[GPSCC-chat] Water Rates and back room deals

[Caroline Yacoub]

I appreciate your input,guys. I am not hearing this message from any other source. I wish I could go to the meetings, but right now I can't even drive.      Caroline

On April 8, 2016, at 10:54 AM, Gerry Gras <gerrygras at earthlink.net> wrote:


I was in Pacific Grove.  The drought is affecting them too.

Doesn't the Santa Clara Valley Water District have its own
board?  If so, what do they think of all this?

I remember an earlier email from you about Westlands
Irrigation District.  It's a bit surprising that they
have that much influence.  I suppose that it relates
to intense lobbying and campaign financing.  Yes? No?

I'm sure you are right about where Santa Clara County gets
its water, but just in case you aren't aware of it, Palo
Alto gets it's water elsewhere (via SFPUC):
http://www.cityofpaloalto.org/gov/depts/utl/residents/resources/water_resources/default.asp

Water is a basic necessity.  And I think the climate
scientists think that California will have less water
as a result of climate change.  Is anyone in government
seriously considering the long term consequences?

One thing that causes me to shake my head:  ABAG
is requiring cities and towns in its jurisdiction to
plan for significant population growth.  Isn't ABAG
concerned about water shortages?


Gerry


Wes Rolley wrote:
> I have written several posts recently about the Jerry Brown Tunnel and
> their potential to cost the public to service the Big Ag interests in
> the Westlands Irrigation District..  There is now a new reason to be
> concerned about water rates and the cost of water to our city.
> Basically, our water is procured from the Santa Clara Valley Water
> District, whether directly from Anderson Lake system or provided by
> ground water recharge.  Some of that water comes from San Luis reservoir
> operated by the San Luis Delta Mendota Water Authority.  Our Water
> District has 2 Directors on the Water Authority's board.
>
> Thursday, at 10:00 AM, the San Luis Delta Mendota water Authority board
> will hold a meeting at the Water District's headquarters in San Jose.
> At the conclusion of the public agenda for that meeting, they will go
> into closed session and, among other items, discuss the Delta Tunnels.
> The major user of Water Authority water is the Westlands Irrigation
> District.  Westlands has recently been fined by the SEC for using "Enron
> style accounting" to shore up their bond ratings.  It seems pretty clear
> that the Water Authority is trying to get urban rate payers to pay a
> larger percentage of the cost of the tunnel project, even though that
> project will not add one drop of water to our reserves. But, the cost
> will end up being passed on to the Water District, to our communities
> and to us as ratepayers.
>
> We should all be following this closely and letting OUR Water District
> know that this is not the way to do business, in closed sessions where
> they figure out how to keep from being sued, which the Howard Javis
> Taxpayer Assn. has threatened to do.  If anyone is free on Thursday
> Morning, I would ask that you show up at the Water District HQ at 10:00
> to express your
> --
> "Anytime you have an opportunity to make things better and you don't,
> then you are wasting your time on this Earth" - /Roberto Clemente/
>
>
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