About Brown and Caldwell

Specialty Pages Asset Management Infrastructure Funding Water Resources BC News Exclusives Water in the West Water Mission in Iraq Big Changes for Little Walnut Creek Hurricane Katrina  Grizzly Water Veterans Road Warrriors: Water pros kick-start 'Buffalos' motorcycle gang Bennett's Beacon Going Coastal With Ellen Stern Harris

Staff Ken Harlow, Crusty Editor Jennifer Finley, Managing Editor (E-mail Jennifer)

Recent News 2/13/2006 2/14/2006 2/15/2006 2/16/2006 2/17/2006 Archives About this newsletter Reader kudos Reader FAQs

Resources Meetings Agency links Other links Blogs: Hill Water Issues blog Los Osos Sewer blog Notakeover.info Politics of water ScienceBlog.com Tothelastdrop

Tuesday, February 21, 2006 Quote of the Day: "Before God we are all equally wise - and equally foolish." Albert Einstein Born on this Day: Erma Bombeck Nina Simone Rue McClanahan David Geffen Tyne Daly Kelsey Grammer Alan Trammell,  Mary Chapin Carpenter Christopher Atkins William Baldwin, Charlotte Church, and Jennifer Love Hewitt. On this Day in 1965: Malcolm X was assassinated in New York City at the age of 39 by assassins identified as Black Muslims. Sent to more than 20,000 readers nationwide... and thousands more via our lineup of online ads like the one above that appears on watertechonline.com Latest postings: Yuba County Water Agency: Assistant Power Systems Manager Inland Empire Utilities Agency: WWT Operator OIT to Gr. V San Bernardino Municipal Water Department: Director of Finance Tahoe-Truckee Sanitation Agency: Engineer Suburban Water Systems: Quality Assurance Manager Otay Water District: Assistant Disinfection Technician Want more? See all postings. Today's News —  Water Supply $110 million for Lancaster's recycled water (LA Daily News, 2/19) "A consultant estimates it will cost $110 million for the city of Lancaster to create a recycled-water network." Monterey water board to mull aquifer project (San Jose Business Journal, 2/19) "For the first time in two years, California American Water (Cal Am) is injecting water from the Carmel River into the aquifer and pumping it back out in the Seaside Basin for when it's needed, according to a formalized agreement between the agency and the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District." Water supplies to 20,000 Chinese suspended (Associated Press 2/19) "A chemical spill on a river in southern China river has cut water supplies to 20,000 people for at least four days, an official Chinese newspaper reported Monday." Drought comes again to East Africa (Associated Press 2/19) "Babies in East Africa are starving again. They lie in battered beds, hooked up to IV drips, their skeletal mothers beside them. Their cries are barely audible for now, but their woes won't end when they have gained weight. All of their families' wealth — their cattle and goats — are dead." —  Water Talks Secrecy of California water talks angers public (Tri-Valley Herald, 2/20) "Closed doors scare people, especially when it comes to California water. Away from prying eyes, two separate but equally crucial conversations are now under way concerning California's water. One conversation could settle the San Joaquin Rivers future. The other, which continued in Sacramento on Friday, could save farmers money and potentially rewrite how the Central Valley Project works." —  Clean Water Act Water wars await Alito in debut on high court (S.F. Chronicle 2/20) "Samuel Alito will make his Supreme Court debut with a splash this week when the justices hear two cases that could determine the future of the Clean Water Act." —  Clean Water State Revolving Fund Inhofe says CWSRF cuts will not survive (AWWA WaterWeek, 2/18) "USEPA's proposed budget for FY2007 got a chilly reception during a Feb. 15 oversight hearing by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, with Chairman James Inhofe, R-Okla., promising that cuts to the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) and other programs 'will not be sustained.'" —  Perchlorate Federal action needed on perchlorate (Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, 2/19) Column by U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein: "On a chain-link fence outside Well No. 2 in Rialto, a sign reads, 'Closed for perchlorate contamination.' This well was deemed unsafe, because a chemical used for years in rocket fuel has seeped into the soil and contaminated the groundwater." Study says no health problems from Perchlorate (Gilroy Dispatch, 2/20) "A new perchlorate study has found that high doses of the contaminant seemingly have no effect on the health of pregnant women or fetuses." —  Surface Water Manager fired over China's polluted river (Associated Press, 2/20) Thanks to Mark Moss for this one: "The manager of a chemical company in northern China has been fired because of a wastewater leak that badly polluted a local river, the official Xinhua News Agency reported Sunday." Feds give Klamath settlement talks time (Eureka Times Standard, 2/19) "Federal energy regulators gave more time to agencies, tribes, fishermen, farmers, environmentalists and a power company to resolve issues surrounding dams on the Klamath River, a sign that a settlement could be close." —  Floods/Levees Development raises catastrophic flood risk (Associated Press, 2/19) "Concentrated development in flood-prone parts of Missouri, California and other states has significantly raised the risk of New Orleans-style flooding as people snap up new homes even in areas recently deluged, researchers said Saturday." Levee funding changes may sink some islands (Contra Costa Times, 2/20) "The New Year's storm that tormented many of the Delta's aged levee systems blasted through the earthen walls protecting little Fay Island, submerging it under 10 feet of water." Yuba-Sutter wants better flood control (Marysville Appeal-Democrat, 2/19) "City and county officials in Yuba-Sutter want better flood control from Oroville Dam, saying that more flexibility is needed to offset uncontrolled flows on the adjacent Yuba River." —  Wastewater Septic district could trump Los Osos pump plan (SLO Tribune, 2/20) "It’s understandable that the regional water board is frustrated with Los Osos. Just as a long-awaited sewer system was under construction last September, three pro-sewer Community Services District board members were recalled and a proposed midtown site for a sewer treatment plant was killed." Riverside officials propose ban on septic tanks (Riverside P/E, 2/19) "A possible ban on septic tanks could stop any plans to build homes on more than half the available lots in Quail Valley, an unincorporated area on the edge of southwestern Riverside County's residential building boom." Napa County sued over Berryessa pollution (Napa News, 2/19) "The California Attorney General filed suit Friday to stop Napa County officials from spilling untreated sewage into Lake Berryessa and its tributaries." Kern County balks at sewage dumping (LA Daily News, 2/19) "In the middle of Green Acres Farm on a barren stretch of the San Joaquin Valley, a truck stops, tips its trailer and drops 26 tons of steamy, smelly black sludge." Oceanside caps leak, stops flow of treated sewage (SD Union Tribune, 2/18) "City crews have capped a leak that spilled 43,200 gallons of secondary-treated sewage into Garrison Creek on Thursday." —  Cleanups Testing starts for Watson Park cleanup (San Jose Mercury, 2/20) "Soil and water samples will be taken from San Jose's Watson Park beginning today, the first step in determining the impact of an underground trash dump and the cleanup efforts required to make the park safe again for visitors." —  Air Pollution Mills help reduce ammonia levels (Stockton Record, 2/20) "There was a time when dairyman Frank Faria couldn't stand on the edge of his manure lagoon without holding his nose." Rainbow water cited by air pollution board (NC Times, 2/20) "The San Diego County Air Pollution Control District imposed a $6,250 fine on Rainbow Municipal Water District, alleging that the district failed to follow procedures for installing certain equipment." —  Local/Agency News Price hike for water on tap for San Marino (Pasadena Star News, 2/20) "City officials are hoping the squeaky wheel will get the lowest water rate increase." IID to make decision about entity’s future (IV Press, 2/20) "The future of an arm of the Imperial Irrigation District with millions of dollars at its disposal will take center stage Tuesday at the IID Board of Directors meeting." —  Everything Else Glaciers are our business (SF Chronicle, 2/20) Column. "As you read these words, a little more -- maybe a lot more -- of Greenland's glaciers are melting away, and sea levels are that much higher as a result. With that change comes a greater threat to California and other coastal areas worldwide, and a greater threat of severe weather across the planet (with accompanying loss of life and economic well being)." About the California Water News The California Water News is a weekday e-mail with links to current news stories in the California water resources industry.  Subscription is free to qualified persons!  Please go to our subscription page to subscribe.  For more information, you can also see some frequently asked questions. Referrals to new subscribers are welcome, as are suggestions for new links, news stories, opinion pieces, and your agency's press releases.   Any documents you e-mail us may be published on our web site and linked to from the News, subject to editorial discretion. Ken Harlow Brown and Caldwell 400 Exchange, Suite 100 Irvine, CA 92702 714-689-4852