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Critical Meeting 12/6 8AM @ HB City Hall

• Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board is having a workshop at HB City Hall on December 6 at 8AM.  Please show up.

R4RD Response to OCWD Letter to Governor

• Following is R4RD’s response to OCWD’s request that Governor Newsom help expedite Poseidon’s permitting process.
  Gov Newsom OCWD response 10-30-2019

Common Sense from OCWD Director

• Here is a brief video from Kelly Rowe,OCWD Director for District 7,  going over why Poseidon Desal plant does not make sense.

Updated Timeline

• Timeline has clarified.  Here is an updated Timeline:
  October 15, 2019
  Town Hall meeting
  Plan on attending
  December 6, 2019
  Santa Ana Regional Water District has permit workshop at HB City Hall.
  Plan on attending
  February, 2020
  Santa Ana Regional Water District votes on final permit
  Plan on attending
  Q2-Q3 2020
  Coastal Commission hearing
  Plan on attending

  The above dates are likely based on the latest information we have received.

Carlsbad Plant is Unreliable

• The SD County Water Authority released the 2019 fiscal year info for the Carlsbad desal plant.  OC Voice provides a good summary here.  The actual report cane be found here.  Main point is the plant missed their agreed upon numbers by almost 20%.  Not good for the premium SD is paying for a supposedly reliable water source.

Updated Timeline

• Poseidon continues to drag their feet on answering SARWQCB questions.  Here is the updated Timeline:
  August 2, 2019
  SARWQCB will have an agenda item on the Poseidon’s proposed mitigation options
  September 13, 2019
  SARWQCB has permit workshop
  Plan on attending
  December 6, 2019
  SARWQCB votes on final permit
  Plan on attending
  Q1 2020
  Coastal Commission hearing

  The above dates are likely based on the latest information we have received.

Poseidon to Hurt Low Income Ratepayers

• Azul released a UCLA report on the Environmental Justice issues around the Poseidon project.

  The only plausible impact of Agreement Water on disadvantaged households in the county will be a decrease in affordability due to higher system rates

Timeline

• What are the next steps in Poseidon’s Approval Process?
  June or early July 2019
  SARWQCB issues draft permit
  August 2, 2019
  SARWQCB has permit workshop
  Plan on attending
  October 25, 2019
  SARWQCB votes on final permit
  Plan on attending
  Q1 2020
  Coastal Commission hearing

  The above dates are likely based on the latest information we have received.

   

Poseidon is a bad deal for OC

• Steve Bone’s article in OCR outlines why it does not make sense for rate payers.

Poseidon Ranked Worst Option

• A study commissioned for Municipal Water District of Orange County  show Poseidon is the worst option.
  

Status In Carlsbad

• Great presentation to the CCC by Mandy Sackett

SD Desal Lesson to OC

• Marco Gonzalez has a great commentary in the SD Union Tribune.

  You don’t have to look too far for proof that Poseidon will be an unreliable partner.

California Could Have Stored Abundant Water Underground

• Newsdeeply has a great article about storing water during rainy years.  See it here.

  California has much more potential to store water underground in aquifers than in surface reservoirs. The state should be focused on this opportunity for future years, writes scientist Mohammad Safeeq.

Future of Desal in CA

• Interesting Article by Tony Davis.

  The future of coastal desalination in California could be determined by the decision on permits for a plant in Huntington Beach

The Ocean Isn’t the Answer in California

• Justin Fox posted an article on Bloomberg View about why desal does not make sense.

  Whenever there’s a drought in California, a seemingly obvious source of new water supply beckons. The state abuts a giant ocean. Why not just take the salt out of some of that seawater? It’s the high-tech, forward-looking thing to do, right? It’s also the really expensive thing to do.

  Read more here.

New Stanford Report: Desal Location is Key

• New Report from Stanford highlights the imports that the location of a desalination plant is critical for its overall success.  Key among these are:

  1. Easy access to renewable engine
  2. Ability to use subsurface intake
  3. Availability of other water supplies

  Article can be found here.

Managing Drought: Learning from Australia

• A new report shows strategies developed and mistakes made during Australia’s decade-long millennium drought provide a powerful resource for California, as the state enters its fifth year of severe drought.  The report can be found here.

South OC has little demand for Desal Water

• South Orange County has to import most of their water, but not too interested in expensive desal water.  Orange County Water District General Manager Michael Markus said the South Coast Water District plans to build a plant at Doheny State Beach in Dana Point that was expected to produce 15 million gallons of desalinated water per day.  However, Kennedy said
  

  [Doheny Desal] expected production was cut to 5 million gallons per day because of a lack of interest from surrounding water agencies

  The LA Times article can be found here.

Fact-Checked:SD Desal Water Dumped in Lake

• The Voice Of San Diego has a great article about the misleading (possibly lie) Scott Maloni said at an OCWD meeting regarding desal water being dumped in a lake.
  Here is the article

Carlsbad Desal Plant Launches Amid Ample Water

• Morgon Cook from San Diego Union Tribune writes:
  “The $1 billion desalination plant coming online next month in Carlsbad will fit right in with years of careful planning and investment in water supply in San Diego County.
  It will also worsen a peculiar San Diego problem amid a multi-year drought — oversupply of water.
  Unlike other parts of California, San Diego has 99 percent of the water needed for normal usage. But statewide conservation mandates have applied equally to areas that have plenty of water and those that don’t, so the result here has been water piling up unused while local water agencies raise rates to make up for lost sales.”

  Link to SD Union Tribune