Delta–Picture courtesy of the California Department of Water Resources
Water Fraud Update
By Bill Wells
The Santa Clara Valley Water District voted 4-3 to use $650 million of their ratepayer’s money to help fund the Brown / Laird twin tunnel WaterFraud. A joint powers authority, the Delta Conveyance Design and Construction Authority has been created to oversee the final design and of the tunnels. I am sure nothing can go wrong with that. So far Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, Kern County Water Authority, and Contra Costa Valley Water District have committed a total of about $12.5 billion of their ratepayer’s money leaving it about $42.5 billion short if you use Arnold Schwarzenegger’s $55 billion estimate of the cost of the project.
Governor Brown is quoted as saying: “the only time you get anything done with water is when a Brown is governor and there are no more Browns coming along so you better get it done. I can tell you if I wasn’t pushing this thing it wouldn’t be going anywhere. If it doesn’t make it this time forget it. You will all be dead before it is even thought of again.” I am confident this mother of all boondoggles can be stopped if enough good people stand up against it. The California Department of Water Resources has proven over and over again that they don’t understand and can not manage a project like this. The state Waterboard hearings are available on YouTube, when you have some spare time listen to the states attorneys’ presentations and draw your own conclusions. You will note too in unintentional irony that the states lead attorney Tripp Mizzel bears a resemblance to the Roman Polanski character in the film Chinatown.
The Delta Counties Coalition offered public comment in response to the formation of the new Delta Conveyance Design and Construction Joint Powers Authority (JPA) at its board meeting in May. From their press release:
Contra Costa County Supervisor Diane Burgis said, “Some have called the WaterFix a diabolical plan, bold, and presumptuous. The Delta is a special and unique place. It is the largest estuary west of the Mississippi river and home to many historical legacy communities and towns, a thriving agricultural economy, diverse geography, and many natural resources. Those of us who are directly impacted are being locked out.”
Sacramento County Supervisor Don Nottoli stated, “Many of the Delta communities were settled around the time of the Gold Rush era, and in some cases, today are a part of a legacy of seven, maybe even eight, generations of farming families and Delta residents. Quiet rural farming areas will be transformed into gigantic construction zones, more akin to an industrial complex than tranquil country settings.”
San Joaquin County Supervisor Chuck Winn stated, “We have the opportunity to build a world class water system, but instead we are getting a flawed, inadequate, and enormously expensive project that will not benefit the residents of California.”
Solano County Supervisor Skip Thomson said, “Expediting the project with a JPA at this point in time is grossly inappropriate. Where it may make the Governor happy, it is bad public policy to acquire land, design, and construct the proposed project before it is fully permitted and before environmental impacts identified. In addition, many lawsuits are pending, and bonds have not been validated.”
Bill Wells
Executive Director
California Delta Chambers & Visitor’s Bureau
PO Box 1118
Rio Vista, CA 94571
Phone: 916-777-4041
https://www.facebook.com/California-Delta-Chambers-and-Visitors-Bureau-166428917257/timeline/
“Defending the California Delta since 1969”