2-11-09

 
2-11-09
Merced Sun-Star
WestAmerica Bank likely buying up County Bank's lawsuits
Merced firm was involved in several court actions...SCOTT JASON
http://www.mercedsunstar.com/167/v-print/story/684203.html
Westamerica, as it absorbs County Bank's business, will also inherit the failed institution's pending lawsuits, many of which stem from the loans that led to its downfall.
County Bank, which was the only publicly traded company based in Merced, posted a $96 million loss for 2008.
On Friday, the state's Department of Financial Institutions shut it down and gave control to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., which in turn passed it on to Westamerica.
County Bank leaders have blamed the firm's demise on sour commercial and real estate loans. When the deals went into default, it had to set aside more and more cash to deal with the losses.
Bank managers sought to settle the bad loans before heading to court, but several times that didn't work.
Any pending lawsuits will pass through the FDIC before being taken over by Westamerica, said Fresno attorney Charles L. Doerksen, who's represented County Bank in several cases.
Like deposits and loans, court cases are listed as bank assets, he said. FDIC officials asked him Saturday to give them status reports for the handful of cases remaining.
County Bank settled one of its largest lawsuits in December, though other ones from failed developments throughout the Valley are still active and headed to trial.
County Bank -- as it teetered on the edge -- was interested in settling the cases, which would have helped its bottom line. "Any time you have a bank having issues, you want to get the bad loans off your books," Doerksen said Tuesday.
Westamerica, on the other hand, may be less willing to strike deals. He's unsure whether he'll continue on the cases or be replaced by a different attorney.
The Merced Paseo project, which was planned to be a 144-home subdivision, was one of the cases settled. Details of the compromise were unavailable, though Doerksen said the land and six model homes that were built will be transferred to Westamerica.
In February 2007, Todd Bender, through the Merced Paseo LLC, took out a $9.5 million loan to buy and develop the 17 acres at G Street and Bellevue Road, according to filings with the Merced County Superior Court.
He also took a $5 million loan to build the houses.
The housing market had cooled. The number of foreclosures was just starting to increase.
That April, County Bank demanded that Bender pay down $7 million of the loan because it had reappraised the project for about $1 million.
The sharp decline in value triggered a clause in the contract that required Bender to repay the loan sooner, a County Bank manager wrote.
Bender's attorney, Don Drummond, maintained that County Bank's cutting off the balance of the loan doomed the project and that it prematurely called in payments.
In a filing from December 2008, Drummond alleges that County Bank's purchase of The California Stockmen's Bank diluted its tangible equity, jeopardizing its financial condition.
To shore up more cash, it began collecting loans more aggressively. In the banks final weeks, it continued foreclosing on loans, Drummond said. "It was very desperate for cash," he said.
Drummond may be filing more lawsuits in the wake of County Bank's demise, though he declined to discuss any specifics.
This time, however, it'll be Westamerica's problem.
Westamerica has history of prudent decisions
Bay Area firm hasn't been caught up in roiling economy...JONAH OWEN LAMB
http://www.mercedsunstar.com/167/v-print/story/684185.html
The owner of now defunct County Bank, Westamerica Bancorporation, shares much in common with its recent acquisition.
The San Rafael-based bank opened its doors five years before County Bank, in 1972, and has roots in lending to local small businesses and farmers.
That's where the similarities end. Unlike County Bank and many other failed financial institutions, Westamerica Bank held a conservative tack through much of the boom times in recent years.
That fiscal seamanship has kept it afloat in today's rough financial waters.
"Our stock price has performed well in these weak economic times," said Rob Thorson, the company's chief financial officer.
The acquisition of County Bank is part of a pattern of expansion for Westamerica, yet it is an unprecedented move. As the company's first failed bank purchase, the move is irregular, but as a part of a three-decade trend of growth is business as usual.
But consolidation is the bank's only bow to industry trends. Otherwise, its conservative approach to banking has gone against the grain.
With more than $4 billion in assets and 86 branches across Northern and Central California, Westamerica, the seventh-largest California-based commercial bank, according to its Web site, has weathered the financial storm quite well.
Westamerica was born when three regional north Bay Area banks consolidated, one with a charter that went back to 1886, according to a company profile by St. James Press. The first National Bank of Mendocino, the Bank of Sonoma and the Bank of Marin constituted the original triad of banks that came together in 1972.
The cautious growth of the bank from then on expanded one county at a time. By the early '80s it had acquired banks in Napa and Solano counties. What followed in the next two decades was further acquisitions of more than seven additional banks, spreading its presence into the Central Valley and the foothills.
For much of this time from the late 1980s, current chairman and president David Payne, whose grandfather was chairman of one of the bank's acquisitions, has been at the bank's helm.
Thorson attributes the bank's measured approach to lending as a direct result of Payne's personal outlook. "It's conservative practices; it's being very careful," he said.
Thorson said the bank moved to buy County Bank because it wanted more of a market share in the Central Valley. While it just bought a failed bank, Westamerica hasn't emerged from the financial troubles unscathed.
Westamerica saw a loss in 2008 of $57 million from its Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac stocks, which plummeted. But, still, it made a profit of $60 million in 2008.
Thorson says it didn't fall prey to the same trap as much of the rest of the industry for several reasons. The bank kept its loan-to-debt ratio higher than other banks. For every dollar it had on hand, it only lent out 75 cents. The usual ratio in the industry, said Thorson, is to loan out more than you have.
When it bought securitized mortgage bundles -- the ones many other banks lost out on -- it acted prudently. The bank basically did the same thing that it always did when lending: check for good credit and make sure that people had put down payments for home loans.
"We did a lot of due diligence in looking at (securities)," he said.
Analyst Aaron Deer, quoted in the San Francisco Chronicle, said Westamerica "is regarded as being one of the absolute best underwriters in the industry. They have been extremely cautious and selective in the types of loans they have underwritten over the past several years."
But one trend Westamerica has been a part of, admitted Thorson, is banking consolidation, which contributes to an ever-centralizing banking system.
Shawn Kantor, professor of economics at UC Merced, said consolidation is very much a microcosm of what's happening on the national level:
"So we have tremendous financial institutions that the feds have had to bail out or force other banks to take over. So we are sort of getting the same thing here. The fundamental problem is not being addressed -- the creation of bigger banks -- so we still face the potential problem down the road."
But Westamerica's growth hasn't always been good for everyone.
In the company's profile by St. James Press, Westamerica's history of mergers didn't always augur well for the employees of the banks they bought. "Westamerica shut branches which did not meet profitability and growth benchmarks," the book said. "Acquired and existing branches which overlapped were closed. Back-office operations throughout the system also were consolidated."
That doesn't exactly make calm bedtime reading for former County Bank employees.
Modesto Bee
Environmentalists threaten suit over NV water pact...KATHLEEN HENNESSEY, Associated Press Writer
http://www.modbee.com/state_wire/v-print/story/595186.html
LAS VEGAS -- An environment group said Tuesday that it's preparing to sue two federal agencies, claiming that plans to pump groundwater in southeastern Nevada imperil two protected species.
The Center of Biological Diversity sent a formal notification of its intent to sue to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Bureau of Land Management. The nonprofit advocacy group alleges the water agreements violate the Endangered Species Act by jeopardizing the habitats of Moapa dace, an endangered fish, and the threatened desert tortoise.
The group's spokesman, Rob Mrowka, said it hopes the agencies will avoid a lawsuit by agreeing to talks.
At issue is a series of agreements that helped secure water for development, including the massive Coyote Springs community, 50 miles north of Las Vegas. The new desert city is the brainchild of developer Harvey Whittemore. Promoters say it could hold has many as 150,000 new homes.
The agreements include a 2006 plan for groundwater withdrawals affecting the upper Muddy River. Also in dispute are two other plans that divvy up water from the Kane Springs Valley and portions of Lincoln County.
"Taken together, the projects approved through these actions may lead to the extinction of the Moapa dace and destruction of its remaining habitat. ... and will both destroy and adversely modify desert tortoise critical habitat," the letter said.
BLM spokeswoman Kirsten Cannon said the bureau had no immediate comment because it had not received the letter.
Bob Williams, field supervisor at the Fish and Wildlife Service, said the agency had ensured there was "adequate protection" for the Moapa dace and desert tortoise in the agreements.
The Moapa dace spawns in the warm pools that feed the Muddy River and was listed as an endangered species in 1967. Their ranks slipped below 500 last year, according to The Center of Biological Diversity.
The 2006 memorandum and subsequent plans promised additional money for research and monitoring of the effect of test pumping on the fish habitat. If the springs' flow falls below a certain level, pumping could be ceased, Williams said.
The Center of Biological Diversity argued the barometer used to trigger a halt to the pumping isn't based on adequate research. Mrowka said an immediate stop to pumping wouldn't necessarily prevent the endangered fish from being harmed.
"There's a lag period," he said.
Williams said the agency had taken that concern into account.
"It's hard to predict, we don't know," Williams said of how pumping would affect the fish. "But we're putting in a lot more monitoring wells so that we can see it coming as opposed to just knowing when it's there."
The Center of Biological Diversity also argued the agencies did not consider the effect climate change could have on available water. Climate change, decreased precipitation and the proposed groundwater pumping could lead to a drying of the region. That would jeopardize the livelihood of the desert tortoise, as well as the Moapa dace, the group argued.
Williams said climate change "was not on my radar" at the time of the 2006 agreement. He said its effects were taken into account in the Kane Springs Valley and Coyote Springs plans.
Calif steps up effort to halt invasive species...TRACIE CONE, Associated Press Writer
http://www.modbee.com/state_wire/v-print/story/595121.html
FRESNO, Calif. -- State officials said Tuesday they're stepping up efforts to banish invasive species, including Quagga mussels that clog cooling pipe systems on the Colorado River and Asian citrus psyllids that threaten Southern California orange trees.
"One of the greatest challenges to human health, to our environment and to our food supply comes from invasive species," said A.G. Kawamura, secretary of the state Department of Food and Agriculture. "As our borders open up to more international trade, we have to be on top alert."
At the World Ag Expo in Tulare, Kawamura announced the formation of the Invasive Species Council, which includes secretaries of five state agencies that previously had dealt with the environmental problem within their own bureaucracies: Mike Chrisman of the Natural Resources Agency, Linda Adams of the state Environmental Protection Agency, Kim Belshe of the state Health and Human Services Agency and Matt Bettenhausen of the California Emergency Management Agency.
Nonnative bugs and plants cause at least $138 billion in losses nationwide each year to agriculture, power and water delivery systems and forests, according to a 1999 Cornell University study cited by state officials as the most recent available figure.
The council aims to streamline duplicated efforts. For instance, CDFA, which inspects border crossings for pests on fruits and vegetables, also could check boats for Quaggas, a task currently performed by the California Department of Fish & Game.
"This is about most efficiently using our resources," said Kawamura, who will head the effort.
Officials are most worried about the potential economic impact that would occur if the psyllid and Quagga are carried to other parts of the state.
The psyllid can transmit the citrus greening disease, which has killed tens of thousands of acres of trees in Florida and Brazil. San Joaquin Valley growers, the largest players in the state's $1.1 billion citrus industry, have been bracing for the pest to cross the Tehachapi Mountains from San Diego and Imperial counties.
The Zebra mussel, a relative of the Quagga that plagues the Great Lakes, cost the power industry $3.1 billion to fight in the 1990s, state officials say. Now the Ukranian Quagga - already is established in lakes Mead and Havasu, where they damage hardware in Hoover Dam's hydroelectric operations - has migrated to the Colorado River Aqueduct.
Mussels are transported on boat hulls and in ballasts, often by recreational users unaware of the danger the fingernail-sized mollusks. In November, officials began mandatory inspections of boats launching into Lake Tahoe to prevent invasive mussels from becoming established there. The Fish and Game Department has trained a dog to sniff out the Quagga on boat hulls and trailers.
"If the Quagga gets into the Central Valley Water Project," CDFA spokesman Mike Jarvis said of the federal water delivery system, "you can kiss the transport of water goodbye."
The council will collaborate with scientists, environmental groups, landowners and industries harmed by invasive species. The goal is a "rapid response plan" to focus attention from all the agencies on the most urgent species poised to cause the greatest economic, public health or environmental hardship.
"I think back to the olive fruit fly and how we had a chance to eradicate it two decades ago, but we walked away," Kawamura said, referring to the pest that now exists in 41 counties. "These are the kinds of challenges we are going to face more and more."
Funding will come from pest eradication already in agency budgets and, Kawamura hopes, from the federal Farm Bill, which included measures to fight invasive species.
Other threats the council will be studying include: the Glassy-Winged Sharpshooter, which transmits the fatal Pierce's Disease to grape vines; the Asian gypsy moth and longhorneed beetle, which threaten hardwood forests; animal diseases such as exotic Newcastle and avian influenza, deadly to birds; Yellow Star Thistle, which kills horses and has choked 10 million acres of pastureland; and exotic fish infestations of lakes, streams and waterways.
UC Merced poised to give us doctors, nurses quickly...John Garamendi
http://www.modbee.com/opinion/community/v-print/story/595604.html
In early January, I proposed an accelerated medical education program at the University of California at Merced designed to prepare high-quality doctors and nurses for the San Joaquin Valley. At the UC regents' meeting last week, President Mark Yudof set in motion a process to create the medical education program at UC Merced.
The accelerated program is one major step that must be taken to address the serious health care problems of the San Joaquin Valley, where the state's highest childhood asthma rates, premature births and a serious shortage of medical services exist. The valley has 31 percent fewer primary-care doctors and 51 percent fewer specialists and nurses than California as a whole. An estimated $845 million is lost annually in the region when valley patients drive out of the area to get their medical care.
Unlike the other five UC medical schools, where research competes with clinical practice, UC Merced's priority should be educating and preparing new doctors and nurses to fill the needs of the valley.
Entering freshman, recruited from San Joaquin Valley high schools and beyond, would immediately begin their medical education. The program would run year-round, with no summer vacations.
In the lower division, the class work would be the same for students intending to become nurses or doctors. The upper division would divide students into a nursing track and an MD track. The program would be fully integrated with regional community colleges.
In just three years, the nursing students and medical students could graduate with bachelor of science degrees.
For students on the MD track, all the course work necessary to enter clinical rotations in area hospitals and clinics would be completed. That would put them two to three years ahead of the traditional path. After the clinical rotations, students would be directed to the excellent hospitals and clinics in the area for their residencies.
UC Merced, which already has many of the courses for the first two years of the program, could expand its program by tapping into the resources provided by community colleges in the region.
The cost should be similar to the normal cost of education for undergraduates. The labs and facilities are already at UC Merced, at the UC San Francisco medical complex in Fresno, and in many area community colleges.
There is a great need in the San Joaquin Valley for specialized research on community health, public health and diseases more often found here. This type of research is not expensive and can be the unique and valuable service of UC Merced.
As the campus grows and matures, the medical and nursing programs can follow the path of other UC medical schools and develop into world-class research institutions.
Let's empower UC Merced to become a magnet school offering the most cost-effective high quality medical education in the nation, while at the same time offering homegrown solutions to the valley's health-care crisis.
It's time for the valley to heal itself.
Garmendi is lieutenant governor of California.
Patterson Irrigator
Planners give general plan revision another look...John Saiz 
http://pattersonirrigator.com/content/view/2893/42/
The Patterson Planning Commission on Thursday got its last crack at revisions to the city’s general plan before consultants draft a report that will become the basis for the plan.
Commissioners focused on a draft policy document that laid out philosophies and programs that would guide development in and around the city. Commissioners and audience members raised several concerns, but for the most part the draft document went forward without significant changes.
Recently appointed commissioner Ron West raised the most concerns about the draft policy document. He noted that there were no specific plans outlining traffic circulation.
West suggested that a freeway bypass to the north of the city be included in the plan. Planning consultant David Moran of Crawford Multari & Clark Associates said an environmental impact report that will be drafted in the coming months will explore traffic circulation, including the optimal location for a bypass.
Keith Schneider of Keystone Corp. said a new agricultural preservation measure proposed in the document made him feel as if someone strapped him to a Dark Ages torture device. Each time he read a new line, Schneider said, it felt like “someone was turning the wheel and pulling it tighter.”
Schneider’s gripe was against a measure that would require people who intend to develop on agricultural land to purchase a matching piece of land and put it in a land bank.
While the very idea of a land match was torture for Schneider, commissioner Elias Funez didn’t think a distant land bank would be an appropriate way to preserve local ag land. He suggested the land bank should be closer to Patterson, perhaps including some of the kit fox habitat that has been identified in the immediate vicinity.
Moran said that while onsite mitigation might be an option, the Department of Fish and Wildlife typically prefers to have developers purchase land from existing land banks.
The consultants will now take the commission’s comments — along with proposals from the General Plan Advisory Committee and comments from public forums — and draft an environmental impact report, a lengthy and expensive document that will eventually be the basis for the city’s revised general plan.
Ultimately, the Patterson City Council will have to approve the revised plan, but there will likely be numerous bureaucratic hurdles the plan will have to clear before the council gives a final thumbs-up.
Fresno Bee
John Krebs Wilderness to finally take root...Michael Doyle / Bee Washington Bureau
http://www.fresnobee.com/local/v-print/story/1190624.html
WASHINGTON - The House as early as today will extend a rare honor to former Fresno-area congressman John Krebs, as lawmakers are expected to give final approval to establishing a 39,740-acre John Krebs Wilderness in the southern Sierra Nevada mountains.
Few of the nation's other 700-plus designated wildernesses have been named for living individuals. The 82-year-old Krebs, though, has persistent allies on his side and some interesting history in his corner.
"I feel humbled," Krebs said in a telephone interview Tuesday, "but I'd be less than honest if I didn't also tell you I'm very pleased for my family."
Krebs explains: During his time in Congress, and before that in his other public offices, he was frequently absent, traveling or late for family functions. Now, he figures, recognition for one is recognition for all.
The new wilderness designation that will go to the White House for President Barack Obama's signature covers land already protected as part of Sequoia National Park. Neither visitors nor nearby property owners will see much difference in land management. Nonetheless, the new wilderness serves as symbol and as case study.
It's a symbol of respect for a former congressman who lost his job because of the protections he won a generation ago for the Mineral King Valley. And it's a case study of the time, persistence and negotiations that legislating demands.
Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer introduced the first John Krebs Wilderness effort in May 2002. It would have designated 68,480 acres as protected wilderness.
Since then, the wilderness size has been cut by 42%. Mineral King Valley cabin owners have carved themselves out of the wilderness area. Commercial horse-packing operations have been protected. The wilderness bill itself has been folded into a 1,248-page public lands package.
Some of the revisions alarmed some park advocates, including within the park service itself, but in the end the compromises were the price lawmakers paid.
"That's the legislative process," Krebs said. "It's like trying cases; you win some, you lose some."
The wilderness bill was originally scheduled for a vote today. While it might be postponed several days, its final passage is certain. The Senate already approved it on a 73-21 margin.
An attorney, one-time Fresno County planning commissioner and then county supervisor, Krebs served in the House of Representatives from 1975 through 1978. As a congressman, the achievement for which he is most known was the inclusion of Mineral King Valley in Sequoia and Kings Canyon national parks.
The park status established in 1978 fended off the Walt Disney Co., which had plans for a big ski resort in the region. It also drew conservative opposition, well-funded by the local building industry among others. This led directly to Krebs' defeat in 1978 by Republican challenger Charles "Chip" Pashayan, who attacked Krebs for having cost the San Joaquin Valley jobs. Pashayan's congressional seat is now held by Rep. Jim Costa, D-Fresno, who worked for Krebs in 1975 and 1976.
"He took on a lot of interest groups at the time," Costa said Tuesday, "and it showed a great deal of political courage."
Costa originally proposed naming a Sierra Nevada peak after the former congressman, but renaming geographic features presents difficulties, including a standard policy that the individual being honored be dead for at least five years.
When first introduced, the Krebs Wilderness bill faced a conservative chairman of the House Resources Committee, Tracy Republican Richard Pombo, who was not inclined to approve new wilderness areas.
Even after Democrats regained congressional control in 2007, negotiations grew occasionally testy over the three key issues of homes, horses and hydropower. The fact that the affected region was in a congressional district represented by Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Visalia, brought in a new voice to reckon with.
Mineral King Valley cabin owners wanted to avoid inclusion in federal wilderness, which can limit use of machines. Negotiators eventually excluded the cabins, and at Nunes' insistence provided a larger-than-usual buffer area around them.
Southern California Edison wanted continued access to check dams that are part of the utility's hydropower network. They got it.
Finally, backcountry horsemen wanted to retain access to popular trails in the region. Eventually, after taking a stab with legislative language, lawmakers simply excluded from wilderness most of the major areas used by horsemen.
"There was good compromising all around," Costa said.
Environmental activist Carter willing to resign another post...Paula Lloyd
http://www.fresnobee.com/local/v-print/story/1191212.html
Lloyd Carter, a deputy attorney general and environmental activist under fire for controversial comments he made about farmworkers, has offered to resign from another environmental group on which he serves.
Chris Acree, executive director of Revive the San Joaquin, said the group's board has not decided whether to accept Carter's resignation.
Carter already has resigned from the California Water Impact Network. He has not offered to resign from the California Save Our Streams Council, on which he also serves, but said he would leave if asked to by its board.
"We don't want them to be tainted by this ridiculous situation," Carter said, referring to the uproar from farmworkers' organizations, farmers, politicians and water groups over his comments. "Hopefully they'll stand up for me."
The criticism stems from comments Carter made to a KMPH (Channel 26) reporter before a debate on water policy at California State University, Fresno, on Feb. 4.
Carter said farmworkers are "not even American citizens for starters. Do you think we should employ illegal aliens?"
He said farmworkers' children are among the least-educated people who "turn to lives of crime. They go on welfare. They get into drug trafficking and they join gangs."
Carter apologized on his Web site and on Channel 26, but he said some groups want him to lose his job in the state Attorney General's Office in Fresno.
Scott Gerber, spokesman for the state Attorney General's Office in Sacramento, said Attorney General Jerry Brown "strongly disagrees" with Carter's comments, but Carter "was not speaking on behalf of the department, and his comments do not reflect the views of the Department of Justice or the policies of this office."
The Valley's water lobby has seized on the controversy to push its goals in the state Capitol, including a long-running drive for state money for dams. The Latino Water Coalition, which includes Valley elected officials, today plans to bus farmworkers to Sacramento to meet with lawmakers. The group also is trying to schedule a meeting with Brown.
Carter said connecting his comments to the larger issue is unfair. "They're trying to say these ill-considered remarks of mine represent the entire environmental community."
'Meant only right'...Eli Setencich, Fresno
http://www.fresnobee.com/277/v-print/story/1191110.html
As a good and longtime friend of Lloyd Carter, I have known him to be a man who spoke his mind and always from the heart, a trait that on occasion does not set well with everyone, most notably the water-guzzling farmers on the west side of the Valley.
So when he misspoke last week, they couldn't wait to pounce on him like a pack of starved prairie dogs, bringing along their toady lawmakers and self-anointed friends of farmworkers, hoping to drive a stake through his bleeding heart because of his ill-chosen words, true or not.
The bottom line is that if everyone else, including factory farmers, felt as sympathetic toward the workers as he does, they would be living in clover and not thrown to the wolves whenever the crops fail. He may have said it wrong, but I know he meant only right. Farmworkers could use more friends like Lloyd Carter.
'Phony indignations'...Janine Walsh, Fresno
http://www.fresnobee.com/277/v-print/story/1191115.html
Lloyd Carter will be missed as one of the best advocates of sensible water uses in our area. What possessed him to make those comments is beyond me, but farmers who wrote in the Feb. 10 letters should be ashamed for their obvious game playing, especially in associating racist comments to the California Save Our Streams Council.
Since when did California farmers ever support farmworkers or the United Farm Workers union? What a joke to hear their phony indignations about Mr. Carter's ridiculous statements.
'Slanderous remarks'...Barry J. Bedwell, President California Grape and Tree Fruit League, Fresno...2-9-09
http://www.fresnobee.com/277/v-print/story/1188033.html
Lloyd Carter, president of the environmental group California Save Our Streams Council, and his recent slanderous remarks concerning California's hard-working and productive farmworkers at the water debate at Fresno State bring serious question as to either the ignorance or the intent of some of the extreme elements within the environmental community.
While Mr. Carter attempted to apologize and say his remarks were somehow edited improperly, a review of the interview shows that there is no doubt he communicated a complete lack of respect and understanding of the importance of not only water to the health of our economy, but the positive role that farmworkers play in our society as well as in the production of food.
If we are to make progress in solving the massive challenges, like water availability and air quality, that confront all Californians, we will need reasonable individuals on all sides who understand that true sustainability means to move forward in an environmentally friendly, socially responsible and economically viable manner.
I believe that farmers and farmworkers are firmly committed to this goal. On the other hand, the attitudes expressed by Mr. Carter simply have no place in this discussion.
'Deserve better'...Ross Borba Jr., Riverdale...2-9-09
http://www.fresnobee.com/277/v-print/story/1188030.html
In response to a reporter's question as to whether farmworkers deserve to lose their jobs as a result of the cutbacks in water deliveries to farms on the Valley's west side, Lloyd Carter emphatically stated, "They're not even American citizens for starters. Do you think we should employ illegal aliens? What parent raises their child to be a farmworker? These kids are the least educated people in America or the southwest corner of this Valley. They turn to lives of crime. They go on welfare. They get into drug trafficking and they join gangs."
These insensitive, bigoted, hateful and racist comments by Mr. Carter on Wednesday night give insights not only into his strongly held negative feelings toward and beliefs about Hispanics, but also into that of those who selected him to serve as their spokesperson -- California's Save Our Streams Council.
Readers should also know that Mr. Carter's regular "day job" is as a deputy attorney general in the criminal division of the California Attorney General's Office.
Don't you think farmworkers, environmentalists and all people of the state of California deserve better than this?
Valley Voice
County, City Battle Over Race Track Money...John Lindt
http://www.valleyvoicenewspaper.com/vv/stories/2009/
racetrack.htm
Tulare - On the last day to file a lawsuit (Jan. 29) against the city of Tulare's approval of the motorsports complex deal, city officials were surprised to be served with a notice from the county of Tulare that it was about to be sued.
The city already had received word that the Sierra Club had filed a notice to sue but Vice Mayor Phil Vandegrift was flabbergasted to get this other news. “I can understand about the Sierra Club but I thought the county was on the same page with us. Don't they want jobs coming to the area?”
But the suit wasn't because the county was upset over the project, says chair of the Board of Supervisors Phil Cox. “That was really a place holder,” said Cox, adding that after a series of quick huddles this week between staff from both sides, there appears to be less tension. “I don't think we will need a lawsuit to work things out,” says Cox.
The issue is not whether the project should go forward, but how to divide the money up if it does. It's not just Tulare but how all development in the county will proceed.
“We've been working very well with the Council of Cities (representing all eight Tulare County cities) over this issue of revenue sharing,” says Cox, who has been working hand-in-hand with Vandegrift on a potential revenue-sharing formula both the cities and the county can live with.
The city of Tulare is concerned that the Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) would not process the city's application for annexing the 700 acres into the city needed to accommodate the race track project on the southeast part of the city.
Any stall in the annexation process makes project's developer Bud Long's job to get financial backing impossible. Lenders won't back a project unless all the approvals are in place.
“What I thought we decided to do some weeks ago with county at our most recent meeting was that we would agree to divide the revenues on this project by whatever formula was OK'd later so as not to delay this project,” says Vandergrift – a big supporter of the race track .
But for whatever reason, the county decided to use a threat of suit to get Tulare's attention.
It has done that.
But it has also pointed the spotlight back on the county and how it does business, say some. The board is already looking bad regarding the pay raise it gave themselves last summer and now this.
Cox expects the pay raise issue to be resolved Feb. 10 and believes it has been blown out of proportion.
Vandegrift says things can be worked out, recalling how the booking fee issue got solved after months of no discussion with a simple visit by Tulare City Manager Darrel Pyle to the county's CAO office one day. “We're all in the same boat – we need money to provide services.”
This week, Vandegrift told the Voice he believes the county is focused on increasing the share of sales tax revenue it gets on land annexed into the city, particularly on Highway 99 projects.
“When you look at it, we are the only major county city with a big Highway 99 presence.”
The motorsports annexation and plans to annex land at the big Cartmill shopping center are the largest acreage annexations on the table right now. Whatever is agreed to in sharing of sales and bed tax would apply only to newly annexed lands.
“What we think they want is 10 percent of future sales tax revenues and 10 percent of transit occupancy taxes. Now we need to check in with the rest of the cities for their thoughts,” says Vandegrift.
Pyle, on this big “One Voice” trip to Washington this week, will be huddling with representatives of all eight cities who are on the same trip to see if some consensus can be forged. “I don't want the other cities to feel we tried to cut a private deal” with the county, says Vandegrift.
The county wants to adopt its new general plan by June and a revenue-sharing agreement is a key demand for the cash-strapped county. The county needs cities' good wishes to implement new impact fees that require cooperation of the cities.
“We've been meeting for over a year,” says Vandegrift, who heads up the Council of Cities, “and I thought we were building good trust between us and the county.”
The city hopes the county will not move forward to actually file the suit and that progress will be swift on coming up with an agreement.
LAFCO is expected to act on the annexation next month.
Water Supply Looks Grim
Massive Groundwater Pumping Expected...John Lindt. California Farm Bureau contributed to this story.
http://www.valleyvoicenewspaper.com/vv/stories/2009/
watersupply.htm
San Joaquin Valley - Federal officials will estimate how much or more likely, how little water will be available to the Valley's eastside in the next few weeks based on the precipitation that has fallen so far this year. The government has already told Westside growers in the Westlands Water District to expect a zero allocation of water – the lifeblood of farming there.
How bad could it be on the Valley's eastside? Including Tulare County, the eastside gets surface water delivered to a million acres down the big Friant-Kern canal and for some water districts, it remains their only water supply. The answer could be a historically low number.
In 1977, Friant Water District got as little as 25 percent of its Class 1 (usually firm) water supply. There is a probability the number could be smaller this year, says Friant water expert Dennis Keller. That projection is based on the potential that some of that water stored behind Friant Dam will have to go to irrigation districts along the river that have first call on the river water. “That's one thing that hasn't happened in 50 years – since the dam was built,” says Friant General Manager Ron Jacobsma. “But this year, we are doing contingency planning for just that, if it stays dry.”
Keller declines to say just what amount his own number-crunching came up with.
Keller says Friant farmers need a 40 percent of Class 1 supply – about 320,000 acre feet – to keep their trees alive and that the remainder will have to be made up with pumping of groundwater this year – what he expects to be an unprecedented volume.
“Just call me the grim reaper,” jokes Keller.
Add to the picture the one-two punch the economy and the drought will mean for Valley farmers and their communities in general. Now, an early spring means plants are demanding irrigation water a month early.
“We will know Friday, Feb.13 when the water officials will estimate,” says Keller.
As this paper goes to press, several storm systems are coming into the state but may not be the miracle storms of the past. But miracles have happened before and several months of spring remain on the calendar.
California's Chief Water Watcher Minces No Words
“The low precipitation in January and snowpack results from the latest survey indicate California is heading for a third dry year,” said California Department of Water Resources Director Lester Snow. “We may be at the start of the worst California drought in modern history. It's imperative for Californians to conserve water immediately at home and in their businesses.”
The Valley's eastside water supply is tied up with both the weather and politics.
“What the state's budget problems and drought have in common is that there appears to be no solution coming out of Sacramento,” shrugs Keller.
According to the latest snow survey, the drought this year so far has meant just 70 percent of normal precipitation in the southern Sierra and worse than that in the northern Sierra – 50 percent of average for this date, says the California Department of Water Resources.
On the Kings River, data collected from eight remote locations showed water content is averaging 11.3 inches, 44 percent of the average for April 1, the date upon which the snowpack is assumed to peak, and less than 80 percent of what should have accumulated by this date in a “normal” year. Snow depths are averaging 30 inches.
Northern California rainfall is critically important because that is the source for water that flows down the Sacramento, is stored in key reservoirs like in Shasta and flows through the delta – the hub of most of California's water supply.
With low flow expected on the Sacramento this year, and Judge Oliver Wanger's decision to restrict water pumping south of the delta factored in – a number of observers believe this will be the year the so-called Exchange Contractors in western Merced County will make their “call” on what Tulare and Kern County typically use for their own irrigation needs from Friant.
Because the federal Bureau of Reclamation would typically take Sacramento River water to meet the needs of the Exchange Contractors, the projected low supply on the Sacramento is making it more likely this grim reaper projection could come true.
That could take a big bite of water that would otherwise flow down the Friant Kern. That supply would be smaller anyway with just 63 percent of normal rainfall so far this year.
“I'd guess we have better than a 50 percent Class 1 supply in the Sierra,” says Jacobsma. “But if we have to give 100,000 or 200,000 acre feet to the Exchange contractors, we won't be left with much.
“So much water is just being soaked up by dry soils because of the mountain and foothill conditions in this third year of drought,” says Jacobsma. That will leave less to flow into Millerton Lake.
Plants Thirsty Early
The warm weather lately has dried out land around the southern Sierra and the Valley below and has melted the snowpack earlier than normal.
“It looks like both Kaweah and Tule will release water early” because of early snowmelt. Even at the 9,000-foot elevation at Farwell Gap the weather reached the high 40s and 50s for 20 of the 30 days last month.
“Release of water will be put to use early since the plants think it is April 1 instead of Feb. 1,” says Keller.
If Friant water delivered by the canal is very low this year, it could hurt the towns that have no groundwater supply at all the hardest – areas around Orange Cove, Lindsay, Strathmore and the like.
For the rest of the region, it will mean massive pumping of groundwater to make it through the irrigation season. Keller says one call on the San Joaquin River scheduled for this year is about 5 percent of its supply to test run the river in anticipation of the coming river restoration project pending in Congress. These tests will move forward even if there are dry conditions, according to the agreement.
Jacobsma says that could amount to some 40,000 acre feet that will have to be held back for release in October and not available for irrigation.
Because of the likely low supply of Friant water, “some Friant districts won't run any water,” predicts Jacobsma. This year, it will be tough to do the usual water transfers because the drought has hit hard statewide.
Currently, water stored in reservoirs statewide stands at 35 percent of capacity. Only two other years have seen lower reservoir levels at this time of year – 1977 and 1992, both extreme drought years.
On the Westside, the bureau has announced zero water allocation to the 600 growers of the Westlands Water District. The district carried over water from the year before but the release of that water is not a sure thing either. It is in San Luis Reservoir and may or may not be available, depending on how bad the water year is.
Record Pumping
Westland farmer Mark Borba says in 2008, the farmers of the district pumped 800,000 acre feet – the most of any year they've kept records back to 1978. In 2005, they pumped just 75,000 acre feet and in 2006, it was 15,000 acre feet. In 2007, it jumped to 310,000 acre feet. “They are projecting we will see another 800,000 acre feet in 2009 given the dry conditions.”
Borba says much of that water is high in mineral content and salt and not good for permanent plantings. “But it's all we've got.” Some growers have no wells. We will see lots of fallow fields this year.”
Westlands Water District officials expect that at least half the 600,000 acres of irrigated fields in the district will be fallowed.
“For many of us – it's just plant, wait and pray for rain,” remarks Borba.
The impact on the small towns of western Fresno County is clear – unemployment has reached above 30 percent for farmworker towns like Huron, Firebaugh and Mendota as layoffs add up and families leave the area.
Using a new statistical model, researchers at the University of California, Davis, estimate that an 85 percent cut in CVP and SWP water deliveries from the delta could result in more than 40,000 lost jobs and a $1.15 billion income loss in the Central Valley. Farm revenue losses alone would total more than $800 million.
Those losses would occur despite a 50 percent increase in groundwater pumping.
At a meeting of the State Board of Food and Agriculture, Snow said the current State Water Project allocation to districts it serves is 15 percent of contract amount but, he warned, “We're having trouble holding on to that allocation level.”
Among other things, state water supplies drinking water for the Southland where mandatory rationing plans are cropping up fast this year.
Visalia Times-Delta
Drought trend needs a state plan...Editorial
http://www.visaliatimesdelta.com/article/20090211/OPINION01/
902110313/1014/OPINION
Even though we're getting rain this week (it always rains on the farm show), it is a literal drop in the desert in compared with the water problems looming in the San Joaquin Valley and in California.
This is already shaping up as a very dry year, maybe close to a record, the way 2006-07 was. Farmers and other water users already have been told to expect sharply curtailed water deliveries of surface water from both state and federal sources. The California Department of Water Resources reports the Sierra Nevada snowpack is only about 60 percent of normal, and, unless March is abnormally wet, it will be worse than that.
Politics and policies, however, are combining to make this situation even worse. The policies need adjustment, or this dry year will create a huge amount of hardship in California agriculture and our Valley.
The San Joaquin River lawsuit settlement between the Bureau of Reclamation and the National Resources Defense Council was already scheduled to cost water users anywhere from 250,000 to 400,000 acre-feet of water, depending on the supplies. Those effects are still a couple of years from taking place, even if a settlement agreement is reached.
More water is also being used for environmental recovery in the delta. Consequently, some water districts in Fresno County are exercising their options to obtain surface water from the San Joaquin River watershed.
That's putting even a greater squeeze on the entire system.
If you have traveled to the Bay Area along Highway 152 and seen the San Luis Reservoir, you have witnessed part of the effect of this contraction of water. The San Luis collects water from north of the delta and stores it for both urban and agricultural uses. Some water officials doubt they will be able to get the reservoir more than half-filled this year.
With less snowpack runoff and more surface water going to places other than agriculture, farmers will be forced to pump more groundwater, or decided not to farm. A surprising number of farmers are already coming to that decision. It's distressing to have to report this during World Ag Expo 2009, but a lot of conversation at the International Agri-Center this year must revolve around how some growers will stay in business.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger last year declared a drought emergency for California at the height of the state's heat spell. At the time, we said he was overstating things. But this might be the time for such an action.
One thing that the governor's intervention might do would be to allow some suspension of policies and practices that would make this situation more flexible, especially for growers. For instance, the idea of turning off the pumps that put fresh water into the delta estuary would be a welcome mitigation.
Beyond that, however, California needs a new water policy. The piecemeal approach that pits competing interests and regions against one another is disruptive and counter-productive. It has created a system in which different interests are constantly working on making new alliances.
Every interest in California ought to be on the same wavelength when it comes to water. We should all be allies together. Sacrificing one region or industry to save others ultimately undermines us all. Compromises, prudent policies and changed ways of doing business must take place. But we can't afford to continue the bickering. Nor can we be satisfied with "agreements" that leave out some parties and doom them to demise.
This will be a difficult water year to navigate through for all interests, including urban. Let it serve as motivation for a comprehensive plan that has enough flexibility to get the state through all years, wet and dry.
California Progress Report
Water Exporters Want to End the Endangered Species Act...Dan Bacher
http://www.californiaprogressreport.com/2009/02/water_
exporters.html
Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, campaign director of Restore the Delta, today issued an urgent action alert today in response to the introduction of legislation to temporarily suspend the Endangered Species Act (ESA) as it applies to the California Delta pumping facilities during times of drought.
The bill will also establish a Delta Smelt conservation hatchery, a bad idea that was defeated in the State Legislature last year, due to opposition by a coalition of environmental organizations, fishing groups and Delta residents.
Congressman George Radanovich (R-Mariposa) on February 4 introduced H.R. 856, the California Drought Alleviation Act, to bypass the ESA so exports of Delta water to corporate agribusiness in the Central Valley can be increased during this period of drought, a drought that has been largely engineeered by the draining of northern California reservoirs over the past two years by the state and federal governments. He claimed that California agriculture is a "victim" of economic "eco-terrorism" caused by the ESA.
"By allowing the Delta Pumps to operate at increased capacity, the CDAA allows available water to flow to Valley farmers and provides a stimulus to the California economy without costing the taxpayer a dime, Radanovich said in a statement. We cannot allow California agriculture to wither and die because our precious resources are being hijacked by what amounts to economic eco-terrorism in the form of the ESA and the entities that support this damaging law."
"Of course, Congressman Radanovich has forgotten the economic eco-terrorism that has been inflicted on commercial fisheries, the Delta sportsfishing economy, and Delta agriculture as a result of years of excessive water exports to support Central Valley agri- business," countered Parrilla.
"Even more disturbing is that Congressman Dennis Cardoza (D-Merced), one of the bill's co-sponsors, has forgotten that he represents people who live in the secondary zone of the Delta and that the people he represents in central Stockton are alarmed over the condition of Delta fisheries and what water exports have done to our local Delta economy," said Parrilla.
So, here's how you can help. First, call the eight sponsors of H.R. 856 to express your outrage at their disregard for the economic eco-interests of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Tell them that the business as usual regarding California water policy must end.
Direct them to the Restore the Delta website (http://www.restorethedelta.org) and tell them that Regional Water Self- Sufficiency, rather than moving water from Northern California to Southern California, is the best way to meet California's water needs. Tell them that they need to focus on breaking dependence on the Delta to meet the state's water needs. It is the cost effective way, in these difficult economic times, to address our water problems.
In addition, contact the following members of the House Natural Resources Committee to express your opposition to H.R. 856.
"Let them know that increased Delta exports in a time of drought will deal the final deathblow to Delta fisheries," said Parrilla. "Let them know that the Delta's $2.5 billion economy is dependent on water flowing into the Delta for fisheries and Delta agriculture. Let them know that Delta farms are mainly family farmers also deserving of economic protection."
Congressional Sponsors of H.R. 856: Representative George Radonovich (R-CA-District 19) - 202-225-4540; Representative Ken Calvert (R- CA-District 44) - 202-225-1986; Representative Jim Costa (D-CA-20) - 202-225-3341; Representative Kevin McCarthy (R-CA-22) -- 202-225-2915; Representative Devin Nunes (R-CA-21) -- 202-225- 2523; Representative Dennis Cardoza (D-CA-18) - 202-225-6131; Representative David Dreier (R-CA- 26) - 202-225-2305; Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA-5)-202-225-2006; Representative Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA-46) - 202-225-2415
Key Members of the House Natural Resource Committee: Representative Rick J. Rahall, II, Chair, (D-WV-3)- 202-225-3452; Representative Grace F. Napolitano (D-
CA-38) 202-225-5256; Representative Lois Capps (D- CA-23) - 202-225-3601; Representative Joe Baca (D- CA-43) - 202-225-6161; Representative Elton Gallegly (R-CA-24) - 202-225-5811; Representative Tom McClintock (R-CA-4) - 202-225-2511
For more information, contact Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, website: http://www.restorethedelta.org, email: barbara [at] restorethedelta.org
About Restore the Delta: Restore the Delta is a grassroots campaign committed to making the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta fishable, swimmable, drinkable, and farmable to benefit all of California. Restore the Delta - a coalition of Delta residents, business leaders, civic organizations, community groups, faith-based communities, union locals, farmers, fishermen, and environmentalists - seeks to strengthen the health of the estuary and the well-being of Delta communities. Restore the Delta works to improve water quality so that fisheries and farming can thrive together again in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
Manteca Bulletin
DROUGHT: 3rd worst year since 1896
10% cutback for Manteca?...Dennis Wyatt.
http://www.mantecabulletin.com/news/article/1372/
Barring a series of Sierra blizzards of Biblical proportions, the watershed that supplies water for South County farms and cities will face its third skimpiest yield in the past 113 years.
That’s not good news for almond and grape growers who are fretting over unusually dry soil for early February. Nor is it good news for corn and oat farmers who are faced with making a decision in the coming weeks whether to plant and face possible crop disaster or let land lay fallow and go without any income production.
Tracy, which relies on treated surface water from South San Joaquin Irrigation District to supplement its overtaxed well system while dealing with the double whammy of salt water intrusion, faces the possibility it’ll have water deliveries slashed by 10 percent along with Lathrop and Manteca. Salt water instrusion is a growing problem with each passing year of drought for farmers southwest of Manteca as the underground aquifer is being contaminated as less fresh water stands as a barrier to salt water seeping in from the San Francisco Bay.
The news isn’t my much better for the City of Manteca that is relying on surface water to blend with well water to reduce the levels of arsenic.
That is why the South San Joaquin Irrigation District board concurred Tuesday with General Manager Jeff Shields that agencies depending upon SSJID to supply water need to be notified of the worst-case scenario that could be developing despite storms over the next eight days expected to dust the Sierra with up to 20 inches of snow and to drop over two inches of rain on the South County.
SSJID directors also want meetings within the service area with farmers to apprise them of the critical water situation and steps the district is taking to stretch the supply.
SSJID tightening up on water use & theft
Those steps include:
•Keeping Woodward Reservoir at 190 feet – the level it is at now – to drastically reduce seepage and evaporation loses.
•Institute an aggressive monitoring system to go after those illegally taking water from SSJID canals.
•Implementing tightly controlled irrigation runs to eliminate spillage that will vary depending upon soil type of farms being served.
Those measures could have a devastating impact on non-SSJID customers who rely on ground water and spillage from SSJID canals.
The seepage from Woodward Reservoir is critical to recharging the ground water as is the flood irrigation of orchards. When flood irrigation of orchards is tightened up after the early runs it could substantially reduce water levels underground. The result would be non SSJID farmers forced to pump deeper which escalates power costs and cuts into the aquifier.
Flood irrigation of almond orchards is credited with helping the South County skate by severe aquifer problems plaguing the county east of Stockton.
Stockton East Irrigation District will also be notified they may not receive their contracted 15,000 acre feet of water. The SSJID under current striations can cut back delivery to 4,000 acre feet and charge more per acre foot of water they deliver.
The Stockton East has already taken water for this water year.
SSJID tightening up could spell trouble for farmers just outside of the SSJID service area north of French Camp Road. Many rely on spillage from SSJID canals to water their crops. Those farmers have been exploring the possibility of annexing to the SSJID service territory.
With 2008-09 shaping up to be a third straight dry year, the SSJID watershed on the Stanislaus River is heading toward the third driest year on record. The record was 1923-24 when 17.1 inches of snow fell triggering the worst drought in Manteca history when the last water delivery to area farms was made in June. The irrigation season normally runs through the middle of October. The second direst year on record was 1977-78 when 19 inches of snow fell. The average snowfall in the portion of the Stanislaus River basin that impacts SSJID is 50 inches.
Sierra snowpack at 27% of normal
The snow pack – which is essentially the state’s biggest reservoir for water – is at 27 percent of normal on the watershed supplying SSJID. January — the wettest month of the year on the critical Sierra watershed — ended up as the driest on record. February, the next wettest month, has been a bust so far despite the rain. Shields noted that as of Monday need snow had been recorded on the Tri Dam System in the Sierra that supplies part of the SSJID water. The Sierra snowpack is effectively the largest water reservoir in California and is the backbone of the supply chain for both the Central Valley Water Project and Stet Water Project.
The Central Valley Water Project could do the unthinkable this year and not deliver any water to farms and cities. The State Water Project Has already warned it would deliver only 15 percent of its contracted amount although there have been an indication that may be cut even lower.
“We’ve been blessed,” Shields said in noting the SSJID watershed is in better shape than much of the rest of the state.
He used a bit of dry humor, though, to put that in perspective.
“That’s like being hung by the softest rope on the gallows,” Shields said.
There is also the strong possibility that areas with more water than others may be tapped for water by the state declaring an emergency due to water supply conditions worsened by having more than 10 million additional Californians since the last drought as well as court orders to maintain fresh water flows into the Delta to keep fish populations at a specific level.
Tracy Press
Ellis: a misguided priority for Tracy  
The deal with Surland Cos. for an aquatics center, which the city may not be able to afford, was a bait and switch to win approval for a 2,250-house subdivision...Roger Adhikari. Roger Adhikari has lived in Tracy for 16 years and works in corporate financial management in Silicon Valley. He’s a former flight instructor and served on the Tracy Airport Advisory Committee. He ran unsuccessfully for City Council in 2006.
http://tracypress.com/content/view/17232/2244/
On Dec. 16, by a 5-0 vote, the City Council approved a development agreement with The Surland Cos. to build 2,250 new homes in the proposed Ellis subdivision northwest of Linne and Corral Hollow roads.
According to the agreement, the city gets $10 million and can use 16 acres for an aquatics center, with Surland reserving the right to reclaim nine acres if the center is not built with two years of the area’s annexation into the city. Surland is not required to dedicate any more parkland than any other developer, and the city can use the money to build or operate facilities anywhere.
As $10 million is only a down payment on the $25 million-plus cost to build the planned aquatics center, the city must come up with more than $15 million to cover the total cost if current plans are to come true. Furthermore, according to a city consultant, the aquatics center will also have more than $1 million annual operating deficit.
In an economic environment in which the city is already drawing down emergency reserves just to meet minimum obligations, how can one believe that it will be able to afford tens of millions of dollars to build the center and millions more to keep it open?
The promise of an aquatics center is nothing but a bait and switch to get approval for a 2,250-house subdivision.
The exclusive Surland agreement is neither in the interest of the city, nor warranted at a time when the city is flooded with foreclosed homes and red ink. Even without new homes, it will take years for the housing market to stop its freefall. With these homes entering the market, home values will be depressed even longer.
Also, the proposed development is in the direct path of the main Tracy Municipal Airport runway, which could impact the safety of the people living in the area. If the history of other developments near airports is any indication, the project will invite a permanent battle between the airport and future residents of the area, with the latter demanding to close the airport or limit its activities.
Tracy’s airport is an attractive resource for a corporate business. If the city has any vision to bring the Intels and Oracles of the future to Tracy, it must at a minimum protect and preserve the airport. Without economic assets like the airport and corporate-type businesses, Tracy will remain a crib for Bay Area office dwellers, not a self-sustaining city.
Tracy residents were led to believe that the Ellis deal is the best the city could get. However, in reality, other developers made similar offers and were not even allowed to enter the competition. The Ellis agreement will tie the hands of future councils, preventing them from getting the best possible deal for future housing developments.
Council members seem to have the notion that their recent election gives them carte blanche to continue business as usual, with sweetheart deals with Surland and, soon, Tracy Hills, where the public carries the costs while developers provide false benefits.
On three occasions, once in 2000 by passing Measure A and subsequently in 2004 by defeating Measure V for Ellis and Measure U for Tracy Hills, residents declared in no uncertain terms that they wanted to move away from residential development as the city’s top priority. Yet, while the City Council pours resources into mega-housing projects such as Ellis, it still dedicates too little to remake Tracy into a business-friendly city.
The council ignored every issue citizens raised, from protecting the airport as an economic asset to the safety of gas pipelines to more money needed to pay for road improvements, fire service and schools for the nearly 8,000 new residents. The council also ignored the violations of the California Environmental Quality Act and our city’s general plan, which calls for contiguous over leapfrog development.
Why wouldn’t the council want to fix these deficiencies and work with citizens to ensure the best projects possible?
In a democracy, citizens can take multiple courses of action to ensure government acts in the public interest and follows the law. Participating in the election process, advocating at public meetings, increasing public awareness and, finally, taking legal action to stop illegal decisions are all important.
Having failed to reach the council through other avenues, citizens are left with no choice but to challenge the city’s illegal actions in the courts. That’s why the Tracy Regional Alliance for a Quality Community’s decision to file a lawsuit is not only warranted, but also welcomed.
San Francisco Chronicle
Climate change suspected in loss of salamanders...David Perlman, Chronicle Science Editor
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/02/11/MNHB15RC6G.DTL&type=printable
Salamanders, those lowly amphibians that Bay Area folks can find in their moist backyards, are disappearing from a volcano in Guatemala and the mountains of Mexico - possibly another victim of climate change, UC Berkeley researchers say.
With frog populations all over the world on the decline for decades, the latest discovery adds up to a "global amphibian crisis," the Berkeley team contends in the current online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The team, led by David B. Wake, a professor of integrative biology and curator of Berkeley's Museum of Vertebrae Zoology, focused its hunt for a group of well-known salamander species on the Tajumulco volcano and neighboring mountains in southwestern Guatemala, where 30 and 40 years ago Wake and research associate Theodore J. Papenfuss had completed a similar detailed survey.
Wake and Papenfuss, a veteran hunter of salamanders and other amphibians, also searched for the amphibians in the mountainous nature reserve of Cerro san Felipo in Oaxaca, Mexico.
On the volcano in Guatemala, the little amphibians were abundant when they did their earlier survey, they said, but proved extremely hard to find this time. Three of the salamanders that were most common 40 years ago have disappeared, the team found, while a fourth was almost impossible to find, and may be nearly extinct.
The results were startling, Wake said Tuesday.
The salamanders had been living in a well-controlled nature preserve where cloud forests abound and within a narrow elevation band between 7,900 and 9,000 feet, so it wasn't human disturbance nor pesticides that decimated them, the researchers said.Neither was it the toxic Chytrid fungus, which has been responsible for the deaths of many amphibians in California's High Sierra but is extremely rare in the Guatemalan region, Wake and his colleagues said.
Many of the species the team examined are particularly sensitive to the climate and humidity in which they have evolved and lived for millennia. But those conditions have changed over the past decades and to Wake the answer appears evident.
"We strongly suspect that global warming is at least a factor," he said. "It has been pushing salamanders up to higher and less hospitable elevations where they are taking a severe hit."
It was at those high elevations that the disappearance of the salamanders was most striking, they said.
In Mexico, Papenfuss formerly found hundreds of one species in a single morning at their normal high mountain elevation, but said he could find only one or two salamanders during the past 10 years that he's been hunting them there.
A complete survey of salamander populations in the past has never been done in the Sierra, so there's no way to tell if the same population decline has hit in that mountain range. But frog populations have been moving to higher and higher ranges in the area during past decades because of climate change, Wake said.
Only last year, however, a report in the journal Science by UC Berkeley biologists James L. Patton and Craig Moritz noted that Sierra temperatures have averaged 5 degrees Fahrenheit higher than they were 90 years ago and that compared with a detailed 1914 survey, many species of mammals have been shifting their ranges upward by as much as 1,600 feet to seek cooler habitats.
"These kinds of changes have been going on forever," Patton said. "The only difference is this has probably happened in our lifetime. It's the speed with which these changes are taking place that gives one pause."
Sean M Rovito, Wake's colleague, is a UC Berkeley graduate student and the lead author of the team's new report on the disappearance of salamanders in Guatemala.
EPA reconsiders Bush rule on air pollution permits...DINA CAPPIELLO, Associated Press Writer
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/02/10/national/w120134S22.DTL&type=printable
The Obama administration is delaying a rule issued in the final days of President George W. Bush's presidency that would have let some industrial facilities avoid having to install pollution controls when they expand.
The Environmental Protection Agency announced Tuesday that the rule would be delayed 90 days so it could be re-evaluated.
Environmentalists had complained that the rule would have let power plants, factories and other industrial facilities increase emissions that cause soot and smog.
Industry groups said the rule would have enabled facilities to upgrade power plants without worrying about violating anti-pollution laws.
Existing facilities typically must apply for a permit when modifications will emit an additional 40 tons a year of a major pollutant.
The regulation the Bush administration adopted on Jan. 15 would have changed how facilities calculate how much pollution would result from their upgrades.
The delay, which pushes back the rule until May, is another sign that President Barack Obama is diverging from the ways of the Bush administration on air pollution.
Last week, the Justice Department announced it would no longer fight to uphold a Bush administration plan — favored by industry — for controlling mercury emissions from power plants.
Courts had found that the Bush plan violated the Clean Air Act. Obama's EPA has begun crafting a new regulation to limit mercury emissions from power plants.
Response to drought is dry run for a response to climate change...Richard Rominger, Michael Dimock. Richard Rominger is the former secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture. Michael R. Dimock is president of Roots of Change, a collaborative supporting development of a sustainable food system in California.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/02/11/EDKB15RJ1M.DTL&type=printable
California's unfolding drought - now three years running - may prove to be the worst in recorded history. Farms have begun to fail, communities to crumble, food prices to rise and more people are going hungry. How we respond to the drought will offer us a template of how to respond to global climate change.
The drought is a national crisis because California produces 50 percent of the nation's fruits, nuts and vegetables, and a majority of the nation's salad, strawberries and premium wine grapes. State and federal agencies that deliver water to farms up and down the Great Central Valley are preparing to cut deliveries by 85 percent to 100 percent. Coastal communities may begin rationing programs within weeks. Even with 50 percent increases in ground-water pumping, which is clearly not sustainable, the Central Valley alone will lose up to 40,000 jobs and $1.5 billion in income, according to a UC Davis agricultural economist Richard Howitt.
Even more disturbing is that rising emotion over water is sparking hostility. Last Thursday in Fresno, a representative of the California Water Impact Network told a television reporter during a debate that saving farmworkers' jobs is a mistake because they are the "least educated people in America ... they turn to lives of crime, they go on welfare, go into drug trafficking ...." This is this blatantly racist, and evokes images of Europe in the 1930s and '40s.
Drought or hurricanes are beyond human ability to stop. Thus, the human challenge is to offer effective response. Neither the federal nor state government can mitigate the impacts of this drought without cooperation and balanced consideration of human health, ecological and economic consequences. All levels of government, business and community must engage the challenge and leave behind 30 years of unresolved water wars.
So, we ask: Will our leaders maintain a long-term vision as they communicate tough decisions? Will government provide a flexible framework for competing interests to resolve conflict? Despite the pressures, will agricultural, environmental and urban interests think beyond the immediate to arrive at agreements that lead to sustainable supply management?
Our answers to these questions lead us to recommend four actions:
First, President Obama and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger should form a federal-state drought response team that includes new leadership not tied to inflexible organizations and tired thinking about water supply, and that embraces the fact that climate change will set the limits of any future water allocation formulas.
Second, the president and governor should direct that team to reframe the discussion:
a) Food production in California is a national security priority and simply outsourcing our food supply is not in our national interest.
b) Responses must emerge from a primary respect for ecological systems and those who steward the resources within those systems to water and feed us.
c) Immediate and long-term responses are required to deal with the impacts and root causes of climate change and drought.
d) Urban and rural communities and people of different means must share the burdens that will be required.
Third, the secretaries of the U.S. departments of Agriculture and Interior, Tom Vilsack and Ken Salazar, should ensure that their top deputies are tied directly to California's farmers and environmental organizations, because without trusted Californians at the top in Washington, drought response will be much less effective.
By taking these suggestions, the state, nation and communities could minimize the pain caused by this drought and evolve methods for responding to climate change.
White House puts coastal drilling plans on hold...Zachary Coile, Chronicle Washington Bureau
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/02/11/MNB015R7TQ.DTL&type=printable
President Obama is shelving a plan announced in the final days of the Bush presidency to open much of the U.S. coast to oil and gas drilling, including 130 million acres off California's shores from Mendocino to San Diego.
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar put the plan on hold Tuesday while his agency conducts a 180-day review. But Salazar's critical comments about the proposal made clear that the new administration will rewrite it if not completely scrap it.
"It opened the possibility of oil and gas leases along the entire Eastern seaboard, portions of offshore California and the far eastern Gulf of Mexico with almost no consultation from states, industry or community input," Salazar said at a news conference in Washington. "In my view, it was a headlong rush of the worst kind."
He said his agency will hold four public meetings over the next few months - one in Alaska, one on the West Coast, one on the East Coast and one near the Gulf Coast - to hear from governors, local officials, industry groups and environmentalists about the plan.
Salazar steered clear of the bigger question: Whether Obama will seek to renew the 3-decade-old presidential moratorium on drilling off most of the East and West coasts, which Bush lifted in July amid soaring gas prices.
He echoed comments made by Obama last year that the administration would be open to more offshore drilling but only as part of a broader policy focused on producing more renewable energy from wind, solar and geothermal power.
Seat at the table
"For those of you from the oil and gas industry ... I pledge to you that you will have a seat at the table," Salazar said. "We need your expertise and your resources as we move forward. But as President Obama has said and as I believe ... a drill-only energy approach, onshore and offshore, is not enough."
Salazar also ordered his agency to finalize rules to speed the development of offshore renewable energy, such as offshore wind turbines, tidal and wave energy and other emerging technologies, which he said the Bush administration had delayed.
Bush had sought to seize on a lapse in the congressional drilling ban last year to craft a new five-year oil-lease sale program, which it announced Jan. 16, the last business day of the Bush presidency. The outgoing Republican administration was daring the new president to reject the plan.
The Bush rules would have opened most of the U.S. coastline to exploration, from the Gulf of Maine to the Chesapeake Bay and the Outer Banks of North Carolina to the Gulf of Mexico, as well as areas of Alaska's Bristol Bay and the Arctic Ocean.
Effect on California
In California, the plan would have allowed drilling on 44 million acres of federal waters off Humboldt and Mendocino counties, and 89 million acres off San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Los Angeles and San Diego counties. One of the leases would have required special drilling equipment to reach oil beneath the Santa Barbara Ecological Preserve.
California officials praised the Obama administration for slowing down the process.
"I'm pleased the department will base its future leasing decisions on the strongest, most objective science available instead of campaign slogans, especially in areas that have previously been off-limits to drilling for decades," said Lois Capps, D-Santa Barbara, an opponent of drilling.
Oil industry setback
Oil industry officials were disappointed by Salazar's announcement, saying it was a major setback to efforts to tap what the Interior Department's Minerals Management Services estimates is 18 billion barrels of oil and 76 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in the areas of the Outer Continental Shelf that remain off limits.
Barry Russell, president of the Independent Petroleum Association of America said, "This unnecessary delay will hold America back, at the precise moment when we need to move forward the most."
Environmental groups applauded the decision, but they plan to keep pressuring Salazar, fearing that the Interior Department could still allow drilling in sensitive areas, especially Bristol Bay, a key fishery.
"We hope the secretary will apply the same principles of acting in the public interest to other offshore decisions, including those that are so critical to Alaskan communities in Bristol Bay and the offshore areas of the Arctic region," said William Meadows, president of the Wilderness Society.
Contra Costa Times
Editorial: It's time for UC Berkeley to find new police chief
http://www.contracostatimes.com/opinion/ci_11672618?nclick_check=1
IN TIMES OF financial crisis, it's incumbent on everyone to suck it up and make do with limited resources. But, when it comes to replacing the UC Berkeley police chief, administrators haven't gotten the word.
It's been more than a year and a half since Chief Victoria Harrison officially retired with a $2.1 million payout and then was hired back to the same position under a lucrative contract that violated university guidelines and paid her more money than she had been making. Legislators were angered, rightly so, that Harrison received such a sweet contract at a time when the UC system was having to raise student fees to cover expenses. As a result of the furor, university guidelines were strengthened.
Now comes word that Harrison has received another contract extension because university officials haven't even started looking for her replacement. Worse, the university has increased the amount of Harrison's latest six-month contract from $97,604 to $102,603.
Budget concerns have kept the university from seeking a replacement sooner, says Vice Chancellor Nathan Brostrom. "We could have gone with an interim chief from within the department, but I felt this would be less disruptive."
There is disruption right now up and down state government. While Harrison has been a good police chief, she's not irreplaceable. Brostrom has known for more than a year and a half that Harrison was retiring. He should have filled her job by now. In these tight times, he should be looking for ways to make temporary internal moves to reduce costs.
San Diego Union-Tribune
Rain not ticket out of woods
Low snowpack numbers could still mean rationing later ...Robert Krier
http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/feb/10/
1n10weather004421-rain-not-ticket-out-woods/?zIndex=50709
Five straight days of rain have saturated the ground from Palomar Mountain to Campo, but all the moisture isn't enough to wash away talk of drought.
That's because reservoirs in Northern California and the Colorado River hold the key to whether residents of San Diego County will have to take shorter showers and water their lawns less in the coming months.
The local region imports most of its water from those two sources. While the Colorado River basin's snowpack is above normal, California's remains woefully short because of a lack of storms in pivotal sections of the Sierra Nevada.
Meteorologists said the second half of the month could brighten the state's water-supply forecast, even though water managers will likely continue their rationing plans. A series of storms is predicted to hit California, with heavy snow expected in the Sierra by next week.
“I'm cautiously optimistic, but it's still not enough,” said Elissa Lynn, the state's senior meteorologist. “Two weeks alone won't do it, but if we have a pattern shift, that would help.”
Frank Gehrke, chief of snow surveys for California, said the forecasts mean nothing until snow hits the ground.
“It's a hopeful sign, but we have to wait to see how (the storms) materialize,” Gehrke said.
Drought may be the last thing on the minds of San Diegans lately.
Since Thursday, San Diego has been drenched with 2.21 inches of rain. Yesterday's count – 0.37 of an inch as of 4 p.m. – raised the total for the rainfall season (from July 1) to 8.34 inches. That's more than 2 inches above normal.
Most of the county has similar surpluses.
The storm yesterday generated strong winds; reports of hail in downtown San Diego, Escondido and El Cajon; and more than 6 inches of snow in the local mountains. Snow fell as low as 3,500 feet.
“It's been snowing since about 7:30 this morning,” Renee Porter, manager of Mom's Pie in Julian, said late yesterday afternoon. “It's windy and very cold.”
The Wild Animal Park received 1.03 inches of rain and Santee had 0.99 of an inch.
Heavy, early morning cloudbursts and icy conditions caused minor flooding and a rash of accidents on roads. The California Highway Patrol reported 115 accidents on local roads by mid-afternoon. On a typical dry day, the agency responds to 50 to 75 accidents over a 24-hour period.
In a reverse of the usual pattern, recent storms that pummeled Southern California only brushed the northern end of the state, which has seen precipitation that's far below average.
About 40 percent of the water imported to San Diego County comes from the state water project. California's major reservoirs are filled with runoff from spring snowmelt in the Sierra Nevada and other mountain ranges in Northern California.
The statewide snowpack is about 60 percent of normal.
Like Southern California, the southern Sierra has fared better. The snowpack there was 71 percent of normal as of yesterday. But most runoff from the southern Sierra doesn't go into the reservoirs that supply water to Southern California.
The northern Sierra's snowpack, which is crucial for those reservoirs, stood at 43 percent of normal yesterday.
Before the most recent round of storms, state water officials said north-to-south deliveries might plummet to just 15 percent of normal later this year.
Such a drastic reduction would likely lead to water rationing locally.
“It's hard to get people to understand,” said John Liarakos, spokesman for the San Diego County Water Authority. “This rain helps, but we're a long way from fixing the situation we're in.”
He keeps urging residents and businesses to turn off their irrigation systems during periods of rainfall.
The bright spot in the water-supply picture is the Colorado River basin, which accounts for 60 percent of the water imported to San Diego. The snowpack there was 4 percent above normal as of yesterday, and no delivery cutbacks are scheduled for that source in 2009.
Today and most of tomorrow should be dry in San Diego County. The next storm is predicted to arrive late tomorrow night or early Thursday. Light showers are forecast.
Another storm could reach the region over the weekend, but its strength and timing is uncertain.
The return of wintry weather in San Diego after a warm January caught at least one visitor by surprise. Chicago resident Timothy Noonan, in town for a mortgage bankers convention, brought no rain gear. He had come to San Diego five times before and never seen the windy, rainy conditions he encountered yesterday at Seaport Village.
“I came to get away from the snow. I prefer the sun, but I can deal with this,” Noonan said. “It was 15 degrees in Chicago when I left.”