9-24-08

9-24-08Badlands JournalLow hanging fruit, Part II...Badlands Journal Editorial Boardhttp://www.badlandsjournal.com/node/5576The articles below from the Merced Sun-Star tell a story about felony indictments brought against five people associated with Firm Build, a program started in 1998 to train "troubled teens" in construction trades. Merced County Planning Commissioner Rudy Buendia was or is still executive director of Firm Build, which went bankrupt months ago.Buendia, charged originally with 15 felonies (later 17), according to the newspaper fled arrest and was a "fugitive" for two days before turning himself in with Kirk McAllister, Modesto criminal defense attorney, at his side.Two of the five charged were arrested. It is unclear from reports if two others were arrested or turned themselves in. Two have posted bail and been released.Buendia, the only reported fugitive, was released without paying bail on September 18 by Superior Court Judge McCabe. The judge's reasons included Buendia's clean record and that he personally knew seven of the 20 prominent people who wrote letters on Buendia's behalf. The board of supervisors is reported to have no plans of removing either Planning Commissioner Buendia or Patrick Bowman, on the board of the "troubled" Merced County Housing Authority and an official of the Merced County Office of Education, from the positions the board appointed them to.District Attorney Larry Morse II returned to McCabe's court the next day and asked for the release of Firm Build's bookkeeper because, he said, she was the only one of the five who had cooperated in the investigation and that it was unfair for her to remain in jail after the judge had released Buendia. No prominent citizens are reported to have written any letters on the bookkeeper's behalf although it is fair to speculate that the bookkeeper knows more then Buendia, a man, who in public appears to know as little as possible. The judge granted her release on her own recognizance.The motives for these prominent citizens to get involved with a serious criminal case involving the disappearance of some $700,000, reportedly of all or in large part public funds, is a matter of pure speculation. Perhaps Buendia's ghostly presence on the planning commission and complacent voting habits have something to do with it. Political and economic connections to Firm Build, the Housing Authority, Planada (Buendia's home) are so incestuous, it's hard to imagine that significant parts or all of the Merced power structure (with the exception of the DA's office) are not represented somehwere in the 20 letters on Buendia's behalf.To take just one example of the sort of speculation that should not have occurred is that Merced College (whose president, Ben Duran, wrote a letter on Buendia's behalf) is a district within the Merced County Office of Education, where alleged felon Bowman is currently on administrative leave. The judge's father, a man with a deep interest in agricultural and vocational education, is a trustee of the college. Whatever may or may not have transpired between the trustee and the president, it doesn't look good. Speculation about direct financial involvement between the college and Firm Build, possible relationships between Firm Build, other members of the board of trustees and of the board of directors of the Merced College Foundation, creates a geometric progression of possible connections. Another example of the geometric progression of connections is Diana Westmoreland Pedrozo, the very model of the modern agricultural organization person and sister-in-law of Supervisor John Pedrozo, who represents Planada. She sits or has sat on boards, commissions and committees (at times with Buendia) too numerous to list. At present, she is the executive director of the Merced County Farm Bureau and president of California Women for Agriculture. She rarely makes a move without Supervisor Diedre Kelsey's approval and Kelsey rarely makes a move without County CEO Dee Tatum's nod. Despite the psychotic Grand Jury report on the deal Tatum made with developers and the Housing Authority for his land in Planada, the smoke's still rising from that backyard trash incinerator. The syntax and arithmetic on that Grand Jury report should remind the public of what happens when the official mind of Merced blinks down the barrel of political pressure in the cause of covering up alleged official malfeasance.We are accustomed to overt political manipulations in the Merced County Superior Court when the case involves the California Environmental Quality Act, but this case involves grand theft and embezzlement of large amounts of public funds. We assumed criminal law was held to a higher standard of judicial correctness than mere environmental issues. We also assumed a fugitive from justice would not have been given a free Get Out of Jail card just for having been appointed to the planning commission.The prominent citizens and the court have led the public into this sort of speculation, already being labeled "cynical" by the newspaper. In light of the "prominent residents" letter campaign and the court's decision concerning Buendia's bail, the view that emerges is that the DA's office is on a collision course with powerful local special interests involved with Firm Build, inevitable given the nature of Firm Build and the elevation of Buendia to planning commissioner status. Assuming the DA's office has done a thorough job of investigation, which we think is fair to assume, leads us to speculate that local special interests suspect that some of the evidence against Firm Build involves their relations with it. Probably, these interests do not want this information to become public. The DA, in order to make his case, may have to use all or part of evidence potentially embarrassing to local special interests. Perhaps some of the evidence is actually incriminating. Investigations of this nature tend to go thither and yon. Motions to suppress parts of the evidence in these cases will be interesting to watch if any of the cases ever come to trial at all.The public should not have to make such speculation, but there are instances in which felonies are the only plausible explanations for the facts. Evidently, in the mind of the prosecutor, Firm Build's career is one of them. Otherwise, we speculate, the DA's office would not have brought the charges and started this fight against what looks like most of the special interests in the county, represented one way or another by these "prominent citizens."The policy breached by this "prominent" support of Buendia is that public officials should avoid the appearance of corruption, a policy broad enough to include political pressure on the judicial branch of government. The reason for this excellent policy, older than Aristotle, is that the appearance of corruption causes grumbing among the people and speculations concerning misfeasance, malfeasance and nonfeasance involving public office and public funds, political intimidation of the judicial process and other similar complaints.Some say there is an elephant in this room: four of the five of those charged in the Firm Build case are Hispanics. Hispanics are the largest ethnic group in Merced County, more than 45 percent according to the 2000 US Census. Like any other ethnic group, Hispanics tend to rally around their members in times of trouble, right or wrong, despite Cicero's comment that "no single thing is so like one another, so exactly its counterpart, as all of us are to one another." So, there is also speculation that the charges are racially motivated, despite the fact that public funds are paid by everybody, not just Hispanics. The public has a clear, strong interest in the prosecution of embezzlement and grand theft of public funds, especially in a program designed to train unemployed teens, probably mostly Hispanic, in useful trades. Nevertheless, the political dynamics play differently, which is the best reason for keeping politics out of the courtroom, as the wise Founding Fathers recommended and established in the laws of separation of branches of government. The "prominent residents" crossed that line and have meddled with and muddied these cases, especially the charges against the fugitive planning commissioner. The local "leadership" is reacting in self-defense against the public interest of prosecuting indicted felons. There is a point in public affairs when corruption makes government and its special interest masters look so stupid that they become completely reactionary. We have probably reached that stage of political affairs in Merced as well as in the nation at large. Meanwhile, the public should support the DA and the Firm Build group the old-fashioned way, by giving both a fair hearing in a court of law from impartial judges without anymore political meddling... Merced Sun-StarTwo Merced County farms granted safety from development...Carol Reiterhttp://www.mercedsunstar.com/167/story/467750.htmlTwo Livingston area family farms located in the path of development near the city have been permanently set aside for agriculture.The Beach Farm consists of 80 acres, 77 of them planted in almonds. It's located about 11/2 miles south of Livingston's sphere-of-influence boundary.The Silveira Farm is about 13/4 miles northeast of Livingston's eastern city boundary. The 62.5- acre farm has 42 acres in almonds, 17 acres in sweet potatoes and two acres planted in organic blueberries.The California Farmland Conservancy Program and the Great Valley Center funded efforts, and the Central Valley Farmland Trust will hold the easements.Central Valley lawmakers: Bailout has 'serious flaws'Merced congressman says proposal needs accountability and control...MICHAEL DOYLE, Sun-Star Washington Bureauhttp://www.mercedsunstar.com/167/story/467728.htmlWASHINGTON -- The San Joaquin Valley may be the epicenter of the home mortgage meltdown, but regional lawmakers remain leery about the $700 billion bailout package now being crafted on Capitol Hill.Constituents are denouncing the bailout as a boon for Wall Street tycoons. Distressed homeowners are worrying it won't help them stave off foreclosure. Local bankers are watching closely."The administration's proposal has serious flaws," warned Rep. Dennis Cardoza, D-Merced, "and we've been working to craft a proposal that at least has some accountability and control."Republicans, too, remain cautious about the bailout package that began life Saturday as a three-page document submitted by the White House. There are questions about the ultimate cost to taxpayers, the wisdom of intervening in the marketplace and the potential long-term consequences of speedy action."I'm very skeptical of anything that could come out of this House in one week," said Rep. George Radanovich, R-Mariposa. "It's going to be a hard sell for me." While acknowledging that "we're on the hook to provide something," Radanovich stressed Congress probably needed "more time" to make sure the package was well constructed.The congressional caution largely tracks what the lawmakers have been hearing from residents. The trend is all in one direction.Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein said that "virtually all" of the 12,000 e-mails and telephone calls her office has received have come from people opposed to the White House bailout proposal."The overwhelming majority of the calls have been to oppose the deal," Radanovich press secretary Spencer Pederson agreed.Democratic Rep. Jim Costa of Fresno added that among his constituents who have been calling, "the notion of bailing out a number of wealthy executives on Wall Street is not something they support." Costa, like Feinstein and Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer, wants a provision capping executive pay or bonuses.Even with all the potential political problems, the bailout vote still could take place by the end of this week. Congressional leaders already have insisted a package must move, because the volatile financial markets are expecting one.The bill's actual language remains in the hands of a relative handful of lawmakers. Members of Congress have countered the White House's three-page proposal with 40-plus page proposals of their own.The unresolved questions include some particularly relevant to the Valley. Some Democrats, for instance, want to include language allowing federal bankruptcy judges to modify mortgage terms. Opposed by lenders, this proposal could nonetheless resonate among the 15,416 petitioners who had U.S. Bankruptcy Court cases pending last year in Fresno, Modesto and Sacramento.Democrats might have greater luck with proposals aiding individual mortgage holders, though the details are still being worked out."It doesn't mean you forgive the loan," Cardoza said. "It means, you figure out some way for the family to pay and stay in the home." Costa and Cardoza are promoting a 90-day moratorium on home foreclosures. Even if a foreclosure moratorium is not included in the bailout package -- and it would likely face resistance -- Costa said he and Cardoza plan to write the federal mortgage companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to urge a self-imposed moratorium "It is essential that (we) deal with those suffering from foreclosure," Costa said.Others, including Radanovich, are supporting what is probably a long-shot effort to use the bailout plan as a means to cut capital gains taxes. Radanovich stressed the importance of encouraging the flow of private investments.For all of the Valley lawmakers, the crisis is acutely local.Of the top 10 foreclosure rates for metropolitan areas nationwide in August, eight were in California, according to data compiled by the Irvine-based RealtyTrac. Stockton, Modesto and Merced -- the three largest cities in Cardoza's congressional district -- posted the highest foreclosure rates.The potential significance of the bailout package for these foreclosed-upon homes remains unclear. Stockton RecordSewage spills draw lawsuit...Alex Breitlerhttp://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080924/A_NEWS/809240330/-1/A_NEWSSTOCKTON - A conservation group has followed through on its threat to sue the city for sewage spills and alleged violations of its permit to release treated wastewater.The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Sacramento, says 1,530 sewer overflows were reported in Stockton over the past five years, endangering human health and the environment.The city has failed to maintain the sewer system and put off repairs for lack of funding, said Stockton environmentalist Bill Jennings, who heads the plaintiff California Sportfishing Protection Alliance"There is a problem," Jennings said Tuesday. "The city is going to have to be much more aggressive in maintaining its facilities to lessen the number of spills that are occurring."...Stockton's wastewater plant discharges up to 55million gallons per day of treated wastewater into the San Joaquin River, just upstream of the Port of Stockton. The wastewater reaches the plant via more than 900 miles of pipes from 38,000 sewer connections across the city.Jennings' group and a coalition of south San Joaquin Valley farmers have placed at least some of the blame for the Delta's water quality woes on the discharge of treated wastewater from cities such as Stockton. While ideologically opposite, both groups filed notices of intent to sue the city in July.A spokesman for the farmers group, the Coalition for a Sustainable Delta, said Tuesday that the coalition had not yet filed suit.Up and down the Central Valley, 64 cities release wastewater into rivers and streams that ultimately feed into the Delta, Jennings said. If Stockton were the only discharger, the detrimental effect on the Delta would be less, he said.He said, however, that the number of spills in Stockton per mile of pipe greatly exceeds the state average. When these spills occur, wastewater drains into gutters and the city storm system, emptying into the Delta and harming wildlife.The problem predates privatization of city waterworks in 2003, a move later undone by a court ruling, Jennings said."(Stockton's wastewater) is part of the thousand and one cuts that are destroying this estuary," he said...Realtors say existing home sales fell in August (7:36 a.m.)http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080924/A_NEWS/80924003WASHINGTON (AP) — Sales of existing homes fell in August, but the number of unsold homes on the market also dropped sharply from the previous month’s record high. The National Association of Realtors said today that sales fell 2.2 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.91 million units, from an upwardly revised pace of 5.02 million in July. Sales had been expected to fall by 1.6 percent, according to economists surveyed by Thomson/IFR. There were 4.3 million unsold homes on the market, a 7 percent drop from the record set in July. It was the steepest drop in inventory since December 2006. At the current sales pace, it would take 10.4 months to sell all the properties. Until the inventory level is reduced to more normal levels, analysts say, the housing slump is likely to persist. Inventories are being driven higher by a massive wave of mortgage foreclosures.“We hope the downward trend in inventories continues,” said Lawrence Yun, the trade group’s chief economist. “Home prices will not stabilize as long as inventories remain high.” Median prices — the point at which half of the homes sold for less and half for more — fell 9.5 percent from a year ago to $203,100, the largest price decline on records dating to 1999. Sales were 10.7 percent below last year’s levels. The national decline in home values coupled with shaky lending standards during the real estate boom are the driving forces behind rising mortgage defaults and foreclosures. They have spurred a credit crisis that has shaken Wall Street to its core and caused the Bush administration to propose a $700 billion financial industry bailout. Yun said the trade group is sending a letter to Congress in support of the rescue plan. While buyers are pouncing on lower prices — especially in places like California, Florida and Nevada — sales are sluggish in formerly stable markets like the Pacific Northwest and Charlotte, N.C., he added.General Plan untouched by settlementDevelopment group's scare tactics have no basis in the facts...Ed Chavez...Guest Commentaryhttp://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080924/A_OPINION01/809240311/-1/A_OPINIONStockton recently entered into a settlement agreement to end a lawsuit filed by the Sierra Club over the city's 2035 General Plan.The city has agreed to draft a climate action plan within the next two years, design green building ordinances, support transit, look for opportunities to balance growth and continue to provide ways for development to occur while the climate action plan is being prepared.The City Council approved the settlement agreement Sept. 9 after hearing extensive testimony and protest from the development community at two consecutive council meetings.As a response to that action, some have chosen to form the appearance of a grass-roots organization by establishing the Alliance for Responsible Planning.Stockton has acted responsibly by preserving the General Plan, as written and adopted, and by taking steps to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help mitigate global warming issues.The General Plan is unchanged. No new ordinances have been adopted. Developers are afraid of what might happen. All the issues included in the settlement agreement will take place with full public participation and process. Members of the alliance are invited and encouraged to participate in the process."An open letter from the Alliance for Responsible Planning to the mayor, City Council and residents of Stockton," posted to the alliance's Web site, contains incorrect and inaccurate information. The letter asserts that the public was "shut out of the process," that "dramatic changes" have been made to Stockton's General Plan, and that the plan has been "significantly amended."A petition is being circulated asking for a referendum to be put before the voters. To acquire signatures, the alliance is using scare tactics, such as calling the General Plan a "job killer" and alleging threats of "cuts to police, fire and other essential city services." A referendum could result in a special election, with significant cost to taxpayers and the city.Rather than spending time, money and energy protesting and making false accusations, the Alliance for Responsible Planning should act responsibly. No changes have been made to the General Plan; not one word, map or table has been changed in the General Plan or its environmental impact report. The settlement agreement preserves the General Plan.Preparing Stockton's 2035 General Plan took five years, and members of the development community were included throughout the entire planning process. The Sierra Club filed suit over the 2035 General Plan immediately after the General Plan was adopted in December. Within weeks, the California attorney general stated an intent to join the Sierra Club's action against the city; discussions were initiated with the Attorney General's Office and, subsequently, with the Sierra Club. The resulting settlement agreement will avoid a costly legal battle with the Sierra Club and the California attorney general.Stockton has suffered economically from the stress of the housing market. The city's commitments to a climate action plan and green building ordinances have generated numerous inquiries from business interests outside the community.Stockton is one of the first cities in California to make a commitment to balancing growth and addressing global warming issues. This offers a tremendous opportunity to act globally and responsibly while developing new lines of business and attracting "green" industries to our community.San Francisco ChronicleCalifornia legislation would measure how much water is bottled...Felipe Fuentes, Mark SchlosbergFelipe Fuentes represents portions of Los Angeles in the state Assembly (39th district). Mark Schlosberg is the California director of Food & Water Watch, www.foodandwaterwatch.org.http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/09/24/ED1U133LLP.DTL&type=printableHow much of California's water is bottled? Legislation would let the public know.California is in the midst of a drought and could be on the verge of a water crisis. The past spring was among the driest on record and experts are predicting that this upcoming winter season will be similarly dry. There have been various proposals offered to address this situation ranging from dams, canals, conservation and underground storage. While some of these proposals are highly controversial, the state should also take basic steps to understand how and where our water is being used. Assembly Bill 2275 is a step in that direction. The legislation requires public disclosure of the source and volume of California's water that is bottled every year. This information is crucial to help policymakers make responsible decisions about the ways in which our most precious resource should be allocated.There are more than 100 bottled-water facilities operating in California. While each of these facilities report the amount of water extracted from groundwater sources to the state Department of Public Health, this information is neither compiled nor made available to local and state decision-makers who are responsible for water planning. This bill would allow them to have access to that information. The State Water Board, who is doing a full inventory of its water rights, is making a similar effort. AB2275 is needed for Californians to ensure that the state's water is responsibly allocated in ways that protect our environment, economy and our quality of life. The Department of Public Health estimates that more than 1 billion gallons of bottled water are sold in California each year, and it is unknown how much of the state's water is exported in plastic bottles.This specialty industry also pollutes our environment in several ways. First, bottled water contributes to global warming from the oil processed to create plastic bottles and truck them around the state. And most of those plastic bottles are not recycled and end up in our landfills.Bottled water facilities near Mount Shasta have divided local communities who are concerned about corporations such as Nestle, which owns Arrowhead Water, abusing their water resources. Finally, bottled water is rarely tested and is often just filtered tap water, although it can be a thousand times more expensive. Because of this, the California Legislature overwhelmingly passed AB2275 and the bill now awaits Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's signature. The bill is consistent with the governor's goals of making our water allocation as efficient and responsible as possible. While we may disagree on other solutions, we should all agree that more information about the way our water is used is a good thing. EPA ignores rocket fuel in water...Wednesday, September 24, 2008http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/09/24/ED92133AGN.DTL&type=printableWould you like a little rocket fuel with your water? The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Pentagon, White House and defense contractors don't mind if you do. In a slanted, dangerous decision, the EPA has brushed off the need to rid public water supplies of the rocket-fuel ingredient perchlorate. The chemical was dumped in the ground by the military and missile-makers years ago, and it has spread from bases and factories to taint wells and rivers across the country, including in California. This negligence has produced documented dangers: The chemical harms human thyroid glands and interferes with mental and physical development in fetuses and infants. Years of inaction by federal policymakers finally may be over, but with the wrong result.The EPA now says setting limits on perchlorate won't bring about a "meaningful opportunity for health risk reduction" so there's no need for a crack down. This copout was anything but a scientific decision. The Pentagon, which was worried about paying into the billions for cleanup costs, and private businesses such as Lockheed Martin and Aerojet argued the risks were overrated. They prevailed on the White House to rein in the federal environmental agency, which produced the toothless result.The decision may not be a total loss for clean water and public health. Sen. Barbara Boxer, the California Democrat who heads the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, has taken aim at the EPA decision, which is in draft form though nearly complete. A new president might also view the problem differently.Perchlorate contamination exists in some 35 states, where it has tainted 153 public water systems. The problem - and Washington's inaction - led California to pass its own standards that oblige water agencies to shut down wells found with high levels of the chemicals. If you live in San Bernardino, Riverside or Sacramento counties, your public officials have debated what to do while federal environmental watchdogs dozed.Washington needs to wake up to a serious problem that will take time, inconvenience and - yes - lots of money to solve. But that's only one way to measure the problem. Public health should be the top concern, an approach that's being lost in the shameful coverup of perchlorate's dangers.Rare frog, snake at center of golf dispute...Marisa Lagoshttp://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/09/24/BAHB133JRD.DTL&type=printableAn environmental group is accusing the city of San Francisco of illegally killing two federally protected animals that live at a publicly owned golf course, and is threatening to sue if city officials refuse to close the golf course and restore the coastal wetlands.The potential legal challenge over Sharp Park Golf Course - a city-owned, beachside course built around a lagoon in Pacifica - is the latest salvo in a continuing battle over the future of the city's five public courses. The announcement was made just days before a public meeting on the issue. The Center for Biological Diversity plans to file a claim today in an attempt to protect the endangered San Francisco garter snake and the threatened red-legged frog, which are native to the area. The claim accuses the Recreation and Park Department, which owns the 77-year-old golf course, of killing both animals through regular maintenance activities, including lawn mowing, the use of chemicals, the draining of water from the area and alteration of the habitat in other ways... The timing of the legal claim is tied to a continuing debate over the future of the city's golf courses, said Brent Plater, a conservationist who is working with the Center for Biological Diversity. Plater is also a member of a city task force formed to study the courses and whether any should be closed, leased out to private operators or changed in any other way. The task force will meet Monday to discuss a controversial report from a city-paid consultant who recommended leasing out all of the courses, and restoring Sharp Park to its original design. "As far as we know this is the last opportunity to shape public opinion before the Rec and Park Department goes behind the scenes to cook up some plan," Plater said. "The absurdity of (the consultant's recommendations) indicate there's a disconnect between the realities on the ground and the vision some people must have for that site."The city got in trouble three years ago for pumping water off of the golf course during winter flooding, a move that left frog eggs and tadpoles out to dry. Now, environmentalists say they have proof that frog eggs and tadpoles again were killed this year and that the garter snake is continually being harmed by maintenance activity, including being run over by lawnmowers when it attempts to sun itself. The snake, which has striking bright markings, was one of the first species to be designated as federally endangered. Its fate is linked to the threatened frog, one of the snakes' main food sources. Jeff Miller, a spokesman for the environmental group, said they view Sharp Park as one of the region's great restoration opportunities. He and Plater argue that the continuing drainage problems at the course cost the city tens of thousands of dollars a year, and that those issues are only going to get worse as sea levels rise. Miller also said that the closure of the course would allow for numerous recreational opportunities... Contra Costa TimesEPA drops ball again...Editorialhttp://www.contracostatimes.com/opinion/ci_10538875?nclick_check=1THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY has, once again, played ball with the White House while threatening public health. The latest case is about perchlorate, a component of rocket fuel that has been linked to thyroid problems in pregnant women, newborns and young children nationwide. The toxic component, also contained in fireworks, is showing up much too often in water supplies.Yet while the ingredient has been found in at least 395 sites in 35 states at levels high enough to pose health risks, the EPA, according to a report in the Washington Post, caved in to pressure from the Bush administration and the Pentagon, a la emission standards, and decided there's no need to eliminate perchlorate from drinking water.The EPA's conclusion in a draft claims the clean-up level for perchlorate would not result in a "meaningful opportunity for health risk reduction for persons served by public water systems." What the report doesn't say is this avoids potentially costing the government billions of dollars in cleanup costs and it keeps the Defense Department away from nasty lawsuits with upset contractors. Who wants to go through all of that trouble just for the sake of public health concerns? Like its lack of action with greenhouse gas emissions with intense pressure from Bush and the auto industry, the EPA is ignoring that this harmful ingredient is showing up mainly as a result of defense and aerospace activities, according to congressional investigators. The Defense Department used perchlorate for decades in testing missiles and rockets, and, had the EPA set standards, the Pentagon would've been held liable. The Pentagon has strongly denied it influenced the EPA. There was an example in Redlands where Lockheed Martin was responsible for polluting water supplies due to perchlorate contamination. What federal officials should be concerned with is the contamination isn't limited to water near testing sites. In 2004, the California Department of Food and Agriculture found perchlorate in 32 samples of milk taken in Alameda, San Joaquin and Sacramento counties.Levels of the chemical are being found in the Colorado River, a main water source for this state and 20 million people, due to contamination from Lake Mead via Las Vegas. It has also been found in lettuce and other foods.Due to EPA's inaction, California stepped up last year and thankfully laid down its own regulation, a drinking water standard of 6 parts per billion. Massachusetts also has its own regulation, but these two states cannot do it alone.The EPA said it will take final action by the end of the year, but we don't hold out much hope the agency will change its mind. We urge the next administration to take action and, with congressional support, force the EPA to set standards and clean up our water supplies. Press EnterpriseState activating drought water bank...JANET ZIMMERMANhttp://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/stories/PE_News_Local_S_waterbank24.2eb081.htmlFacing the third dry winter in a row, the state is activating a plan to transfer water supplies from Northern California to drought-plagued areas farther south, possibly staving off mandatory rationing, water officials said Tuesday.Consumers could get hit with higher water bills as a result.This would be the first use of the state's drought water bank since 1992, the end of six dry years that killed lawns and fish populations, drove down agricultural land values and forced severe rationing in some communities across the state.This summer, Gov. Schwarzenegger declared a drought statewide and a drought emergency in the Central Valley, where farmers have been devastated by the water shortage.Under the banking plan proposed by the Department of Water Resources, willing sellers in Northern California would agree to curtail their use of water so it can be shipped south via canals operated by the State Water Project or federal Central Valley Project.Most of the sellers are farmers north of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta who would be paid to idle crops or pump groundwater instead of using surface water, said Teresa Geimer, water bank coordinator.The action is a way to deal with court-ordered sanctions on the amount of water taken from the Delta, where fish populations are threatened by massive pumps that alter the water flow. The Delta supplies water for two-thirds of California's residents.The state has asked that water providers in dry regions express interest in using the bank by Oct. 15, Geimer said. The allotment could be enough to serve 1.2 million homes, although the supply is not guaranteed.Sellers have yet to set their prices, Geimer said."Once we know who wants to participate and how much water they want, we'll do our best to meet those needs," she said.Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which supplies 26 member agencies serving about 18 million people, probably will participate but hasn't decided how much water to ask for, spokesman Bob Muir said."It would help shore up our supplies as we head toward 2009," he said.The additional costs were figured into an overall 14.2 percent rate increase for MWD customers beginning in January. It's still unclear how the rate increase will affect household consumers. MWD already has imposed a mandatory 30 percent cut in supplies for agricultural users.Water officials have declared a water crisis and are urging extraordinary conservation and development of ways to recharge local groundwater supplies.The Delta isn't the only problem. Global warming has decreased the snowpack that feeds rivers, and imported water from the Colorado River has been severely curtailed because of an eight-year drought and increased demand.So far, local water districts have not imposed rationing for residential customers. They have managed without cutbacks by using reserves, such as Metropolitan's Diamond Valley Lake in Hemet, a six-month emergency supply now drawn down by about one-third, said Peter Odencrans, spokesman for Eastern Municipal Water District in Perris.John Rossi, general manager of Western Municipal Water District in Riverside, praised the water bank idea and said the water will ultimately be less expensive than Metropolitan's penalty rates that will be imposed on districts exceeding their allotments."It will help," Rossi said.Press-TelegramWater savings won't be enoughLONG BEACH: Supply crisis continues despite a 10-year low in usage...Kristopher Hansonhttp://www.presstelegram.com/news/ci_10542915Aggressive conservation has slashed water consumption in Long Beach by 1.6 billion gallons in the past year, dropping usage to a 10-year low, officials said Tuesday. Yet despite the success, further conservation efforts are needed to offset rising water rates and a steep decline in water supplies from a key Northern California source, experts say. "We need people to understand that we no longer have enough water going forward to even meet normal demand," said Ryan Alsop, government and public affairs director for the Long Beach Water Department. "There needs to be a paradigm shift in our relationship with water ... not only in Long Beach, but everywhere in the region." The city and region's looming dilemma - brought about by years of drought, a growing population and dwindling supply - was the subject of much debate among a few dozen of the state's top water management experts in Long Beach on Tuesday. The group met at a conference hosted by the Aquarium of the Pacific titled "Priming the Pump." Southern California's longtime dependence on outside water supplies has grown increasingly unpredictable since an August 2007 federal court ruling cut water imports by 30 percent to 18 million people in the lower half of the state. The ruling requires agencies to stop pumping water from a large swath of the San Joaquin Delta between December and June of each year to protect endangered fish species. Before the ruling, about 30 percent of Long Beach's total water supply came from the delta, Alsop said. Within weeks of the ruling, the city embarked on an aggressive - and sometimes quirky - campaign to promote water conservation among homes, businesses and government agencies. By early 2008, water consumption had dropped dramatically, easing the city's sudden water deficit and helping keep costs down as authorities searched for alternate supplies. "Our (campaign) goal is to make wasting water as socially unacceptable as lighting up a cigarette in a crowded room full of people," Alsop said. "It's been working so far, and I think it's put Long Beach way ahead of most every other city in the region, where conservation efforts have not been a big priority." Alsop said that although the water department increased water and sewer rates 15.8 percent beginning Oct. 1, further conservation will help minimize future rate hikes. "We purchase water on a (tiered rate), so the less we buy from wholesale agencies like (Metropolitan Water District), the less we pay per acre-foot," Alsop said. An acre-foot of water equals 325,000 gallons. The average person uses about 37,000 gallons annually. Charles Keine, an executive with the California Department of Water Resources, said state and local agencies need to improve water storage capabilities and repair or rebuild an ailing network of dams, levees and pipelines connecting the city's water sources to its cities and farms. And Long Beach was praised for its research into seawater desalination, a process by which ocean water is converted into clean drinking water. The city is currently working with the federal government to test new filtration and delivery systems at an East Long Beach site that may eventually produce 300,000 gallons each day. "Desalination taps into an inexhaustible supply of water and is a proven technology," Keine said. He argued that high costs associated with desalination, which have prevented widespread investment to date, should decline 10-15 percent in coming years. Los Angeles TimesUCLA economists issue gloomy California forecastThe state's housing sector will rebound next year, but its broader economy will struggle for months after that, the UCLA Anderson Forecast says...Marc Lifsher and Peter Y. Honghttp://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-fi-calecon24-2008sep24,0,7812754,print.storyHousing prices will hit bottom some time next year, but the California economy will be in distress for months to come, according to a closely followed UCLA economic report scheduled to be released today.In a series of dire predictions echoed by experts throughout the state, the UCLA Anderson Forecast says that unemployment will continue to increase, consumer spending will decline and tax revenues will plummet."We can expect 'doldrums' to be the operative word describing the California economy over the next 18 to 24 months," said Jerry Nickelsburg, an author of the quarterly report on the national and state economies.Government layoffs and job losses in sectors such as retail, he said, will offset any benefit from the settling of real estate prices.Economists and business owners said the UCLA forecast -- which predicted the current housing bubble -- matches their expectations and the experiences of Californians.The proposed $700-billion federal bailout of the financial system will have little effect on these longer-term trends, several economists said.The massive government relief plan, if implemented, will stop the downturn in housing, said Stephen Levy, director and senior economist at the Center for the Continuing Study of the California Economy in Palo Alto, "but is unlikely in the short term to reverse the sharp falloff in wealth and the loss of jobs that's already occurred."The problem is that the housing crash caused severe job losses in construction and finance, and pulled down property values and consumer spending, leading to a shortage of tax revenue for the state. So even if housing levels out, it will take months or years to repair the damage in other sectors."By mid-2009 we don't see [construction] being a drag on the California economy anymore," Nickelsburg said. "Other services and government will become a drag."State and local governments are now seeing property tax collections fall because of lower property values and foreclosures. Sales tax revenues are also slipping as strapped individuals spend less.Government employment declined by 6,000 jobs from July to August, according to state figures. Retail jobs are also being cut in areas such as clothing, electronics, sporting goods and building and garden supplies, the UCLA report said.There could be other looming dangers in the economy, said Sung Won Sohn, an economist with the Martin V. Smith School of Business and Economics at Cal State Channel Islands. Among them are commercial building, high-tech manufacturing, logistics and warehousing.Other economists point to travel, tourism and entertainment, all areas in which people have reduced spending following the housing crash.The forecast also predicts that increased government intervention in the economy will spur inflation and result in higher taxes -- no matter which candidate is elected in November.The forecasters declined to use the term recession to describe the situation at either the state or the national level.Edward Leamer, also an author of the report, said the housing turmoil did so much damage in large part because the economy is too dependent on consumer spending."The low rates of interest, the innovations in the financial markets and the tax cuts have turned us into a consumption-loving, debt-ridden, foreign-depending society," he wrote in the forecast.As homeowners lost equity in their homes -- or lost them altogether -- they were no longer able to borrow against the properties to pay for remodeling jobs, vacations, college tuition or other expenses.Massive defaults on home mortgages also caused banks to tighten lending, not only to individuals but to businesses as well. Businesses unable to finance new ventures have in turn laid off workers and unemployment in the state has climbed to 7.7%, with 240,000 jobs lost in the last year...Quick passage of a bailout package could keep California's economy from free fall, but it's unlikely to bolster business enough to create the tens of thousands of new jobs needed to stimulate growth, several economists said."Nothing they are doing on Wall Street is going to produce jobs in any short time," said Levy, the Palo Alto economist. "We're in for a long, rough time in terms of jobs and unemployment."New York TimesVulture Investors Making Plans to Snag Weak Banks on the Cheap...ANDREW ROSS SORKIN and ERIC DASHhttp://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/24/business/24bank.html?ref=business&pagewanted=printEven before the ink dries on a proposed $700 billion bailout for the financial industry, Wall Street players have begun jockeying to be the first ones to snap up distressed investments on the cheap. As they try to make sense of how a government bailout would play, vulture investors are combing through balance sheets of possible targets that could run into trouble if banks start calling back loans to businesses and the economy worsens. In the beaten-down banking industry, private equity investors are scrambling to find investment opportunities in downtrodden community and regional banks that can be nursed back to profitability in a turnaround. In the coming weeks and months, these investors are betting the opportunities will become clearer. They are preparing for a field day for deals, not only in the financial industry, but in the industrial, retail and other sectors where the flagging economy and tight credit will push more companies to the brink. In a sign that the climate of fear that had frozen some big deals may be thawing, Warren E. Buffett announced plans Tuesday to invest $5 billion in Goldman Sachs. Analysts also questioned whether Morgan Stanley, the venerable investment bank, could still become a takeover target even after it secured a huge investment on Tuesday by Mitsibushi UFJ Financial Group.“There is a growing crowd of hedge funds and private equity firms and stronger banks that are shopping. They are all going to bid against each other,” said Christopher Whalen, a managing partner at Institutional Risk Analytics. “A lot of my clients see financials in 2009 and 2010 as being a huge home run,” he added. To be sure, it is still unclear how firms that buckled under the weight of toxic mortgage assets will be treated under the plan of Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. to stabilize the housing market — the root of the crisis that has left a litter of banks and companies scattered across the economic landscape for vulture buyers to pick through. Indeed, Mr. Paulson and Ben S. Bernanke, chairman of the Federal Reserve, spent much of the day in tense testimony before skeptical members of the Senate Banking Committee. The outlines of the emergency plan appeared uncertain after lawmakers raised concerns about its size and scope, driving the stock market sharply down for a second day. As long as that continues, the fate of several big banks whose fortunes may yet be altered by the final contours of the rescue package remain in flux. Washington Mutual, one of the nation’s biggest and most troubled financial institutions, remains locked in a dance with several suitors, all hestitant about a union until they can understand more clearly just how the government’s plan to siphon soured assets out of banks like WaMu will work. The banks bidding for Washington Mutual — like J. P. Morgan, Citigroup, Banco Santander and Wells Fargo — are trying to calculate how much they should pay for a company whose losses may eventually reach $30 billion. The sum may also depend on how many tainted assets Washington Mutual might dump into a government bailout fund, and what price the government or private parties might pay for those assets. Also unclear is whether the scope of assets to be salvaged by the government will include commercial real estate and credit card loans, on top of troubled home loans and mortgage-related securities. Washington Mutual faces several pressure points that suggest a deal will need to be carried out soon if the bank — considered one of Wall Street’s weakest links after the failure of Lehman Brothers last week — is to avoid outright collapse. Such a move could cost taxpayers billions more because it would virtually wipe out the federal deposit insurance fund. The bank, which grew into a behemoth over the last decade through a series of acquisitions that proved its undoing, has seen its name in headlines alongside other troubled giants of the financial world, including Lehman Brothers and American International Group. To attract customer deposits, Washington Mutual has been offering 5 percent for one-year certificates of deposit — exceeding the 4 percent that other weakened banks are offering. Despite WaMu’s problems, its suitors are eager to gain access to a lucrative consumer base that it has built throughout the country. J. P. Morgan wants to gain a foothold in California, where Washington Mutual has plenty of branches, a move that would further entrench it in key markets like Chicago and New York. Citigroup is interested in access to a deposit-gathering franchise in several big markets, which would raise its overall number of branches. Banco Santander would expand its presence in the United States. Wells Fargo, already a big player in California, would prevent J. P. Morgan and other potential rivals from encroaching on its territory. Under its former chief executive Kerry Killinger, the Washington Mutual dove into a particularly risky part of the mortgage business, making option adjustable rate mortgage arm loans to the least creditworthy borrowers, who were permitted to pay only a portion of the principle and interest. While the new chief executive, Alan Fishman, had more of Wall Street’s confidence, it has become too late to resolve the ailing bank’s problems, analysts said. Some analysts had even asked whether TPG, formerly Texas Pacific Group, which together with other investors had put $7 billion into WaMu, might add more capital. But that generally seemed unlikely. The group had invested roughly $8.75 a share and was well under water on that investment while the government announced a major overhaul that might take the troubled loans off Washington Mutual’s balance sheet. Nevertheless, shareholders have a stake in a company that has great appeal to other banks because of its wide depositor base which could provide stable capital to another buyer.CNN MoneyJackals circle Washington MutualPotential buyers swarm the troubled thrift, waiting for Congress to decide what actions to take in the massive bank bailouthttp://money.cnn.com/2008/09/23/news/companies/wamu_rescue.ap/index.htmNEW YORK (AP) -- As lawmakers in Congress hash out the details of the government's proposed rescue plan for troubled banks, potential suitors of ailing thrift Washington Mutual Inc. are waiting to pounce.Last week, a sale of the nation's largest savings and loan seemed imminent, as Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS, Fortune 500) was brought in to assist with a transaction and a major investor removed a potential roadblock to a sale.But after the government announced Friday it was formulating a plan to help financial institutions remove billions of bad mortgage debt from their books, momentum toward an acquisition seemed to halt, with the banking industry waiting for congressional action on the proposal.Industry experts say the government's proposed bailout could work in WaMu's favor."It's not like WaMu is dead and buried," Roy Smith, a professor of finance at the Stern School of Business at New York University, said in an interview. "If anything, it looks better than it did last week."Though few details have been disclosed, the new plan for the government to buy up to $700 billion in toxic mortgage-related assets could have a positive effect for the Seattle-based bank by halting the price fall of those assets - which are at the heart of WaMu's problems."I thought a sale [of Washington Mutual] was going to be difficult until this proposal," said Fox-Pitt Kelton analyst Howard Shapiro.Still, potential suitors remain on the sidelines, likely waiting for the government to make the first move on WaMu in an effort to get the best possible deal."The government doesn't want to take them over; no question about that," said Smith. The thrift's future "is largely left to the bidders in the auction that is being organized for it."Potential buyers are also waiting to see how much WaMu, like other banks, would have to write down the cost of its soured loans, and the impact it would have on its already thin balance sheet.JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM, Fortune 500), Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC, Fortune 500), Citigroup Inc. (C, Fortune 500), HSBC (HBC), Banco Santander (STD) and Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD) have all been mentioned as possible suitors. A representative at Banco Santander was not immediately available for comment Tuesday. The other banks declined to comment.FDIC spokesman Andrew Gray also declined to comment on any possible action the agency might be taking with regard to Washington Mutual, and bank officials have refused to address market rumors and speculation about a sale.Federal regulators have the authority to push the management of troubled banks and thrifts toward seeking buyers, with the threat of closure at their disposal.At the same time, a takeover by the FDIC would allow another bank to come in and buy the deposits and branches of Washington Mutual - considered the most valuable part of the thrift - while the government would have to sell off its holdings of soured loans.The FDIC, in general, is responsible "for ensuring a least-cost resolution" of a troubled bank, said Michael Stevens, senior vice president for regulatory policy at the Conference of State Bank Supervisors.Enactment of a bailout plan "could alleviate some of the pressure" on balance sheets of problem banks generally, but it may come too late for financial institutions whose capital is too far eroded to be able to effectively pursue sales of assets, Stevens said.WaMu has seen its stock price plummet 76% this year, in the face of mounting losses tied to troubled mortgage holdings.Last Wednesday, private equity firm TPG, which led a $7 billion investment in the bank in April, waived a provision of its agreement that would have required a potential buyer or other major investor to pay TPG hundreds of millions of dollars in addition to whatever money was injected into WaMu. The move was seen as helping a possible sale or capital investment.On Monday, Moody's Investors Service downgraded the financial strength rating of WaMu's main bank subsidiary to "E," its lowest rating, saying the thrift's capital is insufficient to absorb its mortgage losses."It is important to note that Moody's rating actions do not affect the safety of customer deposits, which are insured up to the limits allowed by the FDIC," the bank said in a statement.Shares of WaMu (WM, Fortune 500) slipped 13 cents, or 3.9%, Tuesday, closing at $3.20.Associated PressLead financial services lawmaker defends trading...BEN EVANS...9-23-08http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5jwYW3HPsLcS2RM0bvnlbRHrftszAD93CIE700WASHINGTON (AP) — The top Republican on the House Financial Services Committee struck paydirt on a stock option last year after betting that a Chinese advertising company would jump in value.In a single transaction on Dec. 10, Rep. Spencer Bachus of Alabama made up to $15,000 off an investment he had held for just two weeks, according to his congressional financial disclosure statement. He sold on the same day that the company, Focus Media Holding Ltd., got a market bounce off its announcement that it would acquire a competitor.The trade was among dozens made in 2007 by the powerful congressman, whose public statements alone can influence markets. Most of his trades were short-term options in which Bachus bet that a stock price would rise or fall and made a quick profit or loss accordingly. Sometimes, he made several trades in the same week, supplementing his $165,200 annual congressional salary with up to $160,000 for the year.Most members of Congress hold some stocks or mutual funds. Bachus' rapid-fire trades, however, are unusual for a leading member of Congress, particularly one with such a key market role.As Congress prepares for a massive Wall Street bailout, legal experts say Bachus' activities raise questions about where his allegiances lie and how he spends his time."Is he working for the American people or working on his securities accounts?" asked Mercer Bullard, a securities law professor at the University of Mississippi and a former attorney with the Securities and Exchange Commission. "I think it's totally inappropriate ... you cannot as a member of the House Financial Services Committee provide a truly unconflicted point of view if you are actively trading in the markets."Bachus declined to answer questions for this story, including whether he has actively traded during the recent market turmoil. His office issued a statement that said: "All of my financial transactions comply with the law and House ethics rules and are fully disclosed as required."His spokesman also said the eight-term congressman from outside Birmingham doesn't invest in banking or other financial sector companies over which his committee has oversight.The committee has its hand in just about every policy issue involving the financial sector, delving recently into credit card regulation, hedge fund reform and efforts to shore up mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.As the top Republican on the committee, Bachus has been heavily involved in government negotiations over the ongoing mortgage crisis and its fallout on Wall Street. Last week, for example, Bachus was among the congressional leaders briefed before the Bush administration announced it would bail out the massive insurer American International Group Inc., whose failure could have sent markets into free fall."The problem is that the temptations are just too great," said James Cox, a corporate law expert at Duke University who has testified on insider trading before Congress. "We get very upset about baseball players and other sports players who gamble ... because we're worried about the temptation that they might bet on their own games. I think this is the same problem."It's impossible to pinpoint just how much Bachus earned from his trading because lawmakers are required to report only broad ranges of outside income on their annual financial disclosure statements.Bachus' 2007 report shows he sometimes held an investment for just a day or two before selling it. Most of his trades were short-term "puts" or "calls" — transactions similar to short selling that involve speculating that a stock's value will rise or fall.While short selling has been temporarily banned, stock options have not.Although he reported no stock deals last year involving banks or insurers, he traded frequently in index funds, some with financial-sector components.In March, Bachus made between $15,000 and $50,000 off an option he had held for a month that predicted that an S&P 500 stock index would drop. In January, he made up to $1,000 off a two-week investment involving Research In Motion Ltd., the Canadian maker of the BlackBerry e-mail device that has heavily lobbied Congress on issues relating to a patent lawsuit.Other trades involved Exxon Mobil Corp., ConocoPhillips, Sony Corp., Carmax Inc., Apple Inc., Palm Inc., PetroChina Co. and Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp.While some executive agencies restrict their leaders' investments to prevent conflicts of interest, lawmakers have given themselves broad freedom to invest in the markets. Some say Congress is involved in so many issues that it would be impossible to establish meaningful rules without banning investing altogether.Cox and Bullard said it's one thing for a member of Congress to own long-term investments and quite another for a lawmaker to actively trade. They noted that most financial advisers caution against short-term investing and said only people who spend most of their time watching the markets could do so with success."If he were my representative in Congress, I would be irritated that he has the time to do this," Cox said. "I don't have that kind of time in my life and I don't have those kinds of responsibilities."  -------------------------------------------------------------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