And now:Ish <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:
-----Original Message-----
From: Ruth Lopez <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: Inform <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Date: Wednesday, April 07, 1999 8:51 AM
Subject: Opposition to SB 960
To: The Office of the California Senate Legislative Analyst
From: PARDners (A grassroots association with office in Needles, California).
Re: PARDners registers its opposition to SB 960 (COSTA).
PARDners is opposed to SB 960 because it unfairly eliminates as a factor in
determining who should control groundwater basins "wells that supply
single-unit dwellings," or, in other words, "family use" of groundwater
. SB 960 would exclude wells that supply single-unit dwellings when
calculating the average well yield of the groundwater basin. By excluding
slow pumping, domestic home wells, SB 960 would manipulate the well yield
formula increasing the number of groundwater basins which the Metropolitan
Water District ("MET" or "MWD") could control.
This bill is prejudiced against families, homesteaders, and real people and
is designed and intended to give corporate powers, big business and
government agents control of indigenous groundwater supplies to the
detriment of traditional, local, beneficial use by individual families and
native habitat. The will of the people by initiative and referendum is
undermined by not addressing a vote of the people in determining who
controls local ground water basins.
A host of proposed water law bills before the California Legislature this
year including SB 60, SB 478, SB 1088, SB 520, 521, 552, 553, 554, if
passed, would change the face of water law in the State of California.
All of these bills seem to have been coordinated and designed to address
different specific angles in water law which would work together to
eliminate any and all protections which individual homeowners with domestic
wells might have to guard against MASSIVE DOWN DRAFTS OF GROUND WATER
BASINS BY "LOCAL AGENCIES" SUCH AS THE MWD FOR THE PURPOSE OF WATER
TRANSFER TO AREAS SUCH AS, AND IN PARTICULAR, "THE EAST SIDE RESERVOIR".
The existing formula for determining who controls ground water basins
based upon average well yield is not sound science and excludes important
factors such as the will of the affected residents/population (water
agents/directors are not elected), recharge rate, historic use, and local
beneficial use not only for domestic purposes, but also for natural habitat
management. In desert regions, habitat is dependent upon natural artesian
wells which source water is healthy high ground water basins. If these
basins are downdrafted significantly for WATER TRANSFER projects by
controlling agencies, habitat and wildlife will suffer and diminish.
We are opposed to SB 960 which would increase the power and control of
non-elected, quasi-government, tyrannical water agencies, such as the MWD
(Metropolitan Water District) over water in basins where wells are
presently used for personal and domestic purposes. A specific example
used by Costa's legislative analysts was the Mojave River ground water
basins, in the Mojave Desert area between Victorville, Barstow . But SB
960 would apply to all of California and in particular, the Mojave Desert
with its large water basins, east to the Colorado River, specifically in
the Needles, Havasu Landing, Big River, and Rice area where domestic wells
are used extensively. SB 960 is potentially devastating to homeowners
in these areas that depend on their own domestic wells. And the current
factoring appears to also protect and guard against downdrafts that would
affect wildlife which obviously can't vote. The MWD and other agencies
could potentially downdraft water resources to a point where domestic wells
would be rendered useless and artesian springs in the desert area would dry up.
In the Lower Colorado River Region, the METROPOLITAN WATER DISTRICT has for
years attempted to exert its control over the historic and grandfathered
use of personal and domestic water wells by claiming that the ground
water in the "mixing zone" is theirs. It seems that the MWD will not be
happy until the Lower Colorado River is rendered nothing more than a
concrete canal from which every drop of water is controlled and must be
purchased from them.
Now, in a recent ground water mining proposal, under the guise of being in
charge of their own CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act) compliance
on a project proposed for a location outside of their jurisdiction, the MWD
is attempting to transfer "indigenous ground water" from Ward Valley and
the Lower Colorado River Basin in or near Needles at a rate of 150,000 acre
feet per year. They would also transfer Lower Colorado River Water at a
rate of 150,000 acre feet per year on top of the tributary indigenous
ground water of 150,000 acre feet per year.
The MET proposes to transfer pristine Ward Valley water to a salty basin
area (Cadiz Valley) which is contaminated by agricultural development.
Even though the water in Ward Valley is being stored naturally and safely
in Ward Valley and is of beneficial use where it is, by transferring the
water, the MWD moves the water to a location within their jurisdiction
where they would be in control of how the water is allocated and reap the
profits of water sales and RESORT DEVELOPMENT IN HEMET (EAST VALLEY
RESERVOIR). MWD'S proposed water swipe is unfair and destroys the
potential for resort development in the area from which they plan to
transfer water from.
Governor Gray Davis, who had been the HERO in saving the Ward Valley water
aquifer from the potential threat of nuclear waste contamination, has
become our new ADVERSARY as he turns the Ward Valley battle field into a
full fledged WATER WAR ZONE by making political appointees of people with
connections with the MWD/Cadiz water transfer people:
1) Rusty Arias is Davis's appointee to Director of the State's Department
of Parks and Recreation. Arias is former "Gang of Five," (along with San
Bernardino County Supervisor Jerry Eaves and Sen. Steve Peace) who
reportedly is paid $5000 per month by Cadiz and owns 20,000 shares of Cadiz
stocks; and
2) Harley Knox, who has personal interest and is a developer in the East
Side Reservoir area was appointed to Chair the Department of Boating and
Waterways which has just allocated over 5 Million $$$ in marina
development at the Reservoir...obviously they are going to have to get
those initial 300 billion gallons of water to fill the aquifer from
SOMEWHERE.
We are opposed to SB 960 because it is enabling legislation which furthers
the efforts of the MWD to transfer water from the Lower Colorado River
Basin and its tributary areas such as Ward Valley and will result in the
environmental and economic devastation of communities and natural habitat
of endangered or threatened species which presently benefit. Groundwater
is important to the maintenance of natural artesian springs and wells used
by wildlife in the Mojave Desert. It is important that ground water basins
are full and not depleted. High water tables are essential for wildlife
and for operations such as surface salt mining...It is not in the people's
best interest to deplete and down draft every water aquifer on earth.
We are also opposed to furthering the control and power of the MWD and and
other powerful local water agencies that rule by force of martial law and
seem to be accountable to no one, as the Courts refuse to hear our
complaints against MWD's water law attorneys from the law firm Best, Best
and Krieger (BB&K).
BB&K's involvement in the City of Needles has been crucial in the MWD's
proposed indigenous groundwater transfer project since control of Needles,
the first California community along the banks of the Colorado River, is
the key to control of the groundwater basin. Significantly, this community
is rich in natural resources and abundant in water which could potentially
be developed for local beneficial use. However, development has escaped
Needles through such impositions as heavy fees upon new construction, and
difficulty in obtaining necessary business licenses. Further, due to great
abuse and mismanagement of public funds, the City of Needles assets have
been sold or put in hock with BB&K acting as bond counsel, without the vote
of the people. Hundreds of thousands of City funds were used by BB&K in
litigation including BB&K's filing of frivolous malicious lawsuits and/or
investigations against their own client Council Persons Ruth Lopez and
Charles Butler who they were hired to advise; these malicious
investigation and prosecutions conducted by MWD's Attorneys BBK, happened
without foundation after Lopez and Butler successfully forced the Council
into voting for a water project in Ward Valley in 1993. But suddenly,
somehow, millions of dollars of City electric/water funds were lost by
diversion into "hidden fund transfers" without the State, the County or
BB&K prosecuting ANY of those City Officials responsible for the City's
finances. AND it is important to know that there were no funds left to
install the one test well that Ruth Lopez and Charles Butler had wanted
installed to prove the viability of the small water indigenous groundwater
project proposed for Ward Valley. Now, with deregulation and loss in
electric revenue, the City is likely to go bankrupt which would force it to
become County Unincorporated Territory. Then, San Bernardino County can,
with SB 960 and SB 1088 etc. etc. in place, control the groundwater basin
and run off rights which the local citizen now enjoy, would certainly
inure to the County or its agency perhaps Cadiz, with the Davis appointees,
or the MWD.
This is so unfair to the people of Needles, who are politically isolated
and economically depressed, who live in blighted oppressive conditions,
without sidewalks and street lights, who pay high utility rates and who's
school district are reported to have been diverted to Los Angeles by state
legislation, so that the people have had to borrow last year to maintain a
school that is reported to be full of lead paint and asbestos and is
falling apart. Let me testify to the Senate, publicly, so that you may
know the true story of "Justice" in America, Los Angeles style. L.A.'s
greed can no longer be tolerated.
STRONGLY OPPOSED SB 960: PARDners
Ruth Lopez, Director and former City of Needles
Council Member
420 "E" Street
Needles, CA 92363
760/326-4318 [EMAIL PROTECTED]
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Tsonkwadiyonrat (We are ONE Spirit)
Unenh onhwa' Awayaton
http://www.tdi.net/ishgooda/
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