California’s legislature and new governor were busy last year and a slew of environment and energy laws have just taken effect, from trying to reduce wildfire risks to banning fur trapping.
The measures also touch on a frequent California theme: taking aim at disagreements with the Trump administration and attempts to roll back or weaken environmental protections.
On a warm November morning, John Durand squints over the stern of a small research boat, and gestures toward gray-blue water, and the chaotic tangles of tube-like tule reeds.
Riverside County supervisors today approved the allocation of $350,000 from an environmental improvement fund to support efforts to restore the dying Salton Sea.
In a 5-0 vote without comment, the supervisors authorized the disbursal from the Coachella Valley Air Quality Enhancement Fund to help pay for the planned north end restoration of the 360-square mile lake, which will include the establishment of a lagoon to overlay exposed playa and mitigate the resulting atmospheric impacts.
Rep. Mike Levin said California’s innovations and investments in water supply reliability and renewable energy are a model for the nation – and that the state’s efforts protect the environment while growing the economy at the same time.
Levin, an attorney and congressman from San Juan Capistrano, represents the 49th District, which includes, Encinitas, Carlsbad, Vista, Oceanside and a portion of southern Orange County.
He made his remarks November 6 during a Legislative Roundtable at the San Diego County Water Authority attended by water agency board members and staff, local civic and business leaders and Citizens Water Academy graduates.
“We need a diverse array of resources for water,” said Levin. “Water is a finite resource that we often take for granted.”
The Water Authority periodically holds Legislative Roundtables to hear about water-related issues in Washington, D.C. and Sacramento. More than 60 people attended the Wednesday event, asking Levin a variety of questions about water, energy and climate change.
In his first 11 months in office, he has sponsored and co-sponsored the following bills:
Levin cited the Claude “Bud” Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant as an example of the “deep innovation” necessary to increase sustainability, referencing legislation he introduced to increase federal funding for desalination projects.
He introduced that legislation in July 2019 to raise the funding authorization in the Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act for desalination projects to $260 million.
Levin said his bill would help strengthen regional water supplies by supporting projects like the South Coast Water District’s Doheny Ocean Desalination Project and the City of Oceanside’s Mission Basin Groundwater Purification Facility Well Expansion and Brine Minimization Project.
He also said California has proven that a clean energy economy works to enhance environmental sustainability and jobs.
“We’re leading the way in California, and at the end of the day, we’ve developed a clean energy economy,” Levin said. “The state is a model for the country in how to protect the environment and grow the economy.”
The governor of California delivered a blow to the environmental community recently by vetoing a bill that would have ensured that laws protecting water, as well as air, climate, worker safety and endangered species, could not be weakened by future federal government rollbacks.
At Orange County Coastkeeper, we are disappointed that Gov. Gavin Newsom chose to veto SB 1 because of pressure from water interests, particularly in the San Joaquin Valley.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
