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Wednesday, April 26, 2006 Quote of the Day: "Everyone has an opinion, and they will offer it to you whether you ask for it or not." Roger Turner (Regulatory Analyst, EMWD) Born on this Day: Anita Loos, Teddy Edwards, Bambi Linn, Carol Burnett, Duane Eddy, Bobby Rydell, Gary Wright, Roger Taylor, Chris Mars, Michael Damian, Kevin James, T-Boz, Jordan Brewster, and Jessica Lynch. On this Day in 1986: The world’s worst nuclear disaster to date occurred at Chernobyl, in the Ukraine. Thirty one people died in the incident and thousands more were exposed to radioactive material. Sent to more than 24,000 readers nationwide... and thousands more via our lineup of online ads like the one above that appears on watertechonline.com Latest postings: Rancho California Water District: Assistant General Manager East Bay Municipal Utility District: Junior Engineer (Civil) East Bay Municipal Utility District: Associate Civil Engineer City of Tustin: Water Equipment Operator City of Santa Cruz: Wastewater Mains Field Crew Leader Want more? See all postings. Pic of the Week Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District Solar Project "This is a picture of EVMWD's new six-million dollar solar project." thanks to Rob Whipple, Conservation Specialist, EVMWD. Do you have a photo you'd like to submit? Send us an e-mail. Today's News —  Water Supply Monterey County water projects closer to funding (Monterey Herald, 4/26) "Monterey County has made the first cut in its bid to get $23 million in state funding for the Salinas Valley Integrated Regional Water Management Plan." —  Water Quality Bill to improve San Jerardo/Chualar water backed (Monterey Herald, 4/26) "For years, San Jerardo and Chualar residents have struggled at the local level to improve the contaminated water coming from their taps." BLM says arsenic of concern (Riverside P/E, 4/26) "High levels of arsenic left over from a hundred years of mining near the northwest corner of San Bernardino County has federal officials worried about the potential health risk to residents and off-roaders." Stockton facility may be fined for well violations (EPA News Release, 4/25) "The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today is proposing a fine of $62,758 against SMS Briners Inc. of Stockton, Calif. for failing to monitor and report activities required by its underground injection well permit under the federal Safe Drinking Water Act." —  Levees Governor balks at talk, calls for action on levees (Contra Costa Times, 4/26) "Federal officials still are not taking seriously the threat of a failure in California's aging levee system and are risking another New Orleans-style disaster by failing to provide funding for repairs, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Tuesday." J levee not added to updated repair list (Oroville Mercury Register, 4/25) "Hamilton City's battered and deteriorating J levee is still not slated for emergency repair, although a levee in Colusa County is one of five added last week to the state's official list of critical erosion sites slated for repair this summer." —  Surface Water Klamath solutions unveiled (Eureka Times-Standard, 4/25) "Several people gathered outside the Humboldt County Courthouse on Monday to show solidarity with a San Francisco event where Rep. Mike Thompson announced his intention to call for aid to local fishermen and a permanent solution to the problems in the Klamath River." Great Lakes cleanup projects get new direction (EPA News Release, 4/25) "Acting under the authority of the Great Lakes Legacy Act, the agency has outlined how projects will be identified, selected and evaluated to clean up the sediment and reverse the environmental harm to Great Lakes rivers and harbors." —  Runoff Risk lurks in Sierra waters (Mercury News, 4/26) "Bay Area hikers heading to the Sierra Nevada this summer should be extra careful about where they find their drinking water, particularly if cows are nearby. That's the upshot of a new study that found cattle-grazing in national forests between Lake Tahoe and Mount Whitney is the leading source of E. coli contamination in Sierra streams and lakes." Pollution rules extend to growers (Ventura County Star, 4/25) "Ventura County's $1.4 billion agricultural industry will face new regulations meant to staunch the flow of pesticides, fertilizers and other pollutants from area fields into surface water and groundwater." —  Wastewater Osos pumping concern rests on diesel exhaust (SLO Tribune, 4/26) "To the relief of some in Los Osos, water quality regulators have been forced to rethink a mandatory septic-tank-pumping plan because of diesel exhaust from the trucks required to transport the town's waste." Water board tanks Los Osos septic plan (San Luis Obispo Tribune, 4/25) "In a dramatic reversal of a months-old position, regional water quality regulators are backing down from their plan to force Los Osos residents to pump their septic tanks six times a year until a communitywide sewer is built." Ridgecrest ordered to stop discharging metals into sewer system (EPA News Release, 4/25) "The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently ordered the city of Ridgecrest, CA, to investigate and address the discharge of metals to its sewer system." Night is the best time to visit London's sewers (The Slate, 4/25) Thanks to Sean Kilpatrick for this one: "In some of the great cities of Europe—Paris, Vienna, Prague, and Brussels—tourists bored with life above ground can descend below. All these cities have sewer museums and tours, and all expose their underbelly willingly to the curious. But not London, arguably the home of the most splendid sewer network in Europe." —  Stormwater Local agencies spent $1.5 million fighting flooding (Stockton Record, 4/26) "Local agencies spent $1.5million fighting spring flooding in San Joaquin County this rainy season, officials estimated Tuesday." Sweeping mandate for flood coverage dies (Sacramento Bee, 4/25) "Legislation to require virtually every Sacramento home and business owner to purchase flood insurance as a hedge against catastrophic levee failure died Monday in an Assembly committee." —  Local/Agency News Convicted ex-water official's appeal is denied (Daily Breeze, 4/26) "Former West Basin Municipal Water District board member R. Keith McDonald reported back to prison Tuesday as an appellate court rejected a challenge of his 2004 conviction on political corruption charges." Report criticizes NID rate increases (Grass Valley Union, 4/25) "A Nevada County grand jury report Monday blasted the Nevada Irrigation District for continually raising water rates while holding large financial reserves." Nevada County Grand Jury releases report on NID (YubaNet, 4/25) "Nevada Irrigation District (NID) is the largest Special District in Nevada County and is responsible for providing water for both household and agricultural use in portions of Western Nevada County and parts of Placer, Yuba and Sutter Counties." Central Basin MWD sets sights under new leadership (Central Basin MWD News Release, 4/25) "The Central Basin Municipal Water District Board of Directors has named Art Aguilar as the District’s new General Manager. A native of the Central Basin area, Aguilar has served as the Co-General Manager of both the West Basin and Central Basin Municipal Water Districts for the past two years." —  Global warming Global warming to blame for hurricanes (Reuters, 4/26) "The record Atlantic hurricane season last year can be attributed to global warming, several top experts, including a leading U.S. government storm researcher, said on Monday." Shrinking Alpine Glacier points to snowless future (Associated Press, 4/26) Thanks to Mark Moss for this one: "The report said Alpine glaciers lost about 10 percent of their ice during the summer of 2003, and predicted three-quarters of Switzerland's glaciers would disappear by 2050 if current trends continued unchanged." —  Everything Else Utilities ramping up pandemic preparedness (WaterWeek, 4/24) "Faced with the prospect of trying to run water and wastewater facilities with 30 to 40 percent fewer employees sickened during a flu pandemic, utilities across the nation are starting to lay plans for coping."   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