Things got a little wild at the San Diego County Water Authority meeting last week when its 36 directors argued over whether they should spend more money studying a controversial $5 billion pipeline to the Colorado River.
Outrage after leaders apparently skipped over female directors waiting to add comments during a discussion period sparked some to change their vote on the matter.
Lake Miramar, a longtime recreational oasis celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, is about to become a key part of San Diego’s new $5 billion Pure Water system that will boost the city’s water independence by recycling treated sewage.
The last of San Diego’s nine city reservoirs to be built, Lake Miramar attracts an estimated 100,000 people a year for jogging, biking, fishing, boating, picnicking and other activities.
The San Diego County Water Authority’s Board of Directors authorized staff to launch the next phase of a study assessing options for long-term water deliveries to sustain the region’s economy and quality of life.
The decision follows months of community dialogue about Phase A of the Regional Conveyance System Study, which was released in August. The study demonstrated the technical viability and economic competitiveness of two routes for an aqueduct to transport the Water Authority’s independent, high-priority Colorado River water to San Diego County.
A top State Water Resources Control Board administrator is “strongly encouraging” California American Water to “resolve disputes” and pursue both short-term and long-term water supply solutions for the Monterey Peninsula while pointing out that the Carmel River aquifer pumping cutback order deadline at the end of next year is approaching with no additional water supply project expected to be operational by then.
The Poway City Council approved several initial steps at Tuesday night’s meeting which could lead to a massive water improvement program for the city. The improvement program, if completed, would be the largest capital improvement program Poway has ever undertaken, said Shadi Sami, principal civil engineer for the city.
The program consists of several parts, but would ultimately replace the city’s existing, decades-old clear well with new storage reservoirs. It would also connect the city with the San Diego Water Authority’s treated water, creating treated water pipelines, a pump station and forebay. Currently, Poway only receives raw water from the SDCWA.
Kern County farmers on Wednesday agreed to chip in $14 million over the next two years to kick off another attempt to move water through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta via tunnel.
Opposition is building against San Diego’s dream of erecting a $5 billion pipeline to the Colorado River in the name of resource independence.
A full complement of 15 members of the Valley Center Community Planning Group Monday, meeting via Zoom, took up several items, all of them informational, rather than voting items.
They listened to a report by Kirk Whitaker of the San Diego County Water Authority on the Hauck Mesa Storage Reservoir that will be constructed over the next couple of years on a location formerly occupied by a much smaller water tank once owned by the Valley Center Municipal Water District.
The SDCWA is the big agency that sells water to Valley Center. It was created by an action of the state legislature in 1944 and provides most water in the county, selling to municipalities.
The Rainbow Municipal Water District will be conducting a test of cured-in-place lining for water transmission pipe.
A 4-0 Rainbow board vote Oct. 27, with Helene Brazier not able to participate in the meeting, approved the professional services agreement with Sanexen Water, Inc., for $74,800 and appropriated that amount from the water capital fund for the project’s budget.
The Friant-Kern Canal has received the approval from the federal government to fix a sag in the canal.
The Bureau of Reclamation gave its approval Tuesday – signing a Record of Decision giving environmental clearance for the project – following action from the Trump administration to invest about $5 million to study and begin pre-construction work on the canal.
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
