Water Update
It was feared (and anticipated) by many that Monterey Peninsula residents and business owners would be facing 50 percent cutbacks in available water pumped from the Carmel River through the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) Cease and Desist Order decision. Fortunately, (at least at this point) State Water Board staff has backed off of the original recommendation and has suggested the Board consider imposing smaller cutbacks, starting in the range of 5 percent and cumulatively increasing through a phased-in process over the course of many years.
The proposed order will be considered by the State Water Resources Control Board on September 2, 2009 and will most likely be adopted before October 1, 2009. There is still much confusion relating to the limits of water made available to many Monterey Peninsula communities, and the timeline associated with water commitments for new service connections.
One point is made very clear throughout the proposed order; Cal Am is violating state water law and must be put in a position to appropriately comply with the order. The true impacts of this order are yet to be fully understood by Monterey Peninsula residents, businesses and elected leadership, and the future of “committed water” to projects in the pipeline is very much in question.
Now, probably more than ever, the need for a new water supply in this region will be realized. Conservation, cutbacks and restrictions on available water may satisfy a legal order, but at what cost? The potential economic impacts are daunting to say the least.
While the news isn’t good, it certainly isn’t as bad as it could be. A publicly owned Regional Water Project coming online prior to mandatory reductions would have been ideal, but at this point, unrealistic. Fortunately, regional water solution efforts continue with a sense of urgency understood by the public, elected officials and the agency in charge of oversight, the California Public Utilities Commission.
We will continue to monitor this issue closely and will update the membership on specific impacts to water availability and entitlement post SWRCB decision on September 2nd. Stay tuned.
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