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Canal plan may solve California water distribution issues
A public policy group suggested California should no longer rely on the troubled Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to supply water to most of the state, and should instead build a canal around the delta. A study by the Public Policy Institute of California recommends that cities in Southern California and the San Francisco Bay area stop drawing water from the delta, saying it's an increasingly unstable source. Instead, institute officials believe a canal that would draw fresh water from the Sacramento River would deliver better quality water to more than 25 million Californians and farmers in the Central Valley because it would bypass the salty mixture found in the delta. A canal also could help native fish that are now being killed when they are sucked into the delta's massive water pumps. AP_7/17/08
Fresno Irrigation District to stop water deliveries
The Fresno (Calif.) Irrigation District will cease water deliveries July 31 after a five-month season because of dry spring conditions. The district covers about 245,000 acres and operates about 800 miles of canals and pipelines. In a normal year, Fresno Irrigation District handles about 500,000 acre-feet of water and delivers most of it to agricultural users. By season's end, the district will have delivered about 432,000 acre-feet of water. Deliveries started March 1. Growers will need to rely upon groundwater for any late summer or fall irrigations. The district will offer hardship water deliveries to the east side of the district beginning Aug. 1 and continuing through September. In addition, reclaimed water will continue to be delivered on the Houghton and Dry Creek systems. Fresno Bee_7/17/08
After a seven-week trial in U.S. District Court in Columbus, jurors found today that 68 residents of Muskingum County were denied public water service because of the color of their skin. The racial-discrimination damages awarded to current and former residents of the Coal Run area outside Zanesville were hefty: $10.9 million. The city of Zanesville, Muskingum County and the Eastern Muskingum Water Authority, which now is operated by the county, are jointly liable for the payout. Attorney fees that might be awarded later would add to the penalty. The jury found that city and county officials violated federal and state fair-housing and civil-rights laws by not extending waterlines to Coal Run until 2004. Surrounding white residents had public water, but not Coal Run residents. Attorneys for Zanesville and Muskingum County said the case would be appealed. Columbus Dispatch_ 7/10/08
Pure New York City tap water may be muddied by climate change
Warmer temperatures threaten to spoil the mountain reservoirs supplying 9 million people in New York City. Water from the largest unfiltered delivery system in the U.S. may become dirtier as weather patterns shift, bringing stronger storms to the region, the city's Department of Environmental Protection said in a May report. Heavy rains muddy reservoirs and wash in bacteria and parasites. That may force New York to spend $10 billion on filtration, the DEP said. Last year, the Washington-based EPA said water from New York's Catskill and Delaware watersheds, about 90 percent of the city's supply, was still clear enough to avoid filtration. About 10 percent of the system will be filtered by 2012. Bloomberg_ 7/7/08 download the EPA report pdf
Alaska ballot contains clean-water initiative
The Alaska Supreme Court has ruled that an initiative to regulate or restrict pollution from mining can be placed on the ballot in August for voters to consider. The initiative is aimed at stemming the discharge of toxic materials from large metallic mineral mines in Alaska, that may compromise water sources according to court documents. Mining advocates oppose the measure, saying it would put a damper on industry. Late last year, they asked a superior court judge to declare the initiative unconstitutional. In February, Superior Court Judge Douglas Blankenship issued a decision saying the initiative could appear on the ballot. It's known as "Ballot Measure 4." The Council of Alaska Producers and other mining supporters then appealed to the state Supreme Court, which upheld Blankenship's ruling. Forbes_7/3/08
San Francisco Bay Area starts $1 million water-conservation campaign
Elected officials from around the Bay Area hope a new public awareness campaign called "Water Saving Hero" spurs people to voluntarily cut their water use by 10 percent - enough perhaps to avoid the mandatory water rationing already imposed on some East Bay cities. The $1 million campaign - a partnership among 11 Bay Area water agencies and funded by a grant from the California Department of Water Resources - comes as the state grapples with its first drought in 16 years. SF Gate_7/3/08
Sacramento couple who let lawn die to save water face $746 fine
When California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a statewide drought June 4, Anne Hartridge decided it was only right to let her Sacramento front lawn die to save water. "The whole water conservation ethic is very important to me," said Hartridge, a state employee who bikes or rides the bus to work. But that ethic didn't agree with her neighbors, or with the city. Before Hartridge could plan new landscaping, a neighbor complained to the city about her brown lawn, and the Code Enforcement Department slapped the family with a citation. A $746 fine will be next unless they correct the violation. "In order to make the lawn go, I would have had to keep watering it intensely, and since the drought was declared, I decided that wasn't a good idea," said Hartridge. "Honestly, I think there's a disconnect within the city about priorities." Sacramento Bee_7/2/08
Update: Fine dropped for Sacramento water savers
Sacramento city officials on Wednesday admitted their code enforcement policies may not be drought-friendly, and said they won't fine the couple who let their front lawn die to save water. The story in the Sacramento Bee prompted a torrent of outrage from the public, who overwhelmingly supported Anne Hartridge and Matt George, the east Sacramento couple cited by city code enforcers after they stopped watering their lawn. Sacramento Bee_7/3/08
Wisconsin's Holmen Rotary Club aide water clean up in Peru
The efforts of the Holmen Rotary Club will mean clean, safe drinking water for hundreds — maybe even thousands — of people in a poor section of Lima, Peru. Last winter, the club, which is only about a year old, decided to take on its first international project. Dean McHugh, chairman of the club’s international committee, went online looking for causes that would work and came across a proposed project from a Rotary Club in Lima that sought help getting water filters to an extremely poor section of the city of 10 million. The project entailed created and distributing 250 biosand water filters, which can filter almost 10 gallons of water per hour. In Lima, 10 percent of the residents (a million people) don’t have safe drinking water. Almost half of the children in Lima younger than 5 suffer from chronic diarrhea contracted from contaminated drinking water, and a third of Lima’s children have intestinal parasites from bad water. Holmen Courier_ 6/30/08
Illinois and Iowa say drinking water treatment plants OK after floods
Drining water treatment plants are back to normal after flooding rivers and streams this month knocked out several in Illinois and Iowa, officials said. "Water at this point is not an issue," said Tom Green, a spokesman for the Illinois Department of Public Health. Bret Voorhees, of Iowa Emergency Management, said access to clean water in the state has not been much of an issue so far. The Federal Emergency Management Agency, as well as local and state governments, have stockpiled bottled water for those displaced by the floods. Reuters_ 6/21/08
Los Angeles Department of Water and Power official disputes bias accusations
Seven years ago, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power spent $3.3 million settling employee accusations that the utility had condoned racial discrimination -- and interfered in efforts to investigate those complaints. DWP hired the Texas law firm of Kemp Smith, which recommended then-Assistant General Manager Raman Raj should leave for the good of the agency. But with Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa recently installing new leadership at the DWP, Raj, 58, returned in December as the utility's No. 2 official, running the department while General Manager H. David Nahai travels to Israel with the mayor. The confidential report on Raj, a copy of which was obtained by The Times, concluded that Raj moved the utility's anti-discrimination office from a satellite building -- valued for providing a level of anonymity -- into DWP headquarters to discourage complaints, since anyone who entered would have to do so in public view. The report also said Raj manipulated severance packages to remove managers who disagreed with him. And it warned that Raj had given "too much influence in management of the organization" to Brian D'Arcy, head of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 18 -- which represents DWP workers. Los Angeles Times_ 6/16/08
Precautions urged for well owners in Midwest U.S. flood areas
WaterWebster Staff Report
June 11, 2008
(Editors: To reprint this story at no cost, click here)
Homeowners whose drinking water wells are flooded need to be careful both during the flood and afterward, groundwater safety experts warned Wednesday. Flooding from Nebraska to Indiana has potentially contaminated wells used for drinking water, said Cliff Treyens, public awareness director for the National Ground Water Assn. (NGAWA). (full story)
American Water Works Association kicks off annual conference and exposition (ACE08) in Atlanta
Thousands of water industry professionals gathered to explore the future of safe water, gain insight into cutting-edge research and best practices, and experience the latest products and services available to the water community. AWWA President Nilaksh Kothari highlighted the current challenges facing the water community, including new and complex drinking water regulations, water resources and shortages, and aging infrastructure in need of significant repair or replacement and a major joint announcement by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). At the event, the CDC became the first federal partner of EPA's WaterSense Program, an initiative to stimulate more efficient use of water in homes and, now, federal facilities. Dr. Julie Gerberding, CDC Director, and Benjamin H. Grumbles, EPA Assistant Administrator for Water, were on hand to sign the historic agreement. Grumbles also announced a rule to clarify that permits are not required for water transfers from one body of water to another. Such transfers include routing water through tunnels, channels, or natural stream courses for public water supplies, irrigation, power generation, flood control and environmental restoration. News Release_ 6/9/08
Many eyes on Lubbock, Texas' water
Past misdeeds and neighborly obligations have committed as much as 10 percent of Lubbock's annual water use to customers outside the city's borders, and records show that volume could grow. The Lubbock City Council soon could offer contracts to two new out-of-city customers, bumping the obligations to as much as 13 percent of the current water use. Another 17 communities within 50 miles of the city may face groundwater quality or quantity issues within 50 years - all will depend on new, federally acceptable groundwater supplies nearby or a well-established patron to fill their needs. State environmental regulators have encouraged those that struggle to talk to Lubbock. Partnerships with surrounding communities could help the city attract grant money for expensive water projects but also trade away the precious commodity leaders have tried to secure. That puts Lubbock in a difficult position, regulators and local water officials admit: Why should a city spending hundreds of millions of citizen dollars securing the limited water available graciously supply anyone else? Lubbock Avalanche-Journal_ 6/8/08
Stinky water affecting some Atlanta customers
First there was drought, now there's stench. Some of the city of Atlanta's 1.2 million water customers are having to hold their noses and gulp down the stinky H2O flowing from their faucets the last couple of days. Reports of smelly, funny tasting drinking water began pouring into the city's Department of Watershed Management on Friday. Department officials blame the problem on "reservoir turnover," and say the water is safe to drink. Resevoir turnover occurs when colder water heats up and rises, bring with it a lot of sediment and alge, spokeswoman Janet Ward said on Sunday. Carbon filtration, an extra purification step, is being used but officials can't say for sure when the water will be odor free. Atlanta Journal-Constitution_ 6/1/08
Orange County, California Grand Jury recommends water conservation
The Orange County Grand Jury Thursday released a report recommending that California's third largest county adopt a comprehensive water conservation program. Orange County, which ranks behind Los Angeles and San Diego in population, according to 2007 estimates by the California Finance Department, has an estimated 3.1 million residents. WaterWebster staff_ 5/22/08 Download the Grand Jury report .pdf
Santa Clara Valley Water District raises salaries for two top staffers to highest in California
Board members of the Santa Clara Valley Water District, a government agency buffeted by charges of excessive spending, on Tuesday approved salary increases for two of their top staff members, making them the most highly paid such employees of any water district in the state. The unanimous vote came only moments after the board voiced opposition to placing a measure on the November ballot subjecting its members to term limits. Board chairwoman Rosemary Kamei defended the pay increases during a week in which the board is also considering raising fees to customers. Kamei noted that unlike most water districts, Santa Clara oversees both drinking water and flood protection. Water district counsel Debra Cauble's salary will increase 8 percent to $221,720 a year. The board also gave Cauble a $12,000 bonus, and increased her monthly car allowance to $750. By comparison, Karen Tachiki, general counsel of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, will make $221,832 this year, but with no bonus and a $700 car allowance. Los Angeles-based Metropolitan has 18 million customers - 10 times more than Santa Clara - and a yearly budget of $1.8 billion - five times larger. Board members also approved a 5 percent raise for board clerk Lauren Keller, to $135,574 a year. At the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, the Bay Area's largest water district, the clerk earns $103,716, and the clerk at Metropolitan makes $99,816. Based in San Jose, the district provides drinking water and flood protection to 1.8 million Santa Clara County residents. Its $364 million annual budget comes from water bills and property taxes. San Jose Mercury News_ 5/21/08
Sewer to spigot: Recycled water
A growing number of cities and counties grappling with water shortages are turning to a solution that may be tough for some homeowners to stomach: purifying wastewater so that residents can drink it. In an effort to replenish its groundwater supply, Los Angeles is slated to announce Thursday a plan that will recycle 4.9 billion gallons of treated wastewater to drinking standards by 2019. In San Diego, the city council voted in favor of a pilot project that would pump recycled sewage water into a drinking-water reservoir, despite a veto from the mayor over the system's cost. Miami-Dade County, Fla., is planning a system that would pump 23 million gallons a day of purified wastewater into the ground; the water will eventually travel to a supply well and be reclaimed for drinking use. Some communities, such as the Tampa Bay area of Florida, desalinate seawater, which is generally more expensive than recycling. Many cities are also pushing water-conservation initiatives such as implementing restrictions on when residents can water lawns or offering rebates for high-efficiency washers and toilets. But cities considering large-scale systems that recycle wastewater to drinking standards may face an uphill battle. Such initiatives -- dubbed "toilet to tap" proposals by critics -- have encountered resistance in the past as a result of cost and the overall yuck factor. In 2001, Los Angeles scrapped a $55 million wastewater-recycling project that would have provided the equivalent of the annual water needs of 200,000 city residents. A similar proposal in San Diego was derailed in the late 1990s amid an outcry that poor neighborhoods would be forced to use the wastewater from rich neighborhoods. Wall Street Journal_ 5/15/08
Los Angeles prepares massive water-conservation plan
With vital and often-distant water sources shrinking, Los Angeles officials today will revive a controversial proposal to recycle wastewater as part of a plan to curb usage and move the city toward greater water independence. The aggressive, multiyear proposal could do much to catch the city up to other Southern California communities that have launched advanced recycling programs. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's effort could cost up to $2 billion and affect a wide range of daily activities. Cities facing the same challenges, including Long Beach, have already moved to curtail residential and commercial water usage and punish waste. Orange County and other Southern California agencies are also recycling treated sewage water back into the drinking supply. Los Angeles' plan -- a copy of which was made available to The Times -- would invest in projects to capture and store rainfall and clean up a sprawling, contaminated water supply beneath the San Fernando Valley. About $1 billion would be allocated for reclamation, including a politically sensitive plan to use treated wastewater to recharge underground drinking supplies serving the Valley, Los Feliz and the Eastside. A similar system was approved and built in the 1990s, then abandoned after critics labeled it a "toilet-to-tap" scheme. Los Angeles Times_ 5/15/08 (logon required)
New Jersey weighs water tax for open space preservation
New Jerseyans may decide this year whether to tax their water use. A Senate committee on Thursday debated a proposed constitutional amendment that would dedicate $150 million annually be raised from a proposed new water tax to farmland and open space preservation in the nation's most densely populated state. Sen. Bob Smith said the tax would charge 40 cents per 1,000 gallons of water, equating to $32 per year for the average household. Voters in November approved borrowing $200 million for land preservation, but that money is set to run out in two years. Smith said the water tax would make the program permanent and mean an end to borrowing for preservation, while providing $150 million in annual pay-as-you-go funding. Forbes_5/8/08
Hawaii first state to require solar water heaters in new homes
All new homes in Hawaii will be required to have solar water heaters installed starting in 2010 under a law approved by the Legislature. Solar water heaters typically cost home buyers about $5,000 extra on their mortgage, but island residents will save thousands of dollars over the years on their electricity bills, supporters said. AP/MSNBC_ 5/6/08
Duke Energy nuclear plant causes Carolina water concerns
Water will be a likely font of controversy as Duke Energy moves toward building a new nuclear plant, its first in two decades, 40 miles southwest of Charlotte. The William States Lee III plant near Gaffney would be Duke's first nuclear plant not built on a large reservoir, as McGuire is on Lake Norman and Catawba is on Lake Wylie. It would instead draw 50 million gallons a day from the Broad River, which also supplies Duke's Cliffside coal-fired plant just above the N.C. line. About 35 million gallons a day will evaporate from the plant's cooling towers, with the rest returned to the river. Anti-nuclear groups that will try to stop the plant's construction say the Broad can't afford to give up that much water. S.C. officials and Duke say the Broad should be able to supply the nuclear plant -- except during severe drought. About once every 12 years, a Duke report says, the plant might have to shut down because the Broad and small on-site ponds can't cool it. The utility says it needs the plant to help supply electricity to 40,000 to 60,000 new Carolinas customers a year. State legislation that would require permits for South Carolina's largest water users, including utilities, went nowhere this year. Duke and business groups fought for versions that conservationists said would allow rivers to be drawn down to unhealthy levels for fish and wildlife. Charlotte Observer_ 5/4/08
Belle Glade, Florida boil-water order drags into third week
Residents of the City of Belle Glade must continue to boil their water while officials await results from bacteria tests taken in city tanks. The boil water order has been in effect since April 19 when workers at the water plant stirred up sediment in the tanks. Kenneth Kelly, Belle Glade water plant operator, said he's not sure when the boil water order will be lifted. Palm Beach Post_ 5/3/08
Idaho water board buys fish farm to aid water supplies
During the month of April, the Idaho Water Resource Board in a partnership with the city of Twin Falls, North Snake and Magic Valley ground water districts, completed a series of transactions resulting in the purchase of Pristine Springs fish farm operation. The transactions are designed to address conflicts between spring water users and ground water users in Magic Valley as well as provide the city of Twin Falls with a fresh water source to improve the quality of its water supply and provide for future growth of the city. The water districts will pay $11 million in total, $1 million initially plus $10 million and interest for 10 years as part of a loan from the IWRB. The IWRB will eventually have the $10 million plus interest returned to its revolving loan program which will be used to finance other water projects across the state. Ag Weekly_ 5/3/08
California water officials: March, April driest on record
The Sierra Nevada snowpack, a key source of California's water supply, has fallen well below normal levels after California experienced its driest two-month period on record, state water officials said today. Department of Water Resources scientists found snowpack water content averaging only 67 percent of normal throughout the 400-mile-long mountain range. Levels were 88 percent of normal in the northern Sierra and about 60 percent of normal in the central and southern regions. The amount of water running into streams and reservoirs is only 55 to 65 percent of normal, according to the figures collected by the Department of Water Resources. That's one of the reasons federal and state water managers have reduced water exports so far this year. Water deliveries also have been cut to comply with a federal judge's order that limits pumping from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta by as much as 30 percent to protect the delta smelt, a threatened fish species. San Jose Mercury News_5/1/08
April, 2008
EPA to honor Birmingham, Alabama Water Works
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will give the board of the Birmingham Water Works its 2007 Safe Drinking Water Act Excellence Award for Region 4 at a ceremony tonight. EPA's Region 4 includes Alabama, Florida, Georgia Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. According to a news release, this is the EPA's highest honor for a water system and the award will be presented by representatives from the Alabama Department of Environmental Management. The award recognizes water systems that are consistently committed to compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act. Birmingham Business Journal_ 4/28/08
New York City will serve as model for water surveillance
Mayor Bloomberg announced Thursday that the city will receive a $12-million dollar grant from the Environmental Protection Agency for water surveillance. The funds will be used to help develop a high-tech online system to monitor the city's 19 reservoirs and three controlled lakes. The grant will allow the City's Department of Environmental Protection to do more testing and analysis of water supplies across the five boroughs. The city's water security program is expected to serve as a model for water utilities throughout the country. NY1_4/25/08
Spiraling costs alleged for water plant built 10 stories down
In a city of big projects, it ranks among the biggest. New York City’s Department of Environmental Protection is building one of the largest water filtration plants in the world in a 10-story-deep hole it blasted out of bedrock in the Bronx. When completed in 2012, the plant, capable of purifying 300 million gallons of water a day, will be buried there. Even as construction moves forward, questions about soaring costs and delays continue to plague the project. The cost is now estimated at nearly $3 billion, a huge jump from the $660 million city officials estimated when they announced an audacious plan in 1998 to build the plant below the surface of Van Cortlandt Park. Some officials and others fear the final tab could climb even higher, and in the process push up water rates. On April 1, the city comptroller, William C. Thompson Jr., announced that he was starting an independent audit to determine whether city officials understated the original price,Besides scrutinizing the complicated accounting, Mr. Thompson will have to sort through accusations by some residents and officials of deliberate distortions of costs, and intimations that the project has been tainted by mob influence, though nothing has been proved. New York Times_4/24/08
New Mexico governor calls for surface water protection
More than 5,300 miles of New Mexico's rivers and streams would gain special protection under the federal Clean Water Act as "outstanding waters" as part of a precedent-setting proposal being pushed by Gov. Bill Richardson. The plan marks the first time New Mexico has embarked on a such a broad effort to protect headwaters on national forest land and in roadless areas from degradation under the state's water quality standards and the Clean Water Act, officials said. Rivers and streams eligible for designation as Outstanding National Resource Waters include those that are part of a national or state park, wildlife refuge or wilderness area, or those that are of high quality and haven't been significantly modified by human activities. Forbes_4/23/08
Local official says earthquake may affect Iowa well water
The 5.2 magnitude earthquake that struck southern Illinois on Friday could affect the quality of drinking water for Muscatine County, Iowa, residents who live in unincorporated areas or who have private wells. That's according to Eric Furnas, the county's zoning administrator, who says it is common for compressions from quakes of this magnitude and larger to reach Iowa and cause some discoloration of well water ranging from black to yellow. Furnas says residents with discolored water should test their water for total coliform bacteria due to the possibility of the water quality being compromised. AP/WOI-tv_ 4/20/08
Woburn, Massachusetts faces fine for violating water laws
The state Department of Environmental Protection has found Woburn in violation of drinking-water laws and has ordered the city to immediately approve a plan to install residential water meters, among other requirements, or face potential legal action and financial penalties. The City Council has called an emergency meeting for Wednesday to discuss the situation, which multiple councilors said came as a surprise. Installing 10,000 meters could cost $5 million, according to a projection by the city's engineer, and would probably also increase water bills for residents, who currently pay a flat fee regardless of how much they use. The DEP says Woburn failed to follow through on a June 2006 consent order that Mayor Thomas L. McLaughlin signed to rectify problems that predated his administration. In that order, Woburn agreed to make a number of changes and improvements, including the installation of meters. Boston Globe_ 4/13/08
Pennsylvania's Sustainable Water Infrastructure Task Force to hold first meeting
Governor Edward G. Rendell created the task force last month through executive order to evaluate what is needed to ensure Pennsylvania maintains sustainable water and wastewater systems in light of continued cuts by the federal government. The commonwealth is facing nearly $20 billion in unmet funding needs for the state's drinking water and wastewater infrastructure. Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Kathleen A. McGinty will convene the task force's first meeting at 9:30 a.m., Monday, April 14, in Room 105 of the Rachel Carson State Office Building, 400 Market St., Harrisburg. News Release_ 4/11/08
Colorado Senator warns state needs to increase storage to avoid water war
Water wars in the Southeast U.S. should serve as a warning to Colorado to store more water, Sen. Wayne Alllard, R-Colo., told Western Slope leaders on Saturday. To avert fights over the state’s water, Colorado must immediately figure out how to store the 1.2 million acre-feet the state has been allotted under the compact that divvies up the Colorado River and its tributaries, Allard told Club 20, the Western Slope lobbying and promotional organization. In the worst case, Congress would draft new laws to make water decisions, or the federal government would mediate water fights among the states, Allard said. Grand Junction Sentinel_ 4/5/08
Nevada flooding prompts federal water managers to begin review of canals in the West
The failure of an earthen embankment on a century-old irrigation canal that flooded the growing town of Fernley, Nevada, has federal water managers concerned about the safety of nearly 8,000 miles of similar aging canals across the West. The January breach of the Truckee Canal flooded nearly 600 homes, making Fernley a state and federal disaster area. The review is no small task. The Bureau of Reclamation owns 7,911 miles of canals in 17 Western states, the vast majority of them managed and operated by local irrigation and water districts. And the review is made more urgent by the change in demographics across much of the West from rural to urban. Crews started digging the Truckee Canal in 1903 with mules and steam shovels. In 1960, Fernley’s population stood at only 654; today, the town serves as a bedroom community of Reno, 30 miles to the west, and the population is about 20,000. AP/Boston Herald_ 4/5/08
After stays at luxury resorts and short flights at taxpayers' expense, the South Florida Water Management District got a warning from state legislators on Wednesday: "Change your ways." The House Committee on Audit and Performance called district officials to the capital after the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported that agency representatives stayed at pricey hotels and used the district's airplane and helicopters for short trips and costly solo flights. State Rep. Ed Homan, the committee chairman, said if the district's nine-member volunteer governing board didn't change its practices, the Legislature could change state law to put tighter limits on the agency's travel spending. "When they sign up for this thing, they don't sign up for any perks," said Homan, R- Tampa. "They are here because they are a public servant." District board members during the past three years flew nearly 600 times, costing more than $800,000 in fuel, insurance, hangar space, maintenance and other expenses, according to the Sun-Sentinel's examination of flight logs, budgets and other records. South Florida Sun-Sentinel_ 4/4/08
Okla. Group Objects to State Water Sale
A loose coalition of southern Oklahoma organizations sought Wednesday to bolster their case against the sale of state water to Texas interests. The attorney general's office is appealing a federal judge's ruling that would allow a Texas group to proceed with its lawsuit against the state. The Tarrant Regional Water District of Texas wants to obtain 150 billion gallons of water a year from Oklahoma streams. Opponents say the district wants the water to further economic development in north Texas at the expense of Oklahoma towns and cities. They expressed disappointment with the level of support they have gotten from state leaders, including the Legislature, the governor's office and the attorney general. "We want to be the wet state that grows, not the dry one that blows away," said Charlette Hearne of the Southern Oklahoma Water Association. Forbes_4/3/08
Vermont eyes better water oversight
Lawmakers in Vermont are reviewing options for preserving groundwater. According to author and researcher Maude Barlow, Vermont, a veritable postcard of blue lakes and streams, is vulnerable to the ill-effects of the "water mining" industry. Vermont is one of the few states in the country without a law governing groundwater extraction. Legislation pending in the Vermont House would, for the first time in this state, require commercial water bottlers to obtain a permit before drawing large volumes of water from underground aquifers. Barlow said the legislation is crucial if Vermonters want to retain their supply of what will soon become the most sought after resource on the globe. "Instead of using groundwater sustainably, we're mining it," Barlow said. "It's like gold mining … we take it until it's gone and then move on. As a result, the world is running out of available groundwater." Vermont, like most rural states, relies heavily on groundwater for residential use. More than two-thirds of Vermonters get their water from the ground, many via wells drilled into springs running beneath their land. The law being debated in Montpelier right now would establish groundwater as a public trust, making companies seeking to extract it subject to the same regulatory rigors as commercial enterprises that impact rivers or large tracts of land. Rutland Herald Online_4/3/08
San Antonio Water System chairman to create task force to evaluate future
The cost for the San Antonio Water System to build major water-supply projects keeps rising while the utility still relies almost entirely on the Edwards Aquifer, a source that could be severely curtailed in a drought. That recently prompted SAWS board Chairman Alex Briseño to announce that he'll soon form a task force to evaluate the utility's long-term plans. Then the SAWS staff, led by President and Chief Executive Officer David Chardavoyne, revealed that the cost of the plan to expand and diversify the utility's water supply over the next 50 years has jumped 25 percent since the last tabulation three years ago — from $2.8 billion to $3.5 billion. Even before the recent rapid run-up in projected costs, Briseño, who joined the board in June 2006, was starting to show some annoyance over not getting answers to questions about costs. In a recent interview, Briseño avoided any direct criticism of Chardavoyne, who was hired in January 2005, but he clearly was frustrated. "The fact is the board members are only as good as the information we get," he said. "There are two issues here. One is not having timely information that I've been requesting on an ongoing basis, and the second is the rapid change in the escalating costs of this plan that we need to get a handle on and that we need to be aware of so we can plan for the future." San Antonio Express-News_ 3/31/08
Sierra snowpack dips to normal
The Sierra snowpack has shrunk to normal levels after a series of big winter storms in January and early February was followed by a relative dry spell. While storms have tapered off in recent weeks, the state Department of Water Resources says the amount of snow remaining should be enough to fill the reservoirs that feed the state's water system. The department's fourth snow survey of the season on Wednesday found the snowpack was 105 percent of normal for this time of year in the northern part of the Sierra and 103 percent of normal for the southern part of the range. It was 89 percent of average in the central Sierra. The Argus_3/27/08
Bill would make northern Idaho water adjudication voluntary
North Idaho residents leery of being forced to take part in water rights adjudication won’t face that possibility under legislation now moving forward. Three bills sponsored by lawmakers from north Idaho are nearing final approval. Combined, they make participating in the adjudication voluntary for domestic and stock water rights holders, cut fees in half and eliminate the Kootenai-Moyie River Basin from the process. At issue are water rights for a half dozen water basins and two aquifers that supply the northern third of the state. State officials say only about 50 percent of the water in north Idaho has been adjudicated. Besides Idaho, Washington state uses water that flows into the Spokane River and uses portions of the aquifers that extend into that state. State officials say adjudication is needed to sort out water rights among private, federal and tribal landowners, a problem they expect to grow as more people move into the region. But residents already there are concerned they could lose access to water through the process or that water could become more expensive. AP/Ag Weekly_ 3/22/08
Washington governor signs bill for more water for Columbia Basin
Legislation to provide the largest new influx of water to towns and farms in the Columbia Basin in three decades was signed Thursday by Gov. Chris Gregoire. The bill will allow Lake Roosevelt, behind Grand Coulee Dam, to be drawn down an additional 82,500 acre-feet a year and as much as 132,000 acre-feet in drought years. The water will be split among municipalities, farms and for survival of endangered salmon. The releases are a first step under a bill passed in 2006 to find new water supplies for growing communities in the region. The bill provides additional water to irrigators of 10,000 acres east of Moses Lake, more certainty for those whose water allocations are cut in times of drought, new water to towns with pending water right applications and increased stream flow to help salmon survive in late summer. Seattle Times_3/21/08
AWWA reports Atlanta convention center optimistic about quick recovery
Four days after a tornado struck the Georgia World Congress Center (GWCC), home of the American Water Works Association’s June 8-12 Annual Conference and Exposition (ACE08) in Atlanta, the facility’s general manager released a statement noting that "we are well on the road to recovery and optimistic about the future." "We expect a fantastic experience at ACE08 in Atlanta," said AWWA Executive Director Gary Zimmerman. "All indications are that the downtown area is recovering quickly from the storm." In a letter to customers, GWCC’s Mark Zimmerman notes that crews have embarked on repairs as engineers continue to assess the extent of the damage. Meanwhile, a force of between 500 and 1,000 workers has been cleaning up the center since Saturday in order to assure the facility’s safety. AWWA is communicating regularly with GWCC and will continue to pass along updated information at awwa.org . Updates from the convention center are also available at www.gwcc.com . News Release_ 3/18/08
Arizona bills push for information on rural water supplies
Two bills moving in the state House aim to remove some of the mystery involved in determining whether a home for sale in rural Arizona has an adequate water supply. Under state law, only the first buyer of a home in most of parts of rural Arizona must be informed if its water supply has been deemed inadequate. These areas are outside of active management areas, where new developments are required to have 100-year assured water supplies. House Bill 2141, sponsored by Rep. Ed Ableser, D-Tempe, would require developers to file a statement of water adequacy with the county recorder if a property is outside of an AMA. House Bill 2270, sponsored by Rep. Doug Clark, R-Anthem, would require Arizona Department of Real Estate's Web site to provide a map showing areas outside AMAs and advise buyers check water adequacy. The site would have to link to state Department of Water Resources definitions associated with water adequacy. Cronkite News Service_ 3/14/08
Cutting travel costs raises some concerns with South Florida water managers
South Florida water managers say they are willing to cut travel expenses, but taking the subway and staying in hotels for less than $200 a night every time might be too much. On Thursday, the South Florida Water Management District's governing board got a look at cost-cutting guidelines aimed at travel expenses. The board in February agreed to adopt new rules to limit expenses for their travel and off-site meetings. That vote came the same day the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported that the agency spent more than $219,000 in five years for its top officials, advisers and staffers to stay at resorts, billing the public for rooms and receptions from Key Largo to Walt Disney World. The proposed spending guidelines released Thursday include tougher limits on meal expenses and emphasize using public facilities instead of hotels for off-site meetings. The Sun-Sentinel, in a review of district records, reported in February that hotel stays in recent years included $342 per night for 27 rooms at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort and Spa near Fort Myers, and more than $7,000 for six rooms and food at the PGA National Resort and Spa in Palm Beach Gardens, about 16 miles from the district's headquarters. The newspaper in January reported that board members frequently used district aircraft to fly to meetings, including trips with only one passenger and short hops from West Palm Beach to cities as close as Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale and Miami. It cost more than $800,000 over three years to shuttle board members on the district's turboprop plane and helicopters, according to the newspaper's review of flight and budget records. South Florida Sun-Sentinel_ 3/14/08
Hawaii may become first U.S. state to mandate solar water heaters
Two House committees yesterday advanced a bill (Senate Bill 644) that would require the installation of solar thermal water heaters in single-family homes built after Jan. 1, 2010. It also would restrict the current state solar thermal energy system tax credit to homes built before 2010. If the legislation becomes law, Hawai'i would be the first state with such a mandate, according to the Sierra Club Hawai'i chapter. The proposal is opposed by Hawaiian Electric Co. and the building and solar industry, which say in part that the mandate would unfairly drive up costs for home buyers. Opponents also say such a mandate is unnecessary because many developers are offering solar water-heating systems as a standard feature or as an option. But supporters of the bill said most new homes in Hawai'i do not use solar and that most solar water-heating systems pay for themselves in energy savings within three to seven years. House Energy and Environmental Protection Committee Chairwoman Hermina Morita said electric water-heating tanks account for 30 percent to 35 percent of a home's electric bill. She said if the cost of installing a solar water heater is included in the mortgage for a new home, the savings from the lowered electricity costs — given the high price of oil — could surpass the added monthly cost for the system. Honolulu Advertiser_ 3/14/08
South Florida's Broward, Palm Beach counties get 20-year water permits
New 20-year water permits for Broward and Palm Beach counties approved by the South Florida Water Management District on Thursday will require alternative supplies to meet the water needs of growing populations. The Broward County approval allows up to 23 million gallons per day for unincorporated areas and portions of Coconut Creek, Parkland, Pompano Beach, Lighthouse Point and Deerfield Beach. The Palm Beach County permit, covering a larger service area, allows about 130 million gallons per day. The permits follow a new standard that caps withdrawals from the shallow Biscayne aquifer and limits withdrawals from the Everglades at existing levels, said Tom Olliff, assistant executive director of the South Florida Water Management District. That requires communities to use more alternative water supplies, such as recycling more wastewater for irrigation and tapping deeper, more plentiful underground sources. Broward County plans a new water treatment plant that would draw water from the deeper, but saltier, Floridan aquifer. That water would be blended with water from shallower sources, which needs less treatment, to supplement supplies. The county could "borrow" more than 3 million gallons of water a day from existing supplies until 2013 when the plant is supposed to be completed, according to the district. South Florida Sun-Sentinel_ 3/14/08
February, 2008
Seattle boasts: "Enough water here for at least 50 years."
Water woes may be bedeviling planners in other parts of the country, specifically in Las Vegas and Phoenix, but in Seattle, utility officials say they'll have enough water for the next 50 years at least. That's without building any new water sources, said Seattle Public Utilities officials, who pointed to new University of Washington research developed by the school's Climate Impacts Group (CIG). The UW researchers' results indicate that Seattle Public Utilities and Everett Public Works will have enough water, even though there's a potential for a 6 percent decline in supply in Everett and 13 percent decline for Seattle. Options to meet demand include refilling reservoirs to a higher level, drawing them down deeper, and additional conservation efforts. Researchers say that at least 36 U.S. states will face water shortages in the next five years because of rising temperatures, drought and population growth.Bizjournals.com_2/28/08
Major US water agencies form national climate alliance
United by the fact that climate change poses a major long-term challenge to delivering high-quality drinking water, eight of the nation's largest water agencies announced the formation of an unprecedented coalition, the Water Utility Climate Alliance (WUCA). The alliance will work to improve research into the impacts of climate change on water utilities, develop strategies for adapting to climate change and implement tactics to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. Comprised of Denver Water, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, New York City Department of Environmental Protection, Portland Water Bureau, San Diego County Water Authority, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, Seattle Public Utilities and the Southern Nevada Water Authority, the WUCA members supply drinking water for more than 36 million people throughout the United States. In its first official act, the WUCA provided comment today on the "Summary of Revised Research Plan" prepared by the U.S. Climate Change Science Program (CCSP). The WUCA identified several key research needs that would improve the drinking water industry's ability to develop strategies to cope with potential impacts of climate change. Fox Business.com_2/26/08
Ethics panel slams South Florida water managers on spending
South Florida water managers were "put on notice" Wednesday by state senators to stop staying at lavish resorts for meetings and taking flights short distances at taxpayers' expense. "You know, it looks like you're on a daylong junket," Sen. Gwen Margolis, D- Sunny Isles Beach, told two board members of the South Florida Water Management District. Concerns about the district's travel and aircraft use took center stage at a meeting in Tallahassee of the Senate Ethics and Elections Committee. The panel recommended approval for the governor's new appointees to the district's board, but called for the agency to follow through with promised budget belt-tightening — policies instituted after articles published by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel spotlighted the board's hotel stays at pricey resorts and use of agency aircraft as a taxi service for top officials. Sun-Sentinel_ 2/21/08
South Florida Water Management District OKs rules on meeting costs
South Florida water managers on Thursday agreed to set new rules intended to limit spending on their traveling meetings, which in recent years included stays at waterfront, golf and spa resorts. The South Florida Water Management District Governing Board's unanimous vote came the same day the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported that the agency spent more than $219,000 in five years for its top officials, advisers and staffers to stay at resorts, billing the public for rooms and receptions. The new rules, to be finalized over the next 60 days, target the monthly meetings of the nine-member governing board that is appointed by the governor. The rules would also apply to the board's 45- member Water Resources Advisory Commission. Sun-Sentinel_ 2/14/08
South Florida's top water managers, advisers and staff have spent more than $219,000 in five years on overnight meetings at resorts from Key Largo to Walt Disney World, billing the public for rooms and receptions, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel has found. Trips by board members and employees of the South Florida Water Management District include stays at the Ritz-Carlton and at other luxury hotels as close as seven miles from their homes, a review of travel invoices and expense records show. Board members are appointed by the governor and are unpaid. "We are volunteering our time," board member Nicolás J. Gutiérrez Jr. said Wednesday. "Nobody is enriching themselves. ... It's more of a sacrifice." The findings follow the Sun-Sentinel's report in January detailing how board members regularly use the district's turboprop plane and helicopters to fly to meetings. The flights include trips with only one passenger and hops over short distances, such as from West Palm Beach to Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale and Miami. The district covers a vast area from Orlando to the Florida Keys and is responsible for protecting against floods, restoring the Everglades and ensuring that people have enough water. In times of drought, the agency restricts how often people can water their lawns. It has a budget of nearly $1.3 billion. Sun-Sentinel_ 2/14/08
E.coli in Fort Myers, Florida water supply
Sunday night, water experts and the Department of Health are out taking samples while trying to determine how E. coli is getting into the city's drinking water. Even though the water runs clear, there may be something in it that you cannot see. Boil water notices went out Friday after a sample tested positive for E. coli in one area of the city. The notice remains in effect until further notice and officials said that they have not found the source and are working hard to find the problem and plan to have it corrected by Monday. E.coli presence in the water means the supply could be contaminated with human or animal waste. If ingested, you could experience a variety of symptoms including diarrhea, cramps and nausea. NBC 2 News_ 2/10/08
California ruling is likely to tighten water supply from delta; Consider the longfin smelt
State regulators took steps to add another delta fish to the list of endangered species Thursday and implemented emergency regulations that could further cut into state water supplies. The president of the state Fish and Game Commission said the new rules could exact a "monster" hit on the state economy, though exactly what the impact will be was unclear. "We have a plumbing problem that is going to cost billions of dollars in a very short period of time. It's an absurd position to be in," said the commission president, Richard Rogers. Meeting in San Diego on Thursday, the commission designated longfin smelt as a candidate for the list of threatened and endangered species, meaning it must decide within a year whether to add it to one of those lists. Then the commission enacted emergency measures that give Department of Fish and Game biologists new authority to cut deliveries from massive pumps near Tracy that supply water to 25 million people, including in Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa and Los Angeles counties. The new regulations come on top of court-ordered restrictions issued in December after a federal judge determined regulators were allowing water agencies to drive delta smelt to extinction. That ruling has already led Southern California water agencies to consider rationing and to slow at least one major commercial development out of concern there might not be enough water. San Jose Mercury News_2/8/08
Iowa lawmakers introduce surface water protection act
A new initiative to improve Iowa's water quality was outlined at the statehouse Monday by a bipartisan group of state lawmakers. The result of a two year watershed planning task force, the Surface Water Protection Act is aimed at identifying problems and preventing pollution in Iowa's largest lakes, rivers and creeks. Iowa's creeks, rivers and lakes have high levels of silt, sewage and fertilizer pollution. More must be done to protect the state's sources of drinking water, recreational interests such as kayaking, canoeing and birding, and wildlife habitat. "Over 20 years ago, the Legislature created the Groundwater Protection Act to improve the quality of our ground water and we've had great success stopping contamination of our groundwater. It is time for us to focus our efforts and improve the quality of our surface water," said State Representative Donovan Olson, a Democrat from Boone who chairs the House Environmental Protection Committee and also served on the watershed task force. The measure creates a Water Resources Coordinating Council within the Governor's Office to preserve and protect Iowa's water resources and coordinate efforts to do so. ENS newswire_2/6/08
San Diego water search yields 600-foot-thick aquifer under Balboa Park
Fueled by concerns about the region's water inventory, the U.S. Geological Survey and three public water agencies are scouting for groundwater – particularly in areas that have been overlooked. San Diego has very few sources of groundwater, which is a serious problem when water supplies are as tight as they are this year. They don't expect the Balboa Park aquifer or others in the county, to substantially reduce the region's reliance on the Colorado and Sacramento river systems. But even small sources of water have become increasingly significant as prices for imported water rise and factors such as drought make out-of-town supplies less reliable. How much water could be pumped from the Balboa Park site and that water's salinity won't be known for a few months. Groundwater accounts for about 2 percent of the county's water supply, according to the San Diego County Water Authority. The agency wants to triple the use of local groundwater by 2020. Several of its member water districts, including San Diego and the Sweetwater Authority, are contributing to that goal. San Diego Union-Tribune_ 2/2/08
January, 2008
Concerns addressed in Arizona TCE drinking water scare
Arizona American Water Co.'s president took the hot seat Friday before the Paradise Valley Town Council to address concerns over last week's TCE contamination that led to a three-day tap water ban. Paul Townsley said the company is conducting a full investigation, and a letter explaining the incident will be mailed out to customers next week. The ban affected nearly 5,000 Paradise Valley and Scottsdale customers. A malfunction in a TCE treatment plant operated by the company sent out water with higher than allowable concentrations of trichloroethylene into the water supply. Arizona Republic_ 1/26/08
Governor’s budget kills state funding of regional water center.
Misuse of funds for entertainment and travel cited
What has become an annual fight for funding for the Georgia Water Policy and Planning Center at Albany State University is under way again in Georgia's General Assembly. The 2009 budget submitted to lawmakers last week by Gov. Sonny Perdue would eliminate all state funds for the center, representing a loss of $360,000. While the center gets some federal funding, it probably will be forced to shut down unless the Legislature restores the state money, said Doug Wilson, the center’s executive director. Gov. Perdue first moved against the center in the summer of 2005 when the state launched an audit against both the center and the Flint River Regional Council, a nonprofit group that conducts research on agricultural water use in Southwest Georgia. The audit charged the two agencies with improper spending of tax money on travel and entertainment involving thousands of dollars in expenditures for lodging, food and parties. Albany Herald_1/25/08
Arizona's contaminated water probe expands
The investigation into last week's drinking water scare in parts of Scottsdale and Paradise Valley AZ has expanded to include Motorola, potentially leaving the electronics giant open to federal fines, environmental officials said Wednesday. Meanwhile, Arizona American Water Co. - the private utility with whom Motorola contracts to treat groundwater pumped from a local Superfund site - is considering what to do with up to a half-million gallons of potentially contaminated water in a reservoir underneath its treatment plant. Jeff Stuck, the utility's director of operations for eastern Arizona, said test results of whether the water in the reservoir contains excessive amount of trichloroethylene, or TCE, are expected in the next couple of days. The water could be treated and then discharged into the Arizona Canal, he said. Jeff Lane, spokesman for the Salt River Project, which operates the canal, said there are six municipal water treatment plants downstream from the contamination site at Miller Road and McDonald Drive - two in Phoenix and one each in Tempe, Glendale and Peoria - that treat the canal water for use in their city water supplies. Lane said Arizona American would first need to treat the water to within federal guidelines for TCE, and then get a federal permit before discharging the water. MSNBC_1/24/08
As supplies dry up, growers pass on farming and sell water
In California where water has become an increasingly scarce commodity, a growing number of farmers are betting they can make more money selling their water supplies to thirsty cities and farms to the south than by growing crops. The shortages this season — among the most intense of the last decade — are already shooting water prices skyward in many areas, and Los Angeles-area cities are begging for water and coaxing farmers to let their fields go to dust. "It just makes dollars and sense right now," said Bruce Rolen, a third-generation farmer in Northern California's lush Sacramento Valley. "There's more economic advantage to fallowing than raising a crop." Instead of sowing seeds in April, Rolen plans to leave his rice stubble for the birds and sell his irrigation water on the open market, where it could fetch up to three times the normal price. "It's been a good decade since there's been this much interest in buying and selling water on the open market," said Jack King, national public affairs manager for the California Farm Bureau Federation. "We're prepared to see significant fallowing in several key parts of the state." San Francisco Chronicle_1/23/08
Arizona city weighs ending ties to water firm in chemical scare
Scottsdale, AZ will investigate whether it is possible to take all its residents and businesses off Arizona American Water Co. supplies in the wake of two contamination incidents in the past three months. "I would describe Arizona American as being a poor corporate citizen with poor customer service," City Councilman Ron McCullagh said at a council meeting Tuesday. Nearly 5,000 Paradise Valley and Scottsdale customers of Arizona American could not use their tap water for three days - last Wednesday through Saturday - because of higher-than-allowable levels of a suspected cancer-causing agent, trichloroethylene. The council voted unanimously to begin studying how the 1,200 Scottsdale residents and other businesses could either be placed on city water or otherwise given greater security. City Manager Jan Dolan said that her staff would prepare a preliminary report within 60 days detailing what alternatives should be considered. The council also told city officials to stay on top of upcoming regulatory hearings that will look into securing the company's water supplies, since a permanent solution may be months away. Arizona American's customers include a number of resorts, restaurants and other businesses. A similar problem occurred in November, when the suspected carcinogen again leaked into the company's supplies. The Arizona Corporation Commission will hold a special meeting on Feb. 13 to look into the matter, and U.S. Rep. Harry Mitchell, D-Ariz., plans to raise the issue at a congressional hearing on Feb. 7. AZCentral.com_Logon Required 1/23/08
Tap-water ban in Arizona's Paradise Valley in effect indefinitely
A ban on drinking tap water remains in effect indefinitely for nearly 5,000 Paradise Valley and Scottsdale customers of Arizona American Water while the company works with government health officials to test water samples for a potentially toxic solvent. The ban, which began Wednesday, urges customers not to drink tap water or use it to prepare food. Arizona American's initial warning was to expire at 5 p.m. Friday but now is indefinite. A suspected cancer-causing agent, trichloroethylene, or TCE, was found at more than four times the maximum level considered safe by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. It got into the water supply after a malfunction Tuesday at the private company's Miller Road treatment plant in Scottsdale. The malfunction was not detected until Wednesday, and Arizona American's telephone warning system failed to notify many of its customers. After the problem was detected, a test of the water showed the level to be 22 parts per billion. 5 ppb is the maximum contaminant level allowed. U.S. Rep. Harry Mitchell, D-Ariz., whose district includes the northeast Valley, has called for the EPA to conduct a full investigation. Mitchell, a member of the House Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment, which oversees the EPA, plans to address the situation during a congressional hearing Feb. 7. This is the second incident involving TCE at the same facility in three months, which Mitchell said is not acceptable. The Miller Road plant scrubs TCE from groundwater that was contaminated with the industrial solvent decades ago by area businesses. Todd Walker, an Arizona American spokesman, said a blower malfunctioned Tuesday afternoon and the problem was not detected until a plant operator noticed something was wrong Wednesday morning. Arizona Republic_ 1/19/08
GAO: Farmers owe feds more than $450 million for California water project
A federal watchdog agency said Thursday some of the San Joaquin Valley's largest farms owe the government hundreds of millions of dollars for the cost of building California's water infrastructure. The report issued Thursday by the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office says four large irrigation contractors owe the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation nearly $450 million for building pumps and canals. The Westlands Water District, a coalition of giant agribusinesses in the San Joaquin Valley, owes an additional $48 million, according to the report. The farmers are in the midst of negotiating a proposal with the bureau that would forgive some of the cost of building the Central Valley Project, a vast irrigation system that serves the state's most fertile farmland. The report makes public for the first time the official size of that debt. Westlands sued the bureau more than a decade ago, after a botched federal drainage project caused the death or deformation of thousands of migratory birds. The farmers claimed federal officials had reneged on their obligation to help them dispose of toxic agricultural runoff. A federal judge ruled in their favor, leaving the federal government on the hook for the cleanup. Last spring, the government signed off on a plan to pay $2.6 billion to treat the tainted water and resolve the lawsuit. But by summer, farmers had offered up several alternate plans in which they proposed debt forgiveness in exchange for taking on the vexing drainage problem, which has left thousands of acres of farmland too salty to grow crops. Since 1986, the water districts have repaid just $74 million of the $497 million they owe, the GAO said. A federal act specifies that the money must be repaid by 2030. AP/San Jose Mercury-News_ 1/17/08 (logon required)
download full GAO report
Aircraft used to manage water supplies from Orlando to the Keys also give rides to high-ranking public officials, flying at taxpayer expense. Trips by the South Florida Water Management District's governing board include flights with only one passenger, hops shorter than some workday commutes, and treks to such affairs as the governor's swearing-in ceremony and a district office barbecue, according to a review by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. From October 2004 to September 2007, the district's governing board members flew almost 600 times, costing more than $800,000 in fuel, insurance, hangar space, maintenance and other expenses, according to the Sun-Sentinel's examination of flight logs, budgets and other records. At times, two board members are picked up and dropped off at airports 20 miles apart in Miami-Dade County. Auditors in the past have questioned the use of the district's fleet, which includes a twin-engine turboprop plane and three helicopters. There are five full-time pilots and two mechanics. Employees jokingly refer to the department as "the Air Force." While agencies across Florida are under cost-cutting orders from Tallahassee to reduce property taxes, district board members say the expense of their flights is worth the convenience of their travel. Sun-Sentinel_ 1/13/08
Massachusetts water pipes need repair; Cost- $8 billion
The state's aging water pipes may not be as visible as potholes and crumbling bridges, but they are also in need of repair. The advocacy group Clean Water Action said yesterday that it will cost up to $8 billion over the next two decades to fix the state's drinking water infrastructure, including water mains, storage tanks, and treatment plants. The group is pushing a bill to create a special drinking water finance commission, which would be charged with recommending ways the state could come up with the money to pay for repairs. The Boston Globe_1/11/08
Advocates fault new Massachusetts water policy; Drought advisory vs. stream-flow triggers
State regulators have renewed water rights for more than 500 cities, towns, and other water suppliers, adding some new use restrictions that encourage conservation. But environmental groups, which draw members from most area towns, say the rules do not go far enough to protect local waterways. The renewals allow suppliers to continue drawing water from rivers, lakes, and ground-water basins. Environmentalists fault the new policy for allowing water suppliers to pump as much water as they want during dry spells, up to the time a drought is officially declared. They urged the addition of "stream-flow triggers" that would require communities to impose outdoor watering bans earlier, when stream flows drop below set levels. The rules, issued Dec. 31, apply only to water suppliers that existed before the state Water Management Act was approved 20 years ago, and had not yet been brought under its provisions. Those suppliers will, for the first time, be required to work toward limiting their water supply to an average per-capita consumption of 65 gallons per day. The new policy also requires communities to impose outdoor watering restrictions when the state declares a drought advisory - as it did in October after a dry summer. But seven area watershed associations - which together represent more than four dozen towns - say state drought advisories come too late, and don't necessarily respond to local conditions. Regional habitats are under stress in July and August when water levels fall and human water use increases, environmentalists said, but drought advisories are declared only following two months of low rainfall. Stricter rules are needed to protect plants and animals earlier, so they don't suffer irreversible damage when watersheds are pumped dry, they say. Boston Globe_1/10/08
Lake Erie's water level could plunge 3-6 feet as Earth's temperature rises
In a three-year study of the Detroit River-western Lake Erie corridor released earlier this month, 75 scientists from nearly 50 government, business, academic, and public-interest groups claimed Lake Erie could drop 3.28 feet to 6.56 feet of water by 2066. The lake’s western basin is the region’s shallowest. The 315-page report, “State of the Strait: Status and Trends of Key Indicators 2007” says as the lake shrinks, western Lake Erie’s shoreline could expand by more than 19,685 feet, or nearly 4 miles, potentially wreaking havoc upon the shipping industry and facilities communities need for treating water. Toledo Blade_ 1/7/08
Download the full 2007 State of the Strait pdf report
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