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Six Schools Flagged For Dangerous Lead Were Promised New Plumbing; New Bond Promises It Again

/in , /by /Voice of San Diegoby Ashly McGlone

A majority of the 11 San Diego Unified schools flagged in 2017 and 2018 for unsafe levels of lead in the water were explicitly promised new or improved plumbing twice in the last decade under previous local facility bond tax measures, but haven’t yet received it, district records show. Safe drinking water has become a centerpiece of the pitch for a new $3.5 billion school facility bond by San Diego Unified School District officials, who say the new tax money would ensure old pipes and lead solders contaminating water with lead would be fixed or removed.

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Environment Report: It’s So Hot That Even Low Temps Are Setting Records

/in , /by /Voice Of San Diegoby Ry Rivard

It’s been hot. That isn’t news. But the heat is, more than ever, unrelenting. When we talk about heat, we tend to think of how hot it is will get at the hottest point in the day. The National Weather Service and others are starting to point out something that’s gotten less attention: Even the lows are record-setting because they aren’t that low.

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Environment Report: San Diego, Don’t Fear The Water Police

/in , /by /Voice of San Diegoby Ry Rivard

For weeks, there’s been a lot of misinformation on social media about a pair of new state laws that attempt to limit indoor water use in California. For most people, the laws don’t do much more than set a new daily goal for indoor water use of 55 gallons per person, starting in 2022. In San Diego, that goal will be pretty easy to meet. In fact, we probably already meet it. According to the city’s water department, the average person uses 60.3 gallons per day, a figure that includes all water used inside and outside.

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Auditor Slams City On Stormwater Mess

/in , /by /Voice Of San Diegoby Ry Rivard

Water bills in the city of San Diego may need to go up by about $9 a month on average to help the city deal with flood control and improve the quality of rivers and streams. A new city audit looks into how poorly funded the city’s stormwater program is. Stormwater is a fancy name for water on the ground after it rains.

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Officials Scrambled To Seal Twin Tunnels Deal Out Of Fear Newsom Could Kill It

/in , /by /Voice Of San Diegoby Ry Rivard Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

Water officials and members of Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration rushed to seal the deal on a multibillion-dollar plan to build two tunnels to move water south from Northern California partly out of fear that Gavin Newsom could undo the whole plan if he becomes governor, newly released documents show. In fact, the jockeying was so intense, watchdog groups have alleged the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California broke state open meeting laws when it approved the project two months ago, and now Metropolitan is planning to re-vote.

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After Years Of Skepticism, San Diego Supports Massive Water Project

/in , /by /Voice Of San Diegoby Ry Rivard Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

The San Diego County Water Authority now supports Gov. Jerry Brown’s twin tunnels project, a $17 billion plan to carry water south from the rivers of Northern California. For five years, the Water Authority has been one of the fiercest critics of the plan. It’s worked since 2013 with environmental groups opposed to the tunnels, and it’s spent countless employee hours trying to undermine the project. Just last month, Water Authority representatives tried to prevent Southern California’s largest water agency from spending $11 billion on the project.

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San Diego Officials Warn Against ‘Water Tax’

/in , /by /Voice Of San Diegoby Sara Libby Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

The Assembly this week passed a gun control measure that would let employers, co-workers and school employees seek gun violence restraining orders that could allow law enforcement to seize the guns of someone who’s exhibited threatening behavior. Two Republicans crossed the aisle to vote for the bill, Catherine Baker of Dublin and San Diego’s Brian Maienschein. Though Republicans generally oppose gun-control measures, Baker and Maienschein’s votes shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.

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Schools Find Lead In Filtered Water

/in , /by /Voice Of San Diego

San Diego Unified found lead in water where it definitely should not be: coming from faucets with water filters on them. Last year, San Diego Unified found 38 schools with elevated levels of lead in their water. The district began replacing plumbing and fixtures and, in some cases, installing new water filters designed to remove lead. Lead is unsafe at any level and is especially damaging to children’s brains. Recently, though, the district has gotten results that show lead in newly filtered water. Samer Naji, a spokesman for the school district, said the results are a “head-scratcher.”

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Environment Report: San Diego Searching For New Solar Sites

/in , /by /Voice Of San Diegoby Ry Rivard Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

As it tries to find ways to get more green energy, San Diego is studying spots to install new solar arrays across the city. Clean Coalition, a Menlo Park-based nonprofit, is spending the next year and a half looking for places that can host “meaningfully-sized” solar projects. The effort is paid for by a federal grant meant to help the city reach its goal of receiving only clean energy by 2035. Environmentalists have argued that smaller, local solar projects can help the city wean itself off power from big companies with big projects, like San Diego Gas & Electric.

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Ruling Slams SDG&E’s Plan For A New Gas Pipeline

/in , /by /Voice Of San Diegoby Ry Rivard

California utility regulators seem to have little appetite for San Diego Gas & Electric’s $640 million plan to build a new natural gas pipeline across the county. A draft decision released Wednesday shows how regulators have begun analyzing major new projects through the lens of climate change. In that context, a California Public Utilities Commission judge said SDG&E’s plan makes no sense. The state is trying to reduce the use of natural gas, which is a major contributor to climate change.

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