Yesterday a water issue that will affect every person, business, and farm in Monterey County came before the Board of Supervisors. The chamber was packed with people, like myself, who have worked water issues for years and wanted to contribute to the public debate about how the count should implement the recent Groundwater Sustainability Act issued by the State. As has been the case throughout the last 10 months, my opponent was once again missing in action. The meeting began with a staff lawyer explaining the legal requirements the county must comply with from three bills that Sacramento legislators issued this summer. His report confirmed that the type of water projects I’ve been talking about since day-1 of this campaign comply with the State’s guidelines. Additionally, the laws passed by our legislators finally bring California into step with 28 other western states for controlling groundwater usage. I attended to represent North Salinas and North County. Below are my comments for establishing a board that is qualified and will generate hard sustainability solutions that have been ignored for years by a majority on the board of supervisors and by the county’s Water Resources Agency. EDS COMMENTS: I’m Ed Mitchell I’ve worked on North County aquifer and desalination issues for 19 years as a member of the Prunedale Preservation Alliance and Prunedale Neighbors Group. One fact that guides me is that a healthy environment equals a healthy economy. It’s not an either or issue. The state’s legislature has recognized that fact and issued the Groundwater Sustainability Act with the requirement to establish a Groundwater Sustainability Agency and for the county to establish and implement a 20-year plan to achieve water basin sustainability. As PPAs spokesman I recommend that you establish a Groundwater Sustainability Agency separate from and equal to the Water Resource Agency reporting to the supervisors who retain and make final sustainability assessment, policy, action plan, and budgeting decisions. We recommend that the selection and make up of the GSA board be accomplished similar to how the State’s Regional Quality Control Board members are selected. Each director position has a defined skill set or expertise that will allow them to make knowledgeable sustainability recommendations to you. For example one position should require water law expertise, another should be a hydrogeologist, a third could require financial skills, etcetera. What we are saying is that the GSA should support you on designing sustainability policy and action plans that do not shock the local economy but gradually move to a sustainable water basin. In parallel the Water Resource Agency should support you as your implementation water agency. Such a configuration allows the GSA to propose objective sustainability projects that will be painful and have economic impacts in some cases. In parallel the Water Resource Agency, which is staffed with landowner directors, can provide the GSA, the public, and your board with their independent assessment of the economic impacts of recommended sustainability projects. You may recall in 2009 I and hydrogeologist Bill Theyskins, as PPA representatives, recommended that the general plan include a definition of basin sustainability. However, a majority on this board rejected that approach because it was “too controversial”. PPA’s intent was to establish a triggering mechanism to cause the county to proactively work on sustainability efforts to protect our local economy, including our building trades industry. Given California’s enactment of the Groundwater Sustainability Act such sustainability actions are no longer “controversial” but absolutely required to protect future generations living and working in Monterey County.
Posted on: Wed, 22 Oct 2014 16:18:12 +0000
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