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Wednesday, March 1, 2006 Quote of the Day "For my birthday, I got a humidifier and a dehumidifier I put them in the same room and let them fight it out." Steven Wright Born on this Day Glenn Miller, Dinah Shore, Harry Belafonte Roger Daltrey, Alan Thicke, and Ron Howard. On this Day in 1961: President Kennedy established the Peace Corps. Sent to more than 23,000 readers nationwide... and thousands more via our lineup of online ads like the one above that appears on watertechonline.com Latest postings: Azusa Light & Water Department: Water Distribution Worker I Las Virgenes Municipal Water District: Resources Conservation Specialist City of Merced: Senior Engineer Otay Water District: Engineering Technician II (Plan Checker) Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District: Computer Maintenance Management System (CMMS) Technician Santa Margarita Water District: Electrical/Instrumentation Tech II or Sr. Santa Margarita Water District: Maintenance Tech or Mechanic For Sewage & Domestic Water Treatment Plant Santa Margarita Water District: Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator or Senior Want more? See all postings. Pic of the Week Devils Gate Dam  "This picture shows the flow at Devils Gate Dam in the City of Pasadena." Thanks to Roumiana Karakanova with the City of Pasadena. Do you have a photo you'd like to submit? Send us an e-mail. Today's News —  Water Supply Huntington Beach approves desalination plant (Orange County Register, 3/1) "Plans for the country's largest water desalination plant won narrow city approval early today, capping four years of environmental study and fierce community wrangling." Suit begins against Castaic Lake agency (LA Daily News, 3/1) "Two environmental groups are suing the Castaic Lake Water Agency over its regional water management plan, alleging the document encourages rampant development and betrayed the public trust." Trial begins on water rights to South County (SLO Tribune, 2/28) "An eight-year-old lawsuit about water rights in the South County went to trial Monday in a Santa Clara County courtroom." Potential droughts discussed in Vallejo (Vallejo Times-Herald, 2/28) "The Vallejo City Council plans a public hearing today on a new law against wasting water and on an updated plan for managing the city's water supply." DWR schedules March snow survey (Business Wire, 2/28) "The next snow survey by the California Department of Water Resources will take place at 11 a.m. Wednesday, March 1, 2006, near Lake Tahoe. " —  Water Quality Murrieta well plan goes to water board (NC Times, 3/1) "Water engineers Tuesday considered a number of ways to fix potentially deadly levels of nitrates at a well in Murrieta ---- including abandoning the well." —  Levees Governor tours Washington seeking federal aid (Contra Costa Times, 2/28) "Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger pressed his case Monday for federal help to fix vulnerable Sacramento River delta levees, securing a commitment from Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff to come to California to see the fragile, century-old flood-protection system." Governor stumps for levee help (Sacramento Bee, 2/28) "Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff, under pressure from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, will tour Sacramento River levees in March to expedite consideration of a request for emergency federal assistance to repair California's vulnerable levee system." Schwarzenegger presses White House on levees (San Diego Union-Tribune, 2/28) "How to prevent catastrophic flooding in California and avoid reductions to the state's National Guard troops were at the top of Gov. Schwarzenegger's agenda Monday as he met here with President Bush and Cabinet secretaries. " —  Flooding Governor wants to add $5 billion to flood bond (Stockton Record, 2/28) "Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is proposing to add $5 billion to his existing $1billion flood-control bond, which could send millions in levee-repair money to the Delta region and San Joaquin County." Flooding despite complaint to Auburn city council (Auburn Journal, 3/1) "The same night a group of citizens complained to Auburn's city council about flooding in their neighborhood, it happened again." —  Delta Pombo: Money spent on delta has produced little (Contra Costa Times, 2/28) "Frustrated members of Congress vented their anger at efforts to save California's most crucial water source on Monday, saying millions of dollars have been spent to study problems in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta with little to show for it." —  Surface Waters American River work to advance (Auburn Journal, 3/1) "The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation is moving ahead on the bidding process for a second phase of the Placer County Water Agency's pump station project that includes restoration of the American River channel at the Auburn dam site by mid-2008." Pajaro River control funds sought (Monterey Herald, 3/1) "Monterey County and state officials are lobbying to get money for projects that will try to tame the sometimes pesky Pajaro River." San Luis Obispo County creeks, lake identified as endangered fish’s habitat (SLO Tribune, 3/1) "Federal wildlife managers have identified 25 creeks and one lake in San Luis Obispo County that are habitat for an endangered fish that lives in brackish coastal creeks and lagoons." Army Corps: Rain will not stop river-clearing plan (NC Times, 3/1) "Despite a rain-soaked riverbed, the Army Corps of Engineers says it will still try to clear the San Luis Rey River channel before nesting season begins March 15." —  Brownfields N.J.: Water standards upheld for brownfields (Associated Press, 2/28) "The state Supreme Court let stand the state's clean-water standards for rehabilitated 'brownfields' sites Tuesday, rejecting an assertion that they have undermined the cleanup of contaminated lands by being so strict." —  Local/Agency News Feinstein steps into fight over Fontana rates (Riverside P/E, 3/1) "For years, Mayor Mark Nuaimi has been telling anyone who will listen about the city's contentious rate battles with the Fontana Water Co." IID Director Allen to retire from public service (IID News Release, 2/28) "Following 44 years of public service, Imperial Irrigation District Director Lloyd Allen has announced that he plans to retire at the end of his present term in December 2006." —  Everything Else TID's $200M electrical plant humming along (Modesto Bee, 3/1) "The Walnut Energy Center — the Turlock Irrigation District's 250-megawatt electricity plant — opened for business Tuesday." Ag at Large: Less land, more income projected (Porterville Recorder, 2/28) "Looking ahead for a year or two can be challenging, but agricultural researchers at the University of California, Davis have envisioned California's agricultural health 30 years in the future and found it robust." 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