8-20-08

 8-20-08Badlands JournalSacramento's "tortured middle way"...Badlands Journal editorial Board...8-19-08http://www.badlandsjournal.com/node/505Thanks to Sacramento’s man on the U.S. Supreme Court, Judge Anthony Kennedy, who created the meaningless “significant nexis” to determine the connectivity of waters to navigable streams, federal resource agencies have been up a creek as far as knowing their jurisdiction to enforce the Clean Water Act. The EPA has done nothing about more than 400 CWA enforcement cases since the Supreme Court ruling called the “Rapanos Decision.” Kennedy’s middle ground stood between four conservative justices who wanted CWA enforcement only on permanent streams and four liberals who voted for intermittent streams as well, including wetlands and vernal pools. Kennedy’s ties with Sacramento developers were so close several years ago that he recused himself on a Galt case that reached the Supreme Court that pitted private property rights directly against the Clean Water Act. In a 4-4 tie, the Army Corps of Engineers prevailed and the Act was upheld … until Rapanos. Unable politically to simply vote with the liberals to uphold the Act in Rapanos, Kennedy introduced one more meaningless phrase into the legal framework for environmental enforcement, one that delighted the hearts of California developers and the water sophists who advise them on legal matters, and spread the mist of confusion over environmentalists and environmental regulatory agencies alike. As a result, Reps. Henry Waxman (D-LA) and James Oberstar (D-MN) are sponsoring a bill to reaffirm the pre-“significant nexis” Clean Water Act. Another tortured middle way is being crafted in Sacramento today, on the San Joaquin/Sacramento Delta. This middle way involves the construction of a peripheral canal around the Delta and two more dams, one in the west Sacramento Valley, the other above the Friant Dam on the San Joaquin River. Yet a third tortured middle way is being crafted by the new state Senate pro tem, Darryl Steinberg (D-Sacramento) to further weaken the California Environmental Quality Act. However, Steinberg’s sophistic meanderings will have to await a later article. Underlying Sacramento’s witless wandering is a faulty definition of the problem...The problem with the peripheral canal is that it surrenders the richest farmland in the state to intruding salt water, to send fresher water south, a great deal of it to the southwest San Joaquin Valley, where farmers must wash salts below the root zone with an acre-foot of water before they can even plant. Rather than protecting this rich farmland by repairing and strengthening levees, the Capitol would rather build a grand new canal that would provide “water security” to both Southern California, parts of the Bay Area, and Westlands Water District. The latter is now talking about nuclear water-cleaning schemes to rid its water supply of salts and heavy metals. The new nuclear fix falls in a long line of water-cleaning schemes that includes the heavy metal-devouring variety of Eucalyptus, the microbes that lived on selenium, dumping all the drainage in Kesterson Wildlife Refuge, which killed and deformed wildlife, and then creating a thousand Kestersons with drainage sumps on west side farms. Perhaps, even now, UC Merced scientists (except the one recently arrested and charged with meth manufacture whose bail was set at more than $1 million) are busy bioengineering a rabbit that will feed on nuclear waste that has digested the salts and heavy metals of the alkali flats irrigated by Westlands Water District. The waste from these rabbits will glow in the dark and kill absolutely everything, but that will be the new technological challenge for a younger generation of UC scientists. Yet, at 37 million people and growing every year, as these two drought years have shown, there is no more “water security” in California. There is no more “balance” possible between population, agriculture and the environment...The proposal for the Temperance Flat Dam on the San Joaquin River above the Friant Dam, out of which flows the Friant-Kern Canal, appears to rest on a common California illusion than more reservoirs make more water... Meanwhile, the San Joaquin River Settlement continues to wend its way through Congressional committees... The proposal for the dam must be seen in its full political and legal context, including the federal court ruling that, according to law, water must once again flow the length of the San Joaquin River for the benefit of fish.Lester Snow, director of the state Department of Water Resources, is quoted in the Stockton Record as saying in reply to Delta residents’ complaints that nobody can understand what the state is doing about the Delta,...The Delta cannot supply drinking water to 25 million people without collapsing. “Water security” is a special interest slogan, a power-point presentation “goal,” part of a lethal “planning process” by all levels of government in California, utterly captured by one set of business institutions – finance, insurance and real estate, the people that just brought us the speculative real estate bust, which is causing such tragedy all around us in places like Merced, Modesto and Stockton. There is something disastrously wrong with this political economic model and yet the same interests, the same lobbyists and the same government officials are still calling the shots...Absurdity in government can get dangerous, even in the Golden State, if it is allowed to go on indefinitely...The state is well beyond its resource-carrying capacity...Nevertheless, the outlines of the newest speculative boom, in industrial and commercial real estate, are clear...Merced Sun-StarBuyers revel in bounty of home choicesDeclining prices mean more Valley residents can afford to buy a house...J.N. SBRANTI, The Modesto Beehttp://www.mercedsunstar.com/167/story/407439.htmlValley home sales prices plunged to a six-year low in July. Buyers are thrilled.And they should be: The dramatic drop in home values has created tremendous buying opportunities. Statistics released Tuesday show the Valley's home affordability hasn't been this good since the summer of 2000.This spring, median-income families could afford about half the homes sold in Merced, Stanislaus and San Joaquin counties. Compare that with three years ago, when the Valley's families could afford only about 3 percent of the homes sold.That's the upside of the housing downturn.The downside is that house prices keep declining: July's median sales price plummeted to $155,000 in Merced County. That's less than half what houses were selling for in December 2005, according to DataQuick Information Systems.San Joaquin County's median sales price fell to $220,500 in July. Stanislaus County's median fell to $190,000...Bargain hunters are keeping real estate agents hopping throughout the Valley. Sales this July compared with last July were up 105 percent in Merced, 155 percent in Stanislaus and 129 percent in San Joaquin counties...Modesto BeeDiablo Grande's fate still unknownOwners' lawyers want more time to nail down details on final bids...TIM MORANhttp://www.modbee.com/local/story/399448.htmlSACRAMENTO -- Homeowners, golf club members, creditors and bond holders will have to wait another week to learn the fate of Diablo Grande resort in western Stanislaus County.Attorneys for the partnership that owns the 28,500-acre golf and housing development were to give the name of the best bidder for the property in U.S. Bankruptcy Court on Tuesday. But Judge Robert S. Bardwil granted a continuance to Aug. 28 after attorney Michael Ahrens said the partnership needed more time to work out the details of the bid offers.The owners of Diablo Grande are trying to sell the resort through an auction process to resolve the Chapter 11 reorganization bankruptcy. Ahrens told the court Tuesday that the partnership had received four bids from potential buyers who had "more than sufficient" means to close the deal.The owners narrowed the bids to two and asked those bidders for their best final offer, Ahrens said. But details of the offers were not nailed down in time for Tuesday's court hearing, he said."We are trying to clarify and get more consideration for the estate," Ahrens said.Bardwil agreed to the continuance, but warned the attorneys that he had problems with the settlement agreement, which describes how the money from the sale would be divided among the various categories of creditors.The settlement agreement between the Diablo Grande partnership and the major secured creditors appears to be a "de facto reorganization plan," Bardwil said, which bypasses protections for creditors built into the bankruptcy laws. A number of creditors are insiders, the judge said -- companies or entities affiliated with the ownership group.The court may not have the authority to approve the settlement agreement because it bypasses bankruptcy code, Bardwil said. "I would not approve it in its current configuration," he said.Bardwil also noted objections to the sale filed by the Diablo Grande Homeowners Association and the West Stanislaus Fire District...Big Southern California water line nearly ready...last updated: August 20, 2008 02:40:56 AMhttp://www.modbee.com/state_wire/story/399276.htmlSAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — A massive mechanical mole that has spent the last five years burrowing under the San Bernardino Mountains is expected to surface Wednesday, marking a major step in completing a 44-mile water line that will eventually serve thirsty Southern Californians.The Inland Feeder is expected to pipe water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta during the rainy season into the Diamond Valley Lake reservoir in Riverside County by 2010. The water will be distributed from northern Los Angeles County to the Mexican border.Roy Wolfe, who oversaw the project for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, is hopeful the pipeline will eventually supply 1000 cubic feet of water per second - enough to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool in less than 30 seconds."This has been an incredible journey, an 11-year, $1.2 billion project," said Wolfe, manager of corporate resources for the utility.The Inland Feeder consists of 26 miles of buried pipeline and three tunnels spanning 18 miles. The machines used to dig the tunnels are longer than a football field and can bore through anywhere from 10-to-80 feet per day. The tunnel to be completed Wednesday is 4 miles long.Fresno BeeFresno County home sales surgeFresno, Clovis see 547 existing houses sold in July...Sanford Naxhttp://www.fresnobee.com/business/story/809187.htmlThe 547 existing houses sold in Fresno and Clovis in July were the most sold in almost three years, the president of the Fresno Association of Realtors said Tuesday. Real estate experts attribute the burst in sales to declining prices. Houses are simply more affordable -- nearly 60% of the households in Fresno County could afford an entry-level house last quarter, up from 56% in March and 44% in June 2007, the California Association of Realtors reported in a second report...DataQuick Information Systems substantiated the association's data with its own findings. DataQuick, whose numbers cover a wider territory, said Tuesday that 645 existing houses changed hands in Fresno County last month, up 27.8% from a year earlier and an increase of 10% from June. A total of 39,507 new and preowned homes were sold statewide last month. That's up 12.3% from July 2007 and up 12.2% from June's total, DataQuick said. Foreclosed homes accounted for 44.8% of all the homes sold last month. Valley builders, however, continue to struggle. New-home sales and prices in Fresno County were down 36.3% and 11.4%, respectively, from July 2007...Westlands discusses nuclear plants...Dennis Pollockhttp://www.fresnobee.com/business/story/809184.htmlFresno Nuclear Energy Group LLC on Tuesday signed a letter of intent with the Westlands Water District to discuss the possibility of building two 1,600-megawatt nuclear power plants on 500 acres in the district. John Hutson, the company's president, said the district would choose the site. Hutson said that, under the proposal, a desalinization facility, powered by the plants, would be built "to supply clean, reliable water to the farmers on the west side." Ground water in the district is plagued by salts that include selenium and boron. State law bans any new nuclear power plants until the federal government approves a process for the permanent disposal of their spent fuel. A nuclear plant also would have to clear several federal legal hurdles, most notably from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.Hutson has said he might try to use a ballot initiative to overcome the state ban on new nuclear plants...Sacramento BeeGlobal warming threatens pika, lawsuit claims...Les Blumenthalhttp://www.sacbee.com/378/v-print/story/1170747.htmlWASHINGTON – Compared to the polar bear, the American pika is tiny.Weighing only 4 to 6 ounces, this rabbitlike mammal with thick brown hair, which lives on boulder-covered slopes in Western mountains, could represent the latest effort to use the Endangered Species Act to combat global warming.Environmentalists filed a lawsuit Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Sacramento to force the Bush administration to decide whether to list the pika for protection. The lawsuit claims the animal is threatened by rising temperatures and says the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has dragged its feet on whether to list it.In May, the polar bear was protected as a threatened species under the act, but Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne made clear the Endangered Species Act was not intended to regulate climate change.Environmentalists dispute the White House approach.Greg Loarie of Earthjustice, an environmental legal firm representing the Center for Biological Diversity in the suit, said the pika, which is intolerant of high temperatures, is an appropriate animal to test the their contention. "The pika is very much the polar bear of the lower 48," he said.More than a third of the documented pika populations in Nevada and Oregon have disappeared, said Shaye Wolf, a biologist with the Center for Biological Diversity. They can die if exposed to temperatures of 80 degrees Fahrenheit or higher for a few hours, he said."The pika is the American West's canary in the coal mine," Wolf said. "As temperatures rise, pika populations at lower elevations are being driven to extinction, pushing pikas further upslope until they have nowhere else to go."Dan Walters: This week's pivotal for state Capitol's budget, water battles...Dan Waltershttp://www.sacbee.com/111/v-print/story/1170463.htmlThis is shaping up as a make-or-break week not only on the long-stalled state budget but on other major issues, such as water bonds, that are tied to the Nov. 4 ballot.Capitol factions remain far apart on fully closing a $15.2 billion budget deficit – especially over taxes – with Assembly and Senate Democrats somewhat divided and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger at odds with most fellow Republicans.The remaining gap is about $6 billion, which could be covered by loans from transportation funds, local governments or banks, by a temporary one-cent sales tax hike that Schwarzenegger is touting, by borrowing against lottery profits, by income tax boosts that most Democrats favor, and/or by tax loophole closures.Which approach is finally adopted will largely depend on the shape of a "budget reform" ballot measure...The rub is that any change in the constitution's budget provisions must go to voters, and the semiofficial deadline for the Nov. 4 ballot was last weekend. The Capitol's new assumption is that it could be stretched a week by shortening ministerial procedures for measures and still make what appears to be a semi-hard deadline of Sept. 5 for mailing ballots to soldiers and other overseas voters.The ordinary flow of business, meanwhile, has been speeded up because Democrats still harbor hopes of ending the session by this weekend so they can attend next week's Obamaniacal Democratic convention in Denver. Some Democratic legislators are planning to split for the convention even if there is no budget agreement, saying they'd be just a 2 1/4-hour plane ride away.And then there's water – another issue that Schwarzenegger wants to resolve along with the budget so that it, too, can go on the November ballotHe and Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein are pushing a $9.3 billion water bond that includes new reservoirs and dams that environmentalists and most other Democratic politicians oppose.Pro-water development forces are clearly hoping that the state's current water travails – two dry years in a row and judicial decrees that limit water exports from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta – will propel action. The Assembly's Democrats appear poised only to offer a much-revised version of the Schwarzenegger-Feinstein plan that is unlikely to win approval but would give Democrats some political cover on the issue.So will anything really happen this week on the budget and water? Chances are very slim on the former – a meeting between Schwarzenegger and legislative leaders Tuesday was brief and unproductive – and even less on the latter. We may be looking at more weeks of stalemate and a special election.Daniel Weintraub: For builders, clean-air rules' timing is tough...Daniel Weintraubhttp://www.sacbee.com/110/v-print/story/1170104.htmlMike Shaw didn't want to be caught by surprise when the state starting cracking down on diesel engines. He owned more than 100 of them – powering the scrapers, graders and bulldozers that are the backbone of his San Diego construction business. So he paid close attention when the state's air pollution regulators wrote new rules requiring the owners of diesel-powered equipment to clean up their fleets. And as he thinned the oldest, dirtiest engines from his stock, Shaw thought he was well on his way to satisfying the state's requirements.Then he ran the numbers. The state's calculator showed that he still was not even close...He's not alone. California's construction industry, already laid low by the economy, is now coming to terms with the regulation the Air Resources Board adopted a year ago. The new rules – the nation's toughest – require the owners of off-road diesel construction equipment to replace their old engines, retrofit them with soot traps or get rid of them. The rules begin taking effect in 2010, and each year the regulation gets tighter and tighter until, eventually, all the engines in use in California will have to be the latest models.Diesel exhaust is nasty stuff. The tiny particles it contains – about one-seventieth the diameter of a human hair – can lodge in your lungs... The state attributes 2,000 premature deaths a year to the effects of diesel pollution.In that light, the crackdown sounds sensible. But the owners of all those diesel-powered machines bought their equipment for tens of thousands of dollars, sometimes hundreds of thousands of dollars, under the rules that were in place at the time. They made those investments thinking that their earth movers would last long enough to allow them to recoup the money they put into them.Now the rules have changed, and they've been forced to begin selling off their machines at the worst possible time. With the private construction business collapsing, demand for the old equipment is already low. Add to that the flood of equipment on the market, and the machines are going for pennies on the dollar. Buyers from other states and countries without the same kind of diesel regulations are showing up at auctions and getting great deals. And California companies are hurting...Shaw's industry is preparing to ask the air board to slow implementation of the regulation. The industry says it will still meet the clean-air standards the state is requiring for 2012. But it wants more flexibility between now and then as it continues to remake its fleets.Besides, the construction industry argues, with housing starts at a 17-year-low, revenues down 24 percent and diesel fuel consumption off by the same amount, diesel emissions right now from construction equipment are probably already below the level the state projected for 2010, if not 2012.Erik White, the air board manager overseeing implementation of the diesel regulation, concedes that thanks to the economic slowdown, emissions today are probably below what the board projected when it adopted the regulation last year. But he said the plan took a long view that anticipated business cycles.Companies that shrink their fleets or keep old machines idle get credit for that, White said. Subsidies are available to help companies make the transition. And the smallest firms, the ones least able to replace their engines or retrofit their equipment, already have a later compliance date."I don't think we need to make changes to the rule to address what is happening in the economy," White told me.If White's bosses at the air board agree, the construction companies will simply have to absorb the blow. Some probably won't make it. Others will have to charge more, if they can, to maintain the same profit margin.Californians want clean air, good jobs and affordable houses and roads.Sometimes all of those things are not compatible. Something's got to give.In this case, it's the construction industry.Stockton RecordLodi still target of retailerWal-Mart renews plans for Supercenter location...Daniel Thigpenhttp://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080820/A_NEWS/8082...LODI - After months of speculation amid little activity, Wal-Mart representatives said Tuesday they are moving forward with plans for a Supercenter in Lodi, a six-year ordeal that may culminate this fall.Aaron Rios, a spokesman for the mega-retailer, said the worsening economy forced executives to re-evaluate the Lodi project."After conducting a careful and thorough review, we believe that this is a financially viable project, and we are looking forward to obtaining the necessary approvals from the city's Planning Commission and City Council," Rios said in a statement.The project, which calls for a 226,441-square-foot retail and grocery store at the corner of Lower Sacramento Road and Kettleman Lane, has been on hold since spring, when city planners were last scheduled to review the proposal.The Planning Commission is expected to consider the project and its final environmental study later this fall, city spokesman Jeff Hood said...The back-and-forth saga of bringing a bigger Wal-Mart to Lodi has divided its residents and spawned a referendum, lawsuits and no shortage of emotions.Browman first proposed the shopping center in 2002. Two years later, voters defeated an anti-big-box ballot measure.The City Council in 2005 approved the project, but a San Joaquin County Superior Court judge overturned the decision, ruling parts of a study of the shopping center's environmental effects were insufficient.In the meantime, Wal-Mart executives announced plans in 2007 to slow the growth of its Supercenters - retail stores that include grocery stores - in hopes of cutting costs.In October, the retailer released a draft of its court-ordered, revised environmental and economic analysis for the Lodi project.The document provided a mixed assessment, concluding a Supercenter might stunt the growth and rehabilitation of business downtown and that other retail centers in town could lose sales to competition, although many likely would not close...In exchange for approval of the new plans, Wal-Mart has tentatively agreed to preserve 40 acres of farmland elsewhere in San Joaquin County and to financially support downtown, although an exact figure has not been worked out, city spokesman Hood said...Homes more affordable in San Joaquin CountySome metro areas still expensive...Bruce Spencehttp://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080820/A_BIZ/80820...The dominance of foreclosures in the California residential market has driven down sales prices and helped cut into the long-running issue of low affordability, according to a new quarterly survey by the California Building Industry Association.The quarterly National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index reported Tuesday that new and existing homes were more affordable in 25 of the state's 28 metro areas included in the survey of 100 metro areas nationally.Because home prices have fallen throughout most of the nation, California still has more metro areas scoring the lowest in affordability than any other state, the report said. The survey looks at what share of the homes sold during the quarter would have been affordable to a family with that area's median income.San Joaquin County came in fourth, with 48.4 percent of houses affordable with the median household income of $61,300. That was a sharp improvement from 35.5 percent affordability in the first quarter. The county also improved from being the 39th least affordable metro area nationally in the first quarter to 65th in the second quarter.The Sacramento region was the state's most affordable market for the second consecutive quarter, with 55.7 percent of homes affordable to households with the median household income of $71,000. That was up from 49.7 percent in the first quarter.Stanislaus and Merced counties were the second and third most affordable markets in California with 49.3 percent and 48.6 percent affordability, respectively...Figures weren't available for the Central Valley, but the report said the minimum housing income needed to buy an entry-level home at $329,120 in California in the second quarter was $62,870, based on an adjustable interest rate of 5.69 percent and assuming a 10 percent down payment. The median household income in California is $59,160.At $62,870, the minimum qualifying income was 38 percent lower than a year earlier when households needed $101,440 to qualify for a loan on an entry-level home. Recent decreases in home prices and mortgage rates have brought affordability into better alignment with income levels of the typical California householdsDuring the second quarter, six of the 10 least affordable metro areas in the nation were in California. But for the first time since the national association began tracking housing affordability in 1991, the least affordable metro area was not located in California...Meet the pika...Alex Breitler's Blog...8-19-08http://blogs.recordnet.com/sr-abreitlerEnvironmentalists sued the government over this little guy today.The California Fish and Game Commission earlier this year denied the enviros' request to list the pika under the state's endangered species list. And the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service hasn't acted yet on a petition to list the pika nationally.Let's get on with it, the enviros say.The pika's problem is that global warming is diminishing its habitat. The rodents live in boulder fields at very high elevations in the Sierra and around Lassen Peak; they have nowhere to relocate should the climate continue to warm.Pikas are extremely sensitive to temperature. Earthjustice, which filed today's lawsuits on behalf of the Center for Biological Diversity, says pikas can die from overheating when exposed to 80-degree temps for just a few hours.Indeed, they spend most of their time hiding under rocks during the daytime. When it's not too hot, they're out collecting the more than 60 pounds of flowers and grasses that they'll stockpile in their dens to sustain them through the long winter.Incidentally, if you want to spot a pika while they're still around, take the trip up to Lassen (it's only about 31/2 hours from Stockton) and hike to Bumpass Hell early in the day. You'll cross through rock fields that are chock full of these "boulder bunnies."To read the complaint against the state, click here. For the federal version, hereIN THE SUPERIOR COURT FOR THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA FOR THE COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCOCENTER FOR BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITYvs CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME COMMISSIONhttp://www.earthjustice.org/library/legal_docs/pika-state-petition-81908...IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIACenter for Biological Diversity vs DIRK KEMPTHORNE, in his official capacity as Secretary of the Interior; H. DALE HALL, in his official capacity as Director, United States Fish and Wildlife Service; and UNITED STATES FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE, an agency of the United States Department of the Interiorhttp://www.earthjustice.org/library/legal_docs/pika-federal-complaint-81...San Francisco ChronicleEPA limits to pollution monitoring tossed...Dina Cappiello, Associated Presshttp://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/08/20/MNPC12EDSK.D...A Bush administration rule barring states and local governments from requiring more air pollution monitoring is illegal, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.In a 2-1 decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit threw out a 2-year-old rule that may have allowed some refineries, power plants and factories to exceed pollution limits because the Environmental Protection Agency "failed to fix inadequate monitoring requirements ... and prohibited states and local authorities from doing so."Since 1990, the Clean Air Act has required permits granted to facilities releasing more than 100 tons of any pollutant a year to include enough monitoring to ensure the company is meeting its emissions targets. Approximately 15,000 to 16,000 permits have been issued under the program, mostly by state and local pollution agencies."We can't have strong enforcement of our clean air laws unless we know what polluters are putting into the air," said Keri Powell, a staff attorney with Earthjustice, who sued the EPA on behalf of four environmental groups.The EPA said Tuesday that it was reviewing the court's decision. But an agency spokesman said the monitoring deficiencies should be remedied on the national level rather than on a case-by-case basis.Appeals court judge Brett Kavanaugh, a former attorney in the Bush White House, wrote the sole dissenting opinion.He said that while the EPA and state and local governments may disagree about whether monitoring requirements will adequately measure compliance, he found "nothing in the statute that prohibits the EPA's approach."American Pika -- The Rabbit Cousin That Hates Global Warming...Jane Kay...Village Greenhttp://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate/detail?blogid=50&entry_id=29283The American pika, a furry relative of rabbits and hares with a squeaky call, is getting pushed out of its mountain home because of global warming, say conservation groups. Today they went to court to protect its place on the planet.Environmental lawyers at Earthjustice filed court documents asking resource agencies to list the small mammal under state and federal Endangered Species acts, making the alpine dweller the first animal species in the lower 48 states to come under scrutiny for global warming threats.The America pika is not exactly a household word, and its obscurity makes it harder to protect than the Arctic polar bear. In the complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Sacramento, the plaintiff, the Center for Biological Diversity, argues that the U.S. Interior Department must also use the act to save the little-known rabbit-like creature from extinction...The environmental groups want to use the law to protect habitat critical to the survival of the animals, and put in place stricter measures to keep them from harm. In addition, they say the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency should begin regulating carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, as a pollutant.The groups today also filed a complaint in the San Francisco Superior Court, asking the state Department of Fish and Game to list the pika under state law. In April, the commission turned down the groups'petition...Contra Costa TimesDelta Vision plan heads to Oakland today...Mike Taugherhttp://www.contracostatimes.com/news/ci_10247537?nclick_check=1A statewide tour of what the governor's task force on the Delta has planned comes to Oakland today for its only Bay Area visit.The Delta Vision task force is nearing the end of about 18 months of work on how to fix the Delta's ecosystem while maintaining water supplies for regions that depend on it. The latest draft, about 100 pages, suggests creating an agency akin to the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission to maintain a balance between the needs of water users and the environment. The final plan is scheduled to be completed in October.The new agency would have control of some funds and would be charged with ensuring state and federal agencies adhere to the Delta plan, said Delta Vision spokesman Keith Coolidge.The 18-point plan is meant to revitalize the Delta's environment, preserve the special characteristics of its geography, end the focus of some agencies on maximizing water supplies and improve the way government oversees the Delta."California's water supply and the Delta ecosystem are both irreplaceable assets of paramount importance to the state's future," the draft says. "Neither can be fully secure if the other ails; the ecosystem will remain under stress if water supplies are unreliable, and the water supply will remain vulnerable to interruptions if the ecosystem is unhealthy."The plan says the cost of water is likely to increase and it sets out ambitious targets for increased water-use efficiency, new groundwater desalination plants and environmental revitalization. The plan also calls for construction of a canal that would deliver water around the Delta and modifications to the way Delta water is now pumped out near Tracy. Some specialists contend that the canal should be the source of water deliveries while others, including anglers, Delta farmers and residents of Contra Costa County, worry the canal would de-water the Delta and lead to higher concentrations of pollution and other problems.Today's meeting, from 4 to 7 p.m., will be at Nile Hall in Preservation Park, 1233 Preservation Park Way in Oakland. It will be hosted by Raymond Seed, a UC Berkeley engineering professor and task force member.Santa Cruz SentinelSupervisors delay declaring South County groundwater emergency...Donna Joneshttp://www.santacruzsentinel.com/ci_10252627WATSONVILLE -- The Board of Supervisors delayed declaring a groundwater emergency in the Pajaro Valley on Tuesday, but made it clear time is running out for the South County to resolve a longstanding overdraft problem.Supervisors considered taking the action due to concern about the cash-strapped Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency's ability to fulfill its mission of protecting the water supply crucial to South County farmers and residents.But Supervisor Tony Campos called the proposed emergency declaration premature. The water agency has made progress and should be given more time, he said. He proposed working with the agency to establish some benchmarks toward resolution...Others on the board also expressed frustration that the 24-year-old agency hasn't made significant strides to resolve a problem that was first identified more than 50 years ago.Supervisor Jan Beautz asked why the Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau hasn't done more to resolve the problem since agriculture uses more than 80 percent of the water. Why, she asked, isn't there mandatory conservation instead of voluntary measures?...Dave Cavanaugh of the Farm Bureau and Watsonville Mayor Kimberly Petersen were among those appealing for more time.Cavanaugh acknowledged what some called the "water wars" that have made resolution difficult. But he said things are changing. More people accept that overdraft is an issue that's not going away."I feel the community is ready to make a decision on a difficult question," he said. "Declaring a groundwater emergency will only muddy the waters."Los Angeles TimesOrange County transfers 1,200 acres to developer-backed land trustThe firm wants a toll road built through the property but says it will keep open space undeveloped...Christian Berthelsenhttp://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-ocland20-2008aug20,0,2416916,pri...Orange County supervisors Tuesday approved a plan to give control of 1,200 acres of open space to a land trust backed by a developer that supports building a six-lane toll road through the property.The developer, Rancho Mission Viejo, says it plans to add the land to its own 17,000-acre open space preserve and maintain it as undeveloped land. The land was originally set aside as part of an earlier agreement to offset the environmental and wildlife effects of housing developments.Rancho Mission Viejo said the transfer would provide more resources, such as the reserve's $200-million endowment, to enhance and protect the land. County officials portrayed the transfer as bureaucratic streamlining that is part of a plan to consolidate management of up to 33,000 acres of open space in southern Orange County under a single entity.But a lawyer for a board member on the conservancy that now oversees the land sent a letter opposing the transfer to supervisors Monday, saying it appeared to be a way to eventually give a portion of it to the public agency that is seeking to build the toll road through it."We believe that such a transfer is not in the interest of the public," wrote attorney Todd T. Cardiff on behalf of Michael Lindsey, a member of the Donna O'Neill Land Conservancy board.Supervisors approved the proposal unanimously, with little debate and no public opposition. The proposal also must be approved by the San Clemente City Council, which is scheduled to vote on it Sept. 2, before it can take effect.The plan to move the Donna O'Neill land into the Reserve at Rancho Mission Viejo is the latest twist in a complex history...In February, the California Coastal Commission dealt a seeming death blow to the toll road when it found that it violated coastal protection laws because of its path through San Onofre State Beach. But the road's supporters have appealed that decision to the U.S. Commerce secretary in the hope of overturning it. No decision on the appeal has been made.On Tuesday, environmentalists and county officials alike were unclear on what, if any, effect the transfer of oversight of the land would have on its ultimate use...Tunneling nearly complete for Inland Empire water projectBreakthrough expected today at Devil Canyon in the San Bernardino Mountains. The Inland Feeder Project will connect the California Aqueduct to the Diamond Valley Lake...Tony Perryhttp://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-tunnel20-2008aug20,0,5928291,pri...Even in the world of big-ticket water projects, where delays, cost overruns and controversy are frequent, the inelegantly named Inland Feeder Project was in a class of its own.In its two decades, the project has faced fire, flood, regulatory disputes, difficult geology, grouting problems, earthquake considerations, a switch of contractors and more. At one point it was $100 million over budget.The boss at the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California jokes that the project suffered everything but a plague of locusts.Still, the agency insisted it needed a higher-capacity system to bring water from Northern California to its massive reservoir, Diamond Valley Lake, outside Hemet.A new project manager was brought in three years ago with a simple command: Failure is not an option.And today, several years behind the original schedule, the $1.2-billion project will complete its last bit of tunneling: a four-mile stretch known as the Arrowhead West Tunnel in the San Bernardino Mountains.Officials will cheer as an 820-ton, 450-foot tunnel boring machine punches through at Devil Canyon, near Cal State San Bernardino, where the California Aqueduct will eventually connect.Then it's all downhill, literally. Set for completion in 2010, the 44-mile route includes 16 miles of tunneling in three sections and 28 miles of underground piping that will empty into an already built canal. From there, it will travel 10 miles to Diamond Valley. The idea is this: In the future, water will arrive from the California Aqueduct in fast bursts due to climate change and shifting snow patterns. The smooth, faucet-like flow will become more like blasts from a fire hose...When the Inland Feeder is done, it will triple the existing system's capability to move water to Diamond Valley...College leaders hope to renew debate on a lower drinking ageThe current limit ignores the reality of drinking on campus and pushes it underground, they say. Opponents say a rollback to age 18 would reverse declines in teen drunk driving...Larry Gordon and Gale Hollandhttp://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-drinking20-2008aug20,0,6037559,p...As college students gear up for annual back-to-school parties, a group of university and college presidents in California and across the country this week pushed for a national debate over whether the drinking age should be lowered from 21 to 18.The current limit ignores the reality of drinking during college years and drives it underground, making binge drinking more dangerous and students less likely to seek help in an emergency, according to a petition signed by more than 100 campus presidents. Though they don't call for an outright age rollback, the campus chiefs said they support "an informed and dispassionate public debate over the effects of the 21-year-old drinking age."Their statement provoked some controversy as critics contend that a lower drinking age will cause an increase in drunk driving deaths...The effort, however, was denounced by Mothers Against Drunk Driving, which is urging parents to protest to the college presidents. Chuck Hurley, chief executive of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, said that he was "profoundly disappointed" in the initiative and contended that the signers were ignoring research showing a significant drop in drunk-driving deaths for teens since the age limit was raised to 21. McCardell said some of that reduction may be attributed to safer cars, better enforcement and wider use of "designated drivers."...   Department of Water ResourcesCalifornia Water NewsA daily compilation for DWR personnel of significant news articles and comment…August 20, 2008 1.  Top Items -Tunneling nearly complete for Inland Empire water project: Breakthrough expected today at Devil Canyon in the San Bernardino Mountains. The Inland Feeder Project will connect the California Aqueduct to the Diamond Valley Lake. - The Los Angeles Times- 8/20/08Tunnel adding key link to MWD's Inland Feeder water project - Riverside Press Enterprise- 8/20/08Dan Walters: This week's pivotal for state Capitol's budget, water battles - The Sacramento Bee- 8/20/08Language in bill surprises IID - Imperial Valley Press- 8/19/08Editorial Our Opinion: Good step, but small step - IMPERIAL VALLEY Press – 8/19/08Assembly casts bipartisan vote to support Wolk water conservation bill - California Chronicle- 8/19/08Supervisors oppose water reallocation - Redding Record Searchlight- 8/20/08Salton Sea restoration gets Senate approval - The Desert Sun- 8/19/08 Tunneling nearly complete for Inland Empire water project: Breakthrough expected today at Devil Canyon in the San Bernardino Mountains. The Inland Feeder Project will connect the California Aqueduct to the Diamond Valley Lake.The Los Angeles Times- 8/20/08…By Tony Perry, Staff WriterEven in the world of big-ticket water projects, where delays, cost overruns and controversy are frequent, the inelegantly named Inland Feeder Project was in a class of its own.In its two decades, the project has faced fire, flood, regulatory disputes, difficult geology, grouting problems, earthquake considerations, a switch of contractors and more. At one point it was $100 million over budget.The boss at the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California jokes that the project suffered everything but a plague of locusts.Still, the agency insisted it needed a higher-capacity system to bring water from Northern California to its massive reservoir, Diamond Valley Lake, outside Hemet.A new project manager was brought in three years ago with a simple command: Failure is not an option.And today, several years behind the original schedule, the $1.2-billion project will complete its last bit of tunneling: a four-mile stretch known as the Arrowhead West Tunnel in the San Bernardino Mountains.Officials will cheer as an 820-ton, 450-foot tunnel boring machine punches through at Devil Canyon, near Cal State San Bernardino, where the California Aqueduct will eventually connect.Then it's all downhill, literally. Set for completion in 2010, the 44-mile route includes 16 miles of tunneling in three sections and 28 miles of underground piping that will empty into an already built canal. From there, it will travel 10 miles to Diamond Valley. The idea is this: In the future, water will arrive from the California Aqueduct in fast bursts due to climate change and shifting snow patterns. The smooth, faucet-like flow will become more like blasts from a fire hose.The current plumbing of the water district system is considered inadequate to capture the volume in such flows for storage. Enter the Inland Feeder, whose engineering is widely admired."We'll come up with something better" for a name, water district General Manager Jeff Kightlinger said Monday as he talked to reporters about the promise and the problems of the project."We knew it would be tricky," he said. "It was trickier that we thought."The Arrowhead West Tunnel, between Waterman and Devil canyons, may have been the trickiest.In 2003, the wildfires that swept through much of Southern California roared over the Waterman construction site, scorching everything in their path. Three months later, a fast-moving mudslide plugged the front of the tunnel with 16 feet of mud and water. Work stopped for months.No workers were at the site during either disaster, otherwise there would definitely have been fatalities, Kightlinger said. The only death caused by the project came during a shoring accident as pipe was being installed.At the Arrowhead West Tunnel, the cutter face of the boring machine -- three times as tall as any worker -- grinds relentlessly at the mountain's granite rock, about 90 feet underground.At top speed, the machine advances a bit over two inches per minute. The tunnel shakes, and the huffing and puffing of the machine fills the tunnel's stuffy air.Although laser technology helps guide the cutter face, a human operator must apply the right amount of pressure to various locations on the rock face to keep the machine -- and therefore the tunnel -- on course."We've been fighting it all the way," said operator Billy Jordan, 41, an employee of the lead contractor, San Bernardino-based Shea/Kenny.The tunnel is dark, hot and noisy. Seeping water is dripping from the stone walls, a normal occurrence but unnerving to a visitor. It is no place for someone with claustrophobia.A narrow-gauge train ferries workers and equipment to and fro, whistle blaring to warn people who might be in its path. Workers carry a breathing apparatus on their belts in case of fire.When bored out, the tunnel is 19 feet in diameter. With concrete liners installed, it shrinks to 12 feet. The miners are veterans of other tunnel projects throughout the country. Each is a jack-of-all-trades, adept at maintaining safety and pushing the project forward."It's a great job, something different every day," said James Bowen, 42, who has been working on it for a decade. "You never know what's going to break down."When the Inland Feeder is done, it will triple the existing system's capability to move water to Diamond Valley. At its maximum, the new pipe could move enough water to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool in less than 30 seconds.The project has been through two major contractors and numerous water district managers.Longtime water district employee John Bednarski, a civil engineer, was appointed project manager three years ago when major issues arose involving landowners."We were asked to look at any and all alternatives to get this done," he said.In the end, the established plan was determined to be best. Land-use, environmental and engineering issues were resolved, and work resumed.Through it all, the water district continued serving 18 million people in Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, San Bernardino and Riverside and Ventura counties. The Diamond Valley reservoir serves the entire district with the exception of Ventura County.Although a machine boring through a mountain at two inches per minute is hardly the stuff of breaking news, the engineering world has celebrated the project for its size and the complexity of its problems.Some water district workers have been working on it for their entire careers."It's one of those things that, as an engineer, you get one shot at," said principal engineer Jay Arabshahi.#http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-tunnel20-2008aug20,0,194234.story Tunnel adding key link to MWD's Inland Feeder water projectRiverside Press Enterprise- 8/20/08…ByJENNIFER BOWLES A circular rock-chewing machine will punch out of the San Bernardino Mountains today after nearly five years, leaving in its wake a four-mile-long tunnel that is the last major piece of a $1.2 billion water project designed to boost Southern California's supply.  The 19-foot-wide tunnel carved in the scrub-covered foothills above San Bernardino is part of a 44-mile system being built by the Metropolitan Water District. The project is known as the Inland Feeder, and most of its tunnels and pipelines that weave through San Bernardino and Riverside counties are already constructed.  Once completed in 2010, the Inland Feeder will triple the amount of Northern California water that can be transported to Diamond Valley Lake near Hemet -- a factor that will become more important as climate change affects the way drinking water is captured from the mountains.  "We expect water to be more volatile. We'll get sudden bursts, and we'll have to make it last longer," said Jeff Kightlinger, general manager of the Metropolitan Water District, which serves 19 million people in Southern California.  The region is no stranger to several types of natural disasters, and the tunnel's builders grappled with several. The 2003 wildfires swept through the construction site at Old Waterman Canyon above Cal State San Bernardino and destroyed some equipment. The flood that followed on Christmas 2003, killing 14 people higher up in the canyon, deluged the tunnel, and it took about five months to clear out the mud and to dewater the buried boring machine.  A maze of earthquake faults -- including the San Andreas -- made chewing through the granite and other rock below the mountain surface more difficult. There were fears of a collapse on the boring machines and miners.  Plus there was the two-year delay in the late 1990s prompted by worries from the San Bernardino National Forest and the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians that the tunneling would affect their groundwater.  "I used to think the only thing we had left coming through this tunnel was a plague of locusts," Kightlinger said.  Water WorriesForest officials were concerned that the groundwater seeping through the tunnel as it was being drilled could affect springs that keep streams running on the surface through the canyons.  "When you start draining groundwater, springs at that elevation will dry up," said Gar Abbas, a forest fisheries biologist. The springs feed creeks used by amphibians and other animals, and they keep vegetation alive for birds.  "If you impact the groundwater, then everything starts to die off, and you impact an entire ecosystem," Abbas said.  Since then, Abbas and the tribe have met with MWD on a monthly basis, and Abbas said he is more than satisfied with how things have worked out.  Monitoring of the springs and creeks by forest officials and the water district has shown that the tunneling technique was successful, Abbas said.  As for the San Manuel Band, officials are "unable to comment on any aspect of the project at this time," said Jacob Coin, a spokesman for the tribe. He said he could not elaborate.  In 2002, MWD brought in a new contractor for the tunneling project and devised new techniques to stop the groundwater from seeping into the tunnel by using grout to stabilize the ground before the machine bore through it, said John Bednarski, the district's project manager.  A bolt and gasket system similar to that used on the Chunnel that connects England to France was employed between the reinforced concrete tunnel segments, said Jay Arabshahi, MWD assistant program manager.  "We had to modify it and build upon it," he said of the Chunnel technique.  The tunnel is also designed so that if it is ruptured during a major earthquake, it will drain into City Creek above Highland rather than the streets below, Arabshahi said.  A 400-foot-long hydraulically driven machine carved out the 19-foot diameter tunnel, scraping the rock with discs at up to 5 inches per minute, and collecting the pieces in buckets attached to the head. GPS and laser-guided survey system tracked its progress.  At a cost of $9 million each, two custom-made boring machines were used to dig two tunnels in the San Bernardino Mountains that will connect up as part of the 44-mile-long project.  Inspired by DroughtThe Inland Feeder was envisioned back in the late 1980s and early 1990s during the area's last major drought. It was to be paired with a large reservoir, which later became Diamond Valley Lake near Hemet, Kightlinger said.  This time around, the region is experiencing a drought and 30 percent less water coming from the Sacramento Delta, a key source of water for Southern California. The reduction's goal is to protect a threatened fish species, the Delta smelt, that was being sucked into the water pumps.  Diamond Valley Lake is now at about two-thirds its capacity and 60 feet below its highest level, mainly because of the judge-ordered restrictions on the delta water supply.  Kightlinger said an ecological collapse is happening in the Sacramento Delta, and MWD is pushing for a new but politically controversial pipeline around the delta to prevent the fish from being killed.  "We expect to see a better 2009, but we are going to be very much hurting in 2009 and for the foreseeable future until we can get a new conveyance systems built around the delta," he said.  Even still, he said, climate change is transforming the way water is collected. With warmer temperatures, faster-rushing rain rather than slowly melting snow will become more the norm, making capturing water in reservoir systems more difficult, Kightlinger said.  He said the Inland Feeder will help by having the capacity to move 650 million gallons of water a day -- or enough to fill an Olympic-size swimming pool every 30 seconds.  Fed by Lake Silverwood, water in the Inland Feeder will move by gravity from the San Bernardino Mountains to San Jacinto, where it will connect to an existing pipeline that feeds Diamond Valley Lake.  "It was trickier than we thought. It's been delayed, but we're going to be pulling through on Wednesday." Kightlinger said Monday. "It's been a long time coming, but it's quite an accomplishment." #http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_S_tunnel20.495b60a.html Dan Walters: This week's pivotal for state Capitol's budget, water battlesThe Sacramento Bee- 8/20/08…By Dan Walters This is shaping up as a make-or-break week not only on the long-stalled state budget but on other major issues, such as water bonds, that are tied to the Nov. 4 ballot. Capitol factions remain far apart on fully closing a $15.2 billion budget deficit – especially over taxes – with Assembly and Senate Democrats somewhat divided and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger at odds with most fellow Republicans. The remaining gap is about $6 billion, which could be covered by loans from transportation funds, local governments or banks, by a temporary one-cent sales tax hike that Schwarzenegger is touting, by borrowing against lottery profits, by income tax boosts that most Democrats favor, and/or by tax loophole closures. Which approach is finally adopted will largely depend on the shape of a "budget reform" ballot measure. Were Democrats to back off on taxes, for instance, and shift to borrowing – which Schwarzenegger says he opposes – GOP lawmakers might soften demands for a hard cap on spending increases. The governor vows to reject any deal that doesn't include budget reform but is, as usual, flexible on details. The rub is that any change in the constitution's budget provisions must go to voters, and the semiofficial deadline for the Nov. 4 ballot was last weekend. The Capitol's new assumption is that it could be stretched a week by shortening ministerial procedures for measures and still make what appears to be a semi-hard deadline of Sept. 5 for mailing ballots to soldiers and other overseas voters. The ordinary flow of business, meanwhile, has been speeded up because Democrats still harbor hopes of ending the session by this weekend so they can attend next week's Obamaniacal Democratic convention in Denver. Some Democratic legislators are planning to split for the convention even if there is no budget agreement, saying they'd be just a 2 1/4-hour plane ride away. And then there's water – another issue that Schwarzenegger wants to resolve along with the budget so that it, too, can go on the November ballot. He and Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein are pushing a $9.3 billion water bond that includes new reservoirs and dams that environmentalists and most other Democratic politicians oppose. Pro-water development forces are clearly hoping that the state's current water travails – two dry years in a row and judicial decrees that limit water exports from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta – will propel action. The Assembly's Democrats appear poised only to offer a much-revised version of the Schwarzenegger-Feinstein plan that is unlikely to win approval but would give Democrats some political cover on the issue. So will anything really happen this week on the budget and water? Chances are very slim on the former – a meeting between Schwarzenegger and legislative leaders Tuesday was brief and unproductive – and even less on the latter. We may be looking at more weeks of stalemate and a special election.#http://www.sacbee.com/111/story/1170463.html Language in bill surprises IIDImperial Valley Press- 8/19/08 By Brianna Lusk      The first step toward restoring the plagued Salton Sea is on its way to the governor’s desk after it cleared the Senate on Tuesday.Authored by Sen. Denise Moreno Ducheny, D-San Diego, the bill calls for an initial $47 million to be spent on restoring the Salton Sea, which is estimated to take 75 years and $8.9 billion.But a change in the bill’s language was protested by Imperial Irrigation District officials Tuesday when it was noted that references to the 2003 Quantification Settlement Agreement were omitted. In its place is a reference to a code that deals with the water transfer agreement.It was later learned that the elimination came at the request of lobbyists for the water districts involved in the QSA, including IID, though the board expressed surprise and concern over the change.“How did we miss this?” IID Director Mike Abatti questioned. “We need to find out who we have working up there and whether they’re doing their job.”Ducheny said the bill references the Fish and Game Code, which deals with the part of the QSA that calls for the restoration of the Salton Sea.“It is clear from the state’s perspective why we’re moving forward on this, because it’s necessary for the QSA,” Ducheny said.One statement omitted included the words: “Restoration of the Salton Sea is an essential element of the Quantification Settlement Agreement.” Ducheny said those changes were requested by officials last year and were implemented once the bill began to move forward again this year.“It is fair to say the IID board was caught completely flat-footed by the finished version of Sen. Ducheny’s bill,” IID spokesman Kevin Kelley said. He went on to say that the explicit references to the linkage of the QSA and the restoration of the Salton Sea are “important to IID and everyone who lives in the region.”The bill calls for $47 million funded by voters in 2006 to be used for habitat creation for the 400 species of birds that migrate to the sea throughout the year as well as air and water quality studies.Ducheny said the governor has until Sept. 30 to sign the bill into law.“There is no disallowing the QSA anywhere,” Ducheny said. “It is evident we’re implementing this as an environmental project of the QSA.”#http://www.ivpressonline.com/articles/2008/08/20/local_news/news04.txt  Editorial Our Opinion: Good step, but small stepIMPERIAL VALLEY Press – 8/19/08…By IMPERIAL VALLEY STAFFThe state of California last week finally took a small step — a very small step — in the march toward restoring the dying Salton Sea.The Assembly approved a five-year, $47 million plan that would deal with studies on air, water and sediment quality. It would also include early habitat creation.While the bill has not made it to the governor’s office for his signature yet, this is still good news. With the state facing a very serious budget deficit, getting this kind of commitment to this stage is certainly a welcome surprise.But much more, of course, is needed. The actual restoration of the sea will cost billions of dollars and take decades to complete. We are thankful that state Sen. Denise Moreno Ducheny, D-San Diego, understands the importance of restoring the sea and is committed to securing a long-term plan for it.The problem is this project cannot wait. The Salton Sea is an environmental disaster waiting to happen, and the state has a responsibility to either save the sea or ensure that it will not pose a health threat to the people who live in the Imperial and Coachella valleys.Legislators, unfortunately, have not been too quick to act on a plan to save the sea. They apparently do not understand the importance of it or simply don’t care.We understand that the large price tag that comes with saving the sea can cause sticker shock. But doing nothing will be more costly. If the sea is allowed to become a full-blown environmental disaster, the costs will be much, much higher for the state and taxpayers. The lawsuits alone from farmers, nearby homeowners and people who live in the region will be excessively costly.So although it is certainly the preference of many legislators, inaction is simply not an option. That is why this first step was important, but certainly it was just a baby step. Now the state must put a long-term plan into place and find a way to pay for it. We encourage Ducheny to continue this push and to keep this issue on the front burner.It is that important.#http://www.ivpressonline.com/articles/2008/08/20/our_opinion/ed02_08-20-08.txt Assembly casts bipartisan vote to support Wolk water conservation billCalifornia Chronicle- 8/19/08…California Political Desk The State Assembly cast a bipartisan 62-2 vote last week to approve a water conservation bill by Assemblywoman Lois Wolk (D-Davis). The legislation, Assembly Bill 2882, would encourage public water agencies throughout the state to adopt conservation rate structures that reward consumers who conserve water. "At a time when California faces significant and ongoing water supply challenges, this legislation allows us to go further in improving and expanding water conservation across the state by expanding the opportunity, not the mandate, for urban water suppliers to encourage water conservation through their water rate structures," said Wolk. Currently, state law authorizes water agencies to promote conservation using rate structures. However, some agencies are concerned that such structures may not meet the requirements of Proposition 218, state law enacted by voters in 1996 to restrict the use of revenue tools such as water rates to finance local services. Wolk´s legislation provides agencies with the clarity necessary for legal implementation of allocation-based rate structures. The bill also establishes standards that protect consumers by ensuring a lower base rate for those who conserve water and requiring that higher rates for use in excess of the base rate do not exceed the reasonable cost of providing the water service. "I´m pleased that both houses of the state legislature approved this bill, and encourage the Governor to sign it into law and enable water suppliers throughout the state to use this effective conservation tools, shown to achieve dramatic water savings without significant taxpayer investment," Wolk concluded. AB 2882, which is supported by a broad coalition of water agencies and environmental organizations, is now waiting to be sent to the Governor´s desk for his signature.#http://www.californiachronicle.com/articles/71773 Supervisors oppose water reallocationRedding Record Searchlight- 8/20/08…By Kimberly Ross Shasta County supervisors passed a lean annual budget Tuesday and agreed to voice opposition to the controversial Delta Vision plan -- which could deny north state water rights to quench Southern Californians' thirst. The Board of Supervisors voted 4-0 to send a letter to the chairman of the plan's Blue Ribbon Task Force, with Supervisor Mark Cibula repeatedly questioning whether the county's four-page letter was worded strongly enough. He stressed Shasta County's responsibility to protect the north state's enormous water supply from Lake Shasta and Whiskeytown Lake, both for local water users and those in neighboring counties. "This is one of the most important things we will do," he said. Supervisor Les Baugh defended the letter's strength, pointing out the start of one of his favorite lines: "We cannot be more vehemently opposed to this preemption of local government authority. The reason why many counties adopted ordinances to regulate groundwater exports was due to real or perceived failures on the part of the state to manage these problems adequately," it says. Supervisor David Kehoe abstained from the vote, saying he agreed with many of the letter's concepts, but wanted more information and public comment. Kehoe successfully requested that the board hold a workshop to further discuss the Delta Vision’s implications. The workshop is tentatively set for Sept. 23 or later, Shasta County Administrative Officer Larry Lees said Tuesday afternoon. Cibula voted yes on the proposed letter with the understanding that more letters could be sent after the workshop, and visits with state representatives should be planned, he said. The Delta Vision Strategic Plan aims to fix the poorly functioning Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, the west coast’s largest estuary, Public Works Director Pat Minturn told the board. The peat bog’s weak levees are vulnerable to storms and earthquakes, yet they serve as part of a water conveyance system for 23 million Californians, Minturn wrote in a staff report. However, the plan by the Blue Ribbon Task Force, formed by Gov. Schwarzenegger, “would trump local and regional controls,” including the county’s Groundwater Management Ordinance, Minturn wrote. The county’s letter opposes the plan to grant the California Delta Ecosystem and Water Council the authority to affect areas outside the delta or to supercede existing water rights. Additionally, it opposes the idea that water would not be purchased, but provided based on “constitutional principles of reasonable use and public trust,” as described in the plan. Depleting upstream water systems is another concern, the letter states. While understanding that water supplies must be increased, “efforts to reduce the demand for water must equally be advanced,” the letter says. The board’s letter was drafted in conjunction with Tehama, Butte, Colusa and Glenn counties and based on the Northern California Water Association’s concerns. Voting on it Tuesday means it will be received before the governor’s Oct. 31 deadline for the task force’s management plan.#http://www.redding.com/news/2008/aug/20/supervisors-oppose-water-reallocation/ Salton Sea restoration gets Senate approvalThe Desert Sun- 8/19/08…By Jake Henshaw The Senate on Tuesday gave final legislative approval to a bill to help get the restoration work going at the Salton Sea.Senate Bill 187 by Sen. Denise Ducheny, D-San Diego, would establish the ground rules for spending $47 million in previously-approved bond funds to aid the dying sea.``This is important for preservation of this valuable natural rsource in California,'' Ducheny told the SenateThe bill previously was amended in a Senate committee to state that it doesn't endorse the full $8.9 billion restoration plan developed by state and local representatives.Life in the Salton Sea is slowly dying as salinity increases, a development that threatens nearby communities in the Coachella Valley and Imperial County with dust and foul odors. As approved Thursday, the $47 million will go toward projects in what's known as Period One of restoration work outlined in the Resources Agency plan.That period runs through 2013 with a $508 million mostly unfunded budget and calls for a variety of work including initial projects to preserve endangered fish population as well as developing a baseline of data on air, fish, birds, sea sediment, according to state officials.#http://www.mydesert.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080819/NEWS10/80819025/1263/update 2. Supply – IID declares water shortageImperial Valley Press- 8/19/08…By BRIANNA LUSK, Special to this NewspaperIt’s a harsh reality being faced by farmers across the state as some are forced to abandon their crops due to the water shortage plaguing California.The Imperial Irrigation District is not immune to the effects of living within the restrictions of water transfers and the local enormous agricultural water demand.There will not be enough water in 2009, district officials said.A shortage was declared by the board unanimously Tuesday, serving as a warning to those most affected by the supply-demand imbalance that change is on the horizon.“We have to recognize we can’t continue on this way,” said IID Director Mike Abatti. “It’s not healthy.”The district is already on track to exceed its water allotment by 105,000 acre-feet this year as thirsty lucrative crop prices have soared, stretching the water budget past the limit.“That’s not good news for the district,” said Carlos Villalon, IID assistant Water Department manager.IID is living in a new era, said IID board President John Pierre Menvielle, as it tries to manage the water transfer requirements and fuel the billion-dollar agriculture industry. Agriculture accounts for 97 percent of IID’s district-wide water usage.This is not the first time IID has declared an SDI.In June 2007, the board declared a water shortage when projections put the district 75,000 acre-feet over its entitlement of water. That number continued to shrink and ultimately an influx of rainfall decreased the overrun to less than 10,000 acre-feet of water last year. The supply-demand imbalance was rescinded in December.The rationing program was reduced to a pilot program as a result but only garnered two dozen voluntary participants, rendering the project useless without a trial-run on a larger scale.Brawley farmer Larry Cox said getting the farm community actively involved in the decision-making process now can ensure a smoother transition to a rationing program. Cox said he was part of a 15-member advisory committee last year whose comments are largely ignored by staff. “The ones who are going to have to live with this (are the farmers),” Cox told the board. “We’re the ones that pay for the water.”Farmers are well aware that market conditions and the restrictions of the 2003 Quantification Settlement Agreement that transfers water to the coast require action to be taken, Nicole Rothfleisch said.Rothfleisch, executive director of the Imperial County Farm Bureau, added IID has relied on consultants in the past to develop the equitable distribution program without real-life applications and dismissing plans created by the ICFB, Imperial Valley Vegetable Growers Association and Ag United.“We certainly hope that as the IID plans to completely change the method of distributing irrigation water that they will heed the advice of farmer groups and the Water Conservation Advisory Board,” Rothfleisch said. “They are the experts and that’s what they’re there for.”IID General Manager Brian Brady said by declaring a shortage now instead of waiting until the October deadline, public workshops can lay out the proposed specific implementation guidelines like the method of deciding how much water farmers get for their fields.“We want to make sure the public has input into that,” Brady said. “It’s a process and the board will ultimately have the final say.”Director James Hanks said there are larger implications if the district is unable to stay within its limits including the need to increase fallowing to meet the water transfer requirements.Not much has changed since the last time the board declared an SDI, Hanks said.“We haven’t made any more progress since December of last year,” Hanks said. “I believe we can do a better job in water management.”Though the days of water rationing in Imperial Valley would be a first in its history, Brady said it could be a lot worse.“We’re fortunate from the point-of-view that we do have this large allocation and that we are able to work within the SDI parameters. Hopefully we’ll be providing our farmers the best solution in this drought related condition we’re in,” Brady said.Hanks said an SDI is a wake-up call.“Under these conditions every drop is looked at and accounted for,” Hanks said.Local farmers, Menvielle said, will bear the brunt of learning how to make due with less.“IID is living with a limited amount of water. Farmers will have to control their water. It’s been a monkey on our back. This puts it on the farmers. They have to figure out how to deal with it,” Menvielle said.#http://www.ivpressonline.com/articles/2008/08/20/local_news/news03.txt 3. Watersheds – Nothing Significant  4. Water Quality – Nothing Significant 5. Agencies, Programs, People –Westlands discusses nuclear plants - The Fresno Bee- 8/19/08Water ordinances advance: New construction projects and faucets in public restrooms would face more stringent regulations under laws. - The Burbank Leader- 8/19/08 Westlands discusses nuclear plantsThe Fresno Bee- 8/19/08…By Dennis Pollock Fresno Nuclear Energy Group LLC on Tuesday signed a letter of intent with the Westlands Water District to discuss the possibility of building two 1,600-megawatt nuclear power plants on 500 acres in the district.  John Hutson, the company's president, said the district would choose the site.  Hutson said that, under the proposal, a desalinization facility, powered by the plants, would be built "to supply clean, reliable water to the farmers on the west side."  Ground water in the district is plagued by salts that include selenium and boron.  State law bans any new nuclear power plants until the federal government approves a process for the permanent disposal of their spent fuel. A nuclear plant also would have to clear several federal legal hurdles, most notably from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.  Hutson has said he might try to use a ballot initiative to overcome the state ban on new nuclear plants.  Sarah Woolf, a spokeswoman for Westlands, said district officials met once with Hutson and others involved in the project about two weeks ago.  "The agreement says, 'Let's at least sit down and talk about it,' " she said, adding that one challenge would be obtaining enough water to cool the energy plant. "We made it clear that we're water short.  "Our interest is if we could create a desalinization plant, we could power it with nuclear energy that would make it more cost effective." California has two active nuclear plants: Diablo Canyon, near San Luis Obispo, and San Onofre, between San Diego and Los Angeles. Woolf said it would be "at best" 10 years before anything could be built.#http://www.fresnobee.com/business/story/809184.html  Water ordinances advance: New construction projects and faucets in public restrooms would face more stringent regulations under laws.The Burbank Leader- 8/19/08…By Alison Tully The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to move forward with drafting two ordinances that address the shrinking amounts of available water in Southern California.The first ordinance would set a list of landscape irrigation requirements for new construction projects. The new projects would require that a building has to install a separate pipe and meter to use recycled water if it is in a recycled water zone of the city.However, they will not have to adhere to other more stringent regulations, Plan Check Engineer Carol-Anne Coates said.All other new projects will be asked to comply with plantings and higher-efficiency sprinklers requirements, and follow guidelines such as creating “hydrozones,” or grouping plants together that need larger amounts of water to survive, Coates said.“We realize it would be hardship for some properties to have to adhere to the ordinance so we left out existing properties,” she said. “However, if there is a major addition to a house or commercial business already in the area, they will also have to install the more efficient sprinkler heads.” The new irrigation practices address not only the council’s green architecture practices, but follow a 2010 mandate as well, according to a city staff report.An Assembly bill passed in 2006 requires that local cities adopt more efficient landscape practices similar to the Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance developed by the state Department of Water Resources, according to the report.Slated to be released in January, the ordinance would require that construction projects greater than 2,500 create a water budget — a minimal amount of water needed to maintain their irrigation areas, Coates said.The second ordinance would install faucet aerators in restrooms available to the public. As many as 9,000 bathrooms could be required to install the aerators, which is easy to do and inexpensive, she said.Vice Mayor Gary Bric suggested that staff consider using metered faucets in public restrooms to prevent people from turning on the faucets and leaving them running.In June, the council voted to approve a similar ordinance that new construction projects also install water-efficient bathroom appliances.On Tuesday, Councilwoman Anja Reinke expressed concern about the availability of the aerators in local stores.Despite low numbers of the fixtures on retail shelves in the past, there are now plenty in stock for sale, Coates said.The ordinance is mandatory for all new multifamily and commercial projects as well as substantial remodels to faucets, toilets, shower heads and urinals in order to meet the proposed California Green Building Standards Code, Coates said.In February, the council voted 4 to 1 to support a water-reduction plan to cut back on supply delivered by the water district. The plan would be implemented only if conditions get worse, officials said.The shortage is caused by low rainfall levels throughout California; a judicial case that is holding up deliveries of water from the Sacramento/San Joaquin River Delta; low levels of snowpack in the Colorado Basin and Sierra Nevada; and an eight-year drought in the Colorado River that recently ended.#http://www.burbankleader.com/articles/2008/08/20/politics/blr-council20.txt  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DWR's California Water News is distributed to California Department of Water Resources management and staff, for information purposes, by the DWR Public Affairs Office. For reader's services, including new subscriptions, temporary cancellations and address changes, please use the online page: http://listhost2.water.ca.gov/mailman/listinfo/water_news. DWR operates and maintains the State Water Project, provides dam safety and flood control and inspection services, assists local water districts in water management and water conservation planning, and plans for future statewide water needs. Inclusion of materials is not to be construed as an endorsement of any programs, projects, or viewpoints by the Department or the State of California. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------CENTRAL VALLEY SAFE ENVIRONMENT NETWORKMISSION STATEMENTCentral Valley Safe Environment Network is a coalition of organizations and individuals throughout the San Joaquin Valley that is committed to the concept of "Eco-Justice" -- the ecological defense of the natural resources and the people. To that end it is committed to the stewardship, and protection of the resources of the greater San Joaquin Valley, including air and water quality, the preservation of agricultural land, and the protection of wildlife and its habitat. In serving as a community resource and being action-oriented, CVSEN desires to continue to assure there will be a safe food chain, efficient use of natural resources and a healthy environment. CVSEN is also committed to public education regarding these various issues and it is committed to ensuring governmental compliance with federal and state law. CVSEN is composed of farmers, ranchers, city dwellers, environmentalists, ethnic, political,and religious groups, and other stakeholders.