessary to give up on lawns and gardens to meet the conservation goals.
“It’s OK to stress your plants out, and it’s not necessary to be adjusting (irrigation) up and down constantly,” Pam Jeane, the water agency’s deputy operations engineer, said.
Michael Wooley of Santa Rosa said he already is taking water conservation measures, such as washing his car monthly instead of weekly.
“We have a gardener and he cut back our watering to shorter times, from 10 minutes to two to three minutes,” said Wooley, who acknowledges it has left his lawn with a few brown spots.
The water agency supplies 600,000 consumers through the cities of Santa Rosa, Rohnert Park, Windsor, Cotati, Petaluma, and Sonoma, as well as the Valley of the Moon, the North Marin and the Marin Municipal water districts.
All have been asked to cut water use by at least 25 percent under a state mandate to reduce the amount of water pumped from the Russian River by the same percentage relative to 2004.
The water agency also has limitations on how much water it can provide because of budget cutbacks that have made some pumping facilities along the river unavailable, with the result that it is limited to supplying 53 million gallons of water a day.
When temperatures soared into the mid-90s Monday and then up and over 100 degrees on Tuesday, consumer demand spiked more than 13 percent to 60 million gallons a day. That forced the water agency to draw down water storage it can’t readily replace from the reservoirs and rivers because of years of dry weather.
Water tanks with capacity for 129 million gallons were down to 85 million gallons Tuesday, the threshold requiring notification of cities and other customers that water storage had declined.
The volume continued dropping Wednesday, despite a slight cooling.
Wherever the slide ends is where storage levels will remain until the next heat wave, barring extraordinary conservation, Sherwood said.
If the storage level drops to 70 million gallons, there would be mandatory conservation required through the system, according to a draft agreement, Sherwood said. That means each city would have to implement its conservation measures and be responsible for enforcing them.
At 60 million gallons of storage, the water agency would only deliver enough water necessary to meet human consumption, sanitation and fire protection needs, he said.
Water officials are cheered by the fact that even the recent spike in water use is lower than historically is the case, Jeane said.
But “it’s not a normal year,” Sherwood said. “We just can’t replenish it like we would be able to in years of non-drought because we literally don’t have the water in the river system to do that, and the state has ordered us to cut back 25 percent.”
Santa Rosa, the water agency’s largest customer, had a 32 percent reduction in water use from June 2004 to June 2009, and a cutback of 25 percent from June of last year, said Dan Muelrath, the city’s water conservation coordinator.
Santa Rosa nonetheless posted a reminder to its online water conservation page warning consumers to resist the urge to use too much water.
“A lot of times people increase irrigation 25, 30 40 percent,” Muelrath said of hot weather days. “In reality the landscape may have needed just an extra minute that day.”
Magie O’Meara, a clerk at the Home Depot, Santa Rosa, garden section, said the customers they see are increasingly water conscious.
“They ask for drought-resistant plants,” she said. “To a large degree, people are aware.”
O’Meara herself embraces many of the practices from the previous drought years.
“I don’t flush the toilet at night, and when I’m in the shower, I put in buckets to collect the water before it gets hot. I use it to water the potted plants in the house,” O’Meara said.
Muelrath suggested residents consult the city’s Turf-Time hotline (543-3466), which contains irrigation tips for different kinds of weather, or its Web site, www.srcity.org\watershortrage,
“We were very lucky to have the cool start of the summer,” Sherwood said, “and now I think we’re starting to hit that regular heat of the summer that we normally get.”#
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20090715/ARTICLES/907159981
Year-end figures indicate Pasadena cut water use by 7 percent
San Gabriel Valley Tribune-7/15/09
City utility officials said Wednesday that Pasadena Water and Power customers cut water use by 7 percent for the 2009 fiscal year that ended in June, from the 2008 fiscal year.
Eric Klinkner, the assistant general manager of PWP, said that the drop in usage was higher than expected, and could mean that the city will not have to cut usage any further to avoid higher punitive rates from the Metropolitan Water District, their main supplier.
MWD announced earlier this year it would cut supplies to customers by 10 percent, based on a three-year average use figure. Exceeding the water supply would result in the punitive rates.
Because Pasadena is getting some credits for conservation and for population growth, said Klinkner, the amount customers have cut might be sufficient to avoid the rates.
The city voted last month to increase PWP customers' water rates, and the desire to avoid the higher punitive rates was one of the main reasons officials gave as a reason to increase the rates.#
http://www.sgvtribune.com/rds_search/ci_12843236?IADID=Search-www.sgvtribune.com-www.sgvtribune.com
Restaurants serving water only on request
The Desert Sun/7/16/09
By Denise Goolsby
Thirty-seven Coachella Valley restaurants are trying to battle California's drought, one glass at a time.
At the request of the Coachella Valley Water District, the restaurants are serving water only when customers request it.
“With this program, CVWD is working with local businesses to raise awareness of the regional water crisis,” said Abby Figueroa, CVWD public information associate.
Sherman's Deli & Bakery in Palm Desert was the first to sign up for the program. The restaurant has been providing water on a by-request basis since November.
General manager Gordon Poster said customers have been supportive of the conservation efforts, which have helped the restaurant save about 125 gallons of water a day.
That's roughly the amount the average person uses over the course of a day, Figueroa said.
For each glass of water served, four glasses of water are needed to wash the cup, according to an Arizona-based water conservation group — Water Use It Wisely — the organization that initiated the water-by-request program for restaurants, Figueroa said.
“Every drop counts and small conservation actions do add up to big savings over time,” she said.
Desert Water Agency supports CVWD's efforts to encourage water conservation efforts in the agency's service area.
“They started the program, and it's working well,” agency spokeswoman Katie Ruark said.
Mission Springs Water Agency, which services Desert Hot Springs, concentrates its water conservation efforts on outdoor landscaping rather than having a commercial focus, said Marilyn McKay, administrative officer for Mission Springs Water District
But savings is savings, she said, and any and every effort to conserve will have to be embraced by water providers.
“To be effective in conservation, water districts are now looking at a portfolio of water conservation programs,” McKay said.#
http://www.mydesert.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009907160310
Water bottling facility still a mystery in Orland
Chico Enterprise-Record-7/16/09
By Barbara Arrigoni
There's a mystery brewing in Orland, though it's not the stuff of crime novels.
It's about water and the lack of information surrounding a proposed sparkling-beverage bottling facility and warehouse that an unnamed company may locate in the city.
The project could draw 160 acre-feet of water from the city's aquifer annually.
An unnamed company filed an application late in June to begin the planning process, which led to a site review scheduled for Wednesday with the city's technical advisory committee. The five-person committee is made up of the city manager, city planner, city engineer, public works director and building inspector.
But what the Orland officials and four dozen residents got Wednesday was more questions.
Just who is behind the project? Not even the city knows.
City Manager Paul Poczobut asked a representative if he would reveal the company's name.
Calling himself Richard, a representative of PLP, LLC said that agency wasn't ready to divulge the name of the company at this time because it isn't known yet if the site will prove to be viable.
His answer brought collective groans throughout Carnegie Center.
Later, "Richard" also refused to give his last name to this newspaper because he said it might identify the company. He hasn't revealed his full name to the city either, Poczobut said later.
Earlier in the meeting, City Planner Nancy Sailsbery noted she sent a draft of conditions to representatives for review,which was supposed to be discussed at the meeting.
That didn't happen either. Project engineer Jim Strandberg of Emeryville said he hadn't had time to review the conditions and asked for more time before responding. The audience grumbled.
Strandberg did provide a few details about testing.
Three wells have been placed at the site, located on county roads 200 and N. Testing will last for five days so that fluctuations can be monitored. Afterward, the pumps will be shut off to see how quickly the wells recover.
The information will be used to establish the sustainablility of the wells. If it's too low, the applicant will walk away from the project, Strandberg said.
Approximately 400 gallons of water per minute will be pumped during the five-day testing period.
Strandberg said he hopes testing will begin in two or three weeks, and he may have results for the city by September.
Sailsbery said the results will be one of the city's requirements and added that the county agriculture department would also want testing. She said she'd draft a condition to meet that requirement as well.
After the meeting, residents' responses were mixed, though some people oppose the project altogether.
Vivian Burt said she's worried about the current drought and that the facility could affect wells. She said water pressure in her well is already low. Burt also said she might not be as concerned about the project if there wasn't a drought going on now.
"I'm open minded," Burt said. "I just don't want the wells to go dry. They can't guarantee that."
Angus Saint-Evens, who lives within a half mile of the site and has a well, said he attended because he wants to see how the project will impact him. He also said he wanted to see what the project is truly about.
"There are a lot of rumors going around," Saint-Evens said. "I want to flesh out the truth."
However, Ray Collette is "100-percent opposed" to the project, especially after the meeting produced few answers.
"I was hoping to see a little more transparency in the procedure," Collette said.
He said it looks to him like the company has something to hide and added, "It raises my hackles that maybe what they want to do is not going to be in our interest."#
http://www.chicoer.com/advertise/ci_12849456?IADID=Search-www.chicoer.com-www.chicoer.com
Workshop will show how to follow new water rules
Sacramento Bee-7/16/09
By Matt Weiser
Sacramentans are invited to attend a free workshop Saturday to learn about using water wisely.
The event, offered by the city's Utilities Department, is designed to educate residents about the city's new watering rules and help them maintain a beautiful yard while saving water.
The rules, adopted in June, forbid city water customers from watering landscaping between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. daily.
Residents and businesses may water only on alternate days, based on address: even-numbered addresses Wednesday, Friday and Sunday; odd addresses Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. All watering is banned Mondays.
The event is planned from 10 a.m. to noon at the city's Water Conservation Office, 2260 Glen Ellen Circle.
For more information, view www.sparesacwater.org or call the city operator at 311.#
http://www.sacbee.com/ourregion/story/2030146.html
Corona council votes to increase water rates
Riverside Press-Enterprise-7/15/09
By Alicia Robinson
Corona water users will pay more starting in September, after a City Council vote Wednesday to allow a series of rate increases over the next five years.
Several residents protested having to pay when workers are taking pay cuts or losing jobs. Others suggested the city do more to reduce its own water consumption.
"I'm not going to get a raise -- I work for local government," Alice Ubry said. "I know why they're going up, but I still object."
City officials said increases are needed to cover inflation and rising costs for maintenance and purchased water, which makes up almost half of the city's supply. Western Municipal Water District, a city supplier, already has passed on its higher costs for imported water.
The council approved the increases on a 4-1 vote, with Stan Skipworth dissenting. The first increase of 16.4 percent will take effect Sept. 4. That is an additional $8.70 a month for the average single-family home.
Annual increases will follow through 2015 to cover higher operating costs and increases in purchased water. Customers will be notified in advance of increases, which would take effect in January and be capped at 15 percent, or at the level of inflation if that is higher.
Jonathan Daly, general manager of the Department of Water and Power, said by law the city can't charge more than it costs to provide water.
"We have no intention of raising it 15 or 20 percent just because that's the limit," he said. "If we don't fund it properly, the utility will go into decay and, quite frankly, might not be able to pay its bills."
Officials said they have converted the irrigation at some city and school properties to recycled water and changed some landscaping to drought-tolerant plants. The city is offering rebates on sprinkler controls that respond to weather, landscaping classes and other programs to help residents conserve and cut costs.#
http://www.pe.com/localnews/riverside/stories/PE_News_Local_W_wrates16.48cbe88.html
Marin residents want desalination
Marin Independent Journal-7/8/09
By Mark Prado
A poll released Thursday shows 58 percent of Marin residents generally support desalination, the controversial plan to take water from the bay and use it for drinking water in the county.
That number jumped to 68 percent when participants were provided with more information about the plan, according to the poll, conducted by Oakland-based EMC Research Inc.
The Marin Municipal Water District funded the $20,000 poll in a effort gauge where the public stands on water issues as it begins to debate the county's water future.
The telephone survey of 401 registered voters was conducted between June 14 to 17 and has 4.9 percent margin of error.
The poll also showed 79 percent of people ranked long-term water supply as a top concern over traffic - 74 percent - and jobs, 65 percent.
Another 77 percent said the district needed to find a new sources of water to solve long term water supply issues. Only 11 percent believed conservation was the sole solution.
"Take it for what it is. It's information," said water board member Larry Russell.
Russell said the poll is not an attempt to ramrod desalination through approval.
"Our ears are open," he said. "We want to hear everything that can be put on the table, and sooner or later we have to make a decision."
In February, the water district's board of directors directed its staff to keep open the possibility of a $105 million, 5-million-gallon-a-day desalination plant as part of a package of steps to address the county's future water needs.
The poll also shows 51 percent oppose taking more water from the Russian River, with the number jumping to 59 percent when they were provided with more information.
Members of the water board and the public have expressed philosophical reservations about pulling additional water from river because of the potential harm to fish and other wildlife.
About 20 percent of the district's water comes from the river, with the balance coming from Mount Tamalpais and other reservoirs. The district supplies water to 190,000 people in a 147-square-mile area between Sausalito and San Rafael.
On the topic of conservation, 55 percent said they conserve water but could do more, and 25 percent believe they are doing all they can.
The water district has asserted conservation is not enough to meet future needs. But a report by James Fryer, a former water district conservation program manager, said by replacing inefficient fixtures, improving landscape irrigation, plugging system leaks and enhancing reservoir operations, Marin could have a reliable water supply without desalination.
Some in the community accused the water district of posing questions that would get a desired result in support of desalination - sometimes called a "push" poll.
"The MMWD wants desal so bad they just wasted another $20,000 on a push poll," said Frank Egger, former Fairfax mayor and a desalination critic. "It's obvious from reading the poll what the outcome would be and I had no doubt it would result in support for desal. Basically it's a dishonest poll."
David Behar, a water district board member, disagreed. "It was not a push poll. It mirrored what would happen in a conversation."#
http://www.marinij.com/marinnews/ci_12787635
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