Background on California Water Issues on Current Water bill

By Charles K. Beatty

First they defined our usable water resources, first, ground water which would account for about 40 percent of water use in normal years, groundwater is of course that stored in rocks sand and gravel just below the surface and accumulated in some areas such as ours in underground aquifers and are carefully managed by the CVWD in the amount pumped by State mandate.

This means that a portion of our water must be purchased from the next source which is surface water, the water that accumulates in rivers , streams rain and snow. In our area of Southern California we have very little surface water but our demand is for about 80 percent of the surface water originating in the Rocky Mountains and other chains to the east and coming to us directly via the Colorado River .

The rest of our water supply would be "usable" water that is collected and stored in a statewide storage and distribution system. The "usable" water is divided by the state into three large projects for water and flood management. These projects are:

Central Valley Project-supplied by Sacramento River and San Joaquin

Colorado River Aqueduct (CRA)-supplied by Colorado River

This is important to us because it is managed by the Metropolitan Water District, a Southern California water wholesaler that serves 26 member agencies and our CVWD is one of them. Historical treaties determine supplies to 7 Western states served by the CRA.

The State Water Project(SWP)-designed to distribute water supplies from the plentiful northern areas to those in the more arid south.

The Delta estuary is the largest of these and the one you currently hear the most about in statewide water discussions. This project, among others, was a fantastic engineering feat for California but it is currently under some stress due to aging and environmental issues. There are new rules in place to protect endangered species like the Delta smelt which will continue to restrict our SWP supply by as much as 30 percent and we see no foreseeable quick change in that restriction.

You will hear discussions over the next weeks about the current Water Bill. I hope this gives you a little background as you listen to the arguments pro and con for the building of another canal, the tracking and counting of groundwater by local entities and conservation of water.

These issue all mater to the local management of the CVWD and restrict to some extent, how water quality, costs and availability are managed within the district. Water solutions are determined by many factors. Under CVWD's capable Manager Dennis Erdman, his staff, and CVWD's current Directors who bring varied backgrounds and business expertise to the board we have, "Made it Happen" water rates remain low, water quality excellent, and conservation successfully encouraged. Our forward thinking Board along with management and staff continue to serve you well. Please come to our Board Meetings, 1st and 3rd Tuesday of every month at the CVWD. I have attended regularly for years before I was even on the Board and I can assure you your voice will always be heard.

Charles K. Beatty Director CVWD