In California water news today, Tunnels audit heaps blame on state; State auditor rips Jerry Brown’s $17 billion tunnel project; State auditor faults handling of Delta tunnels contracts; Audit delivers another hit to the Delta tunnels; Delta tunnels consultant was paid millions, but auditor says firm was not qualified; Governor Brown visits LA to lobby for $17 billion Delta water project; Brown signs bill allowing water users to save money; Zinke’s fire memo calls for aggressive forest thinning; and more …
In the news today …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
CAL WATER FIX AUDIT
Tunnels audit heaps blame on state: “State officials who have been planning the $17 billion Delta tunnels for more than a decade failed to determine whether the project pencils out financially and violated state law by hiring a high-level consultant who didn’t meet basic qualifications, according to a state audit released Thursday. Meanwhile, planning costs for what’s now known as the California Water Fix have roughly doubled to about $280 million from $140 million, and the process has dragged on for years. In better news for tunnels supporters, Thursday’s independent audit also found that no state general fund money has been used to date, which is consistent with long-standing promises that only those who benefit from the tunnels will pay for them. ... ” Read more from the Stockton Record here: Tunnels audit heaps blame on state
State auditor rips Jerry Brown’s $17 billion tunnel project: “On the eve of key votes in San Jose and Los Angeles, Gov. Jerry Brown’s $17 billion proposal to build two massive tunnels through the Delta to make it easier to move water from north to south was hit with another setback Thursday as a state audit found it was suffering from “significant cost increases and delays.” The 91-page report from California’s state auditor, Elaine Howle, also said the state Department of Water Resources “has not completed either an economic or financial analysis to demonstrate the financial viability” of the project, which the Brown administration calls the California WaterFix. ... ” Read more from the San Jose Mercury News here: State auditor rips Jerry Brown’s $17 billion tunnel project
State auditor faults handling of Delta tunnels contracts: “California water managers awarded a multimillion-dollar contract to a Sacramento consulting firm without going through the required competitive bidding process, according to the state auditor. In a report released Thursday, state auditor Elaine Howle criticized the California Department of Water Resources for the way it handled a planning contract for California WaterFix, a $17-billion project to re-plumb the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. … ” Read more from the LA Times here: State auditor faults handling of Delta tunnels contracts
Audit delivers another hit to the Delta tunnels: “California‘s water managers appear to have violated state law when they hired a consultant to help plan Gov. Jerry Brown’s $16 billion project to build two massive water tunnels, state auditors said Thursday. The audit also faulted the state Department of Water Resources for not finishing a cost-benefit analysis as the price of the tunnels climbs. The audit is the latest blow to Brown’s plan to build twin tunnels east of San Francisco to deliver water from the Sacramento River mostly to farms and cities hundreds of miles away in central and Southern California. … ” Read more from US News & World Report here: Audit delivers another hit to the Delta tunnels
Delta tunnels consultant was paid millions, but auditor says firm was not qualified: “The Delta tunnels project was just gaining steam, and a San Francisco engineering firm had outbid its competitors to win a $60 million, seven-year state contract to help plan the project. But officials at the California Department of Water Resources weren’t happy with a manager that the company, URS Corp., had assigned to help oversee the planning process. What the state did next was the focus of a highly critical state audit released Thursday. State Auditor Elaine Howle charged that DWR directed URS in 2009 to replace its employee with the president of a Sacramento consulting firm that lacked the qualifications to do the job, in what amounted to a no-bid multimillion-dollar contract that ran afoul of state contracting laws intended to ensure public dollars aren’t being wasted on unqualified firms. … ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee here: Delta tunnels consultant was paid millions, but auditor says firm was not qualified
OTHER CAL WATER FIX NEWS
Governor Brown visits LA to lobby for $17 billion Delta water project: “With two key California WaterFix votes looming, Gov. Jerry Brown expressed confidence Thursday that water agencies will commit to enough funding to sustain the massive project. Brown was in Los Angeles to lobby for the $17-billion proposal, which would re-engineer the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, the hub of California’s complex waterworks. “I’m just trying to put the ball over the goal line,” he said in a telephone interview in between visits to the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California and the Southern California Assn. of Governments. ... ” Read more from the LA Times here: Governor Brown visits LA to lobby for $17 billion Delta water project
OTHER NEWS
Brown signs bill allowing water users to save money: “Gov. Jerry Brown signed a California Cattlemen’s Association-sponsored bill to ease requirements for ranchers who must measure their water diversions from nearby streams. The governor on Oct. 4 approved Assembly Bill 589 by Assemblyman Frank Bigelow, R-O’Neals, that changes a State Water Resources Control Board rule that those who divert more than 10 acre-feet of water per year hire a licensed engineer to install a water-measuring device. Diverters will be able to instead install their own devices or implement their own measurement method after taking a course from the University of California Cooperative Extension. The UC will work with the water board in the coming weeks to develop the course. ... ” Read more from the Capital Press here: Brown signs bill allowing water users to save money
Zinke’s fire memo calls for aggressive forest thinning: “As the West contends with a big wildfire season, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke urged his staff to take aggressive action to prevent wildfires. His memo calls on managers to “think differently” about reducing the accumulation of dense vegetation. He wants vegetation cleared if it encroaches on roads or buildings, and dead trees removed if they can spread fire to valuable property or beyond the boundaries of parks, refuges or other Interior Department lands. Forest fire experts say Zinke gets some things right in his memo but caution that its goal – to stop and prevent forest fires – is unattainable and not even desirable. They say Zinke’s memo and accompanying press release perpetuate the public’s misperception about fire by suggesting that by thinning forests, forest managers can avoid or snuff out forest fires. … ” Read more from Water Deeply here: Zinke’s fire memo calls for aggressive forest thinning
Increasing chance of La Nina, meteorologists don’t know what that means for Northern California: “The chances of a weak La Niña are increasing for the rainy season, and scientists are trying to figure out what that means, especially after a year when the meteorology profession was thrown for a loop by unexpected monsoon-like conditions. La Niña, the inverse of better-known El Niño, is a cooling of equatorial waters in the eastern and central Pacific Ocean and can impact atmospheric conditions worldwide. “The dominant climate indicator we’re seeing right now is for a potential La Niña,” says Mike Anderson, the state climatologist with the California Department of Water Resources. … ” Read more from SF Gate here: Increasing chance of La Nina, meteorologists don’t know what that means for Northern California
Typical early autumn conditions prevail; some thoughts on La Nina: “For the first time in many months, California has been experiencing weather conditions pretty close to the climatological norm for the time of year. After a summer of searing, record-breaking heat, the past few weeks have featured temperatures relatively close to typical early autumn values across much of the state (temperatures have actually been somewhat below average across interior portions of the state, particularly across the Sierra Nevada, where the season’s first dusting of snow fell last week). In a welcome reversal from the relentless inland heat this summer, conditions have been warmer than average only along the immediate coastline–not an unusual fall set-up in California. … ” Read more from Weather West here: Typical early autumn conditions prevail; some thoughts on La Nina
In commentary today …
Audit shows California Water Fix broken beyond repair, says the San Jose Mercury News: They write, “When it comes to solving California’s water challenge, Gov. Jerry Brown has been as inept as Republicans trying to offer up a health care solution. A devastating report released Thursday by state auditor Elaine Howell makes that clear. Despite eight years of pushing his Delta twin tunnels plan, the 91-page report says the state “has not completed either an economic or financial analysis to demonstrate the financial liability of WaterFix (the name the governor gave the project). … ” Read more from the San Jose Mercury News here: Audit shows California Water Fix broken beyond repair
California farm exports help agriculture but at what cost? Peter Drekmeier writes, “I’ve been told it’s impolite to criticize farmers with your mouth full, and I agree. Food production is one of the most important, yet under-appreciated, professions. However, not all farming is created equal. In California, water is a public trust resource, meaning it belongs to the people of the state. Water agencies are granted water rights, but the state can determine which beneficial uses have priority. While it could be argued that food grown in California for Californians is a beneficial use of our water, it’s harder to make that case for crops exported overseas for the benefit of a few farmers – often corporations – at the expense of other water needs. ... ” Read more from the Sacramento Bee here: California farm exports help agriculture but at what cost?
In regional news and commentary today …
Tulare County water alliance wants state funding for drought conditions: “The county has entered into a three-way partnership with the community services districts in Sultana and Orosi, forming the North Tulare County Regional Water Alliance. The county will represent Seville and Yettem in the partnership. The county will also represent Monson until it joins the Sultana Community Services District. The purpose of the alliance is to represent small communities in seeking and securing safe, reliable domestic water. More specifically, the alliance was formed to seek state funding for a large-scale, regional water treatment plant. ... ” Read more from the Visalia Times-Delta here: Tulare County water alliance wants state funding for drought conditions
New LA River leverage public land to increase housing, green space: “Multinational construction firm AECOM on Wednesday rolled out a revitalization plan for hundreds of acres of land alongside the downtown section of the Los Angeles River. The company says it did the research at no charge and with no formal client because it wants to guide the development of under-used, sometimes polluted industrial land along the river and improve the quality of life for current and future residents. “All we’re trying to do is be thought leaders and just say, ‘Region, public decision-makers, elected officials, please, stop and think,'” said Nancy Michali, an AECOM vice president leading the project. “This is how the pieces could fit together, and this is what the vision could be for the future rather than continuing on in this piecemeal perspective.” ... ” Read more from KPCC here: New LA River leverage public land to increase housing, green space
Friday flight over Oroville …
Also on Maven’s Notebook today …
- WEBSITE NEWS: Coming Monday, October 9: The California Water Library
- NEWS WORTH NOTING: Gov. Brown meets with Metropolitan board members about Cal Water Fix; Four SoCal water districts vote in favor of Cal Water Fix; Water and climate report
Sign up for daily email service and you’ll never miss a post …
Sign up for free daily email service and you’ll get all the Notebook’s aggregated and original water news content delivered to your email box by 9AM. And with breaking news alerts, you’ll always be one of the first to know …
About the Daily Digest: The Daily Digest is a collection of selected news articles, commentaries and editorials appearing in the mainstream press. Items are generally selected to follow the focus of the Notebook blog. The Daily Digest is published every weekday with a weekend edition posting on Sundays.
