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Wednesday, May 24, 2006 Quote of the Day: "The incompetent with nothing to do can still make a mess of it." Laurence J. Peter Born on this Day: Tommy Chong, Bob Dylan, Gary Burghoff, Patti LaBelle, Priscilla Presley, Steve Upton, Rosanne Cash, Kristin Scott Thomas, Joe Dumars, Gene Anthony Ray, Tommy Page, Rich Robinson, and Billy L. Sullivan. On this Day in 1967: California Governor Ronald Reagan greeted Charles M. Schulz at the state capitol in observance of the legislature-proclaimed "Charles Schulz Day." 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: Water Facilities Authority: Water Treatment Operator III/IV Plumas County, CA: Director of Public Works Central Basin Municipal Water District: Public Affairs Analyst III San Diego County Water Authority: Assistant Management Analyst City of Oceanside Water Utilities Dept.: Geographic Information Systems Specialist Want more? See all postings. Pic of the Week Red Awakening "This picture shows the sunrise overlooking the Temperature Equalization Pond at the Kern County Water Agency in Bakersfield, CA." Many thanks to Michelle Karns with the Kern County Water Agency. Do you have a photo you'd like to submit? Send us an e-mail. Today's News —  Water Alhambra closer to building water treatment plant (Pasadena Star-News, 5/23) "The city is on its way to building a new water treatment facility that will bring its largest producing well back into operation." Snowmelt fills reservoirs (Union Democrat, 5/23) "Rivers could be running especially high this Memorial Day weekend due to recent warm temperatures and a record snowmelt in the Central Sierra." More water needed for Willits (Willits News, 5/23) "The City of Willits, like Brooktrails, may have trouble supplying water to its customers in a drought year." Testing the water on desalination in the U.K. (BBC, 5/23) "The gleaming steel, glass and chrome of London's City Airport, with small planes leaving and arriving regularly, would not seem the obvious point from which to start a discussion about the future water requirements of millions of Thames Water customers." State moves closer to mandating low-flush toilets (San Jose Business Journal, 5/23) "Historians are fond of saying the history of California is the history of its access to water. Now a Santa Cruz legislator is spearheading a plan he says will keep the state's future from being blocked by a shortage of water." Nevada Irrigation District may cut back water (Grass Valley Union, 5/23) "In one of the wettest years on record, the Nevada Irrigation District is looking at conservation and cutbacks during the July-August peak water-use period for about one-half of its customers." Thirsty, eh?; The glass is half empty for Canadians fearful that we may import their water (Las Vegas Sun, 5/23) "We took their hockey, their oil and their beer. Now Canadians fear we will try to take an even more basic resource. " —  Clean Water Act New Mexico groups to sue over Clean Water Act (Los Alamos Monitor, 5/23) "A coalition of New Mexico environmental groups announced in Albuquerque this morning that they intend to sue the Department of Energy and the Regents of the University of California for violations of the Clean Water Act at Los Alamos National Laboratory." —  Infrastructure Lakeside water main break creates sinkhole (SD Union Tribune, 5/24) "Water was shut off to 202 homes and 19 businesses throughout the day yesterday after a 16-inch water main broke, creating a small sinkhole in a residential neighborhood, officials said." SDCWA Mission Trails pipeline repair update (SDCWA, 5/23) NEWS RELEASE. "The San Diego County Water Authority continued to assess repairs needed on Pipeline 3, an untreated water pipeline that failed May 16 in Mission Trails Regional Park." —  Surface Water Adoption of Shasta River plan stalled (Siskiyou Daily News, 5/23) "A plan by the California Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB) to impose restrictions on users of the waters of the Shasta River was not adopted by the RWQCB Board last week. The issue of water quality in the Shasta River will remain unchanged, at least until the end of June." Permit on Delta draws dispute (Contra Costa Times, 5/23) "Seven months after Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger swept aside members of a state panel who were slowing housing construction, the new members of the state Reclamation Board granted a key permit to an 11,000-unit subdivision in the Delta over the objections of its lawyer and chief engineer." Group forms to buoy Delta tourism (Davis Enterprise, 5/23) "The Sacramento Delta covers 738,000 acres across five counties with hundreds of miles of waterways. It also is home to tight-knit communities like Clarksburg, Locke and Rio Vista - towns rich in history that offer boating, fishing, ecotourism, wine-tasting and, yes, even love." —  Floodwater and Levees Levee agency rethinks housing vote (Sacramento Bee, 5/23) "The state Reclamation Board plans to reconsider an April vote that moved toward allowing luxury homes to be built on top of levees on a Delta island." Suit filed over plan to build homes in flood zone (San Francisco Chronicle, 5/23) "Four environmental groups on Monday appealed a California agency's approval of a huge levee to protect part of a proposed 11,000-home development in the flood-prone Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, saying the decision was made illegally and will put thousands of residents at risk." A plan for levees in Natomas basin (Sacramento Bee, 5/23) OPINION. "It's easy to identify a problem. The tough part is crafting a solution that works. My first day in Congress in 1999 included a discussion about how to improve the level of flood protection in my district in general and Sacramento in particular. That ultimately led me to understand that a timely solution requires cooperation among the federal, state and local governments." —  Moo News Dairies and fallowing (IV Press, 5/23) OPINION. "With negotiations currently taking place between the Imperial Irrigation District and San Diego County Water Authority regarding mitigation for the socioeconomic impacts incurred from the fallowing program, dairies have been a bone of contention." —  Toxic Cleanups LA-area company to pay $450,000 for cleanup (EPA, 5/23) NEWS RELEASE. "The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently ordered Advanced Packaging and Products to pay for a cleanup estimated to cost $450,000 that will address hazardous substances released onto the property following a January fire at the paint company’s facility in Carson, Calif. that killed the plant manager and severely burned two employees." —  Rate Hikes Padre Dam OKs water rate hike (SD Union Tribune, 5/24) "The board of the Padre Dam Municipal Water District voted yesterday for the district's first rate increase in five years, overruling an effort by board president Joel Anderson to put off the vote until customers got notification of the proposed rate hike." Ripon decision on water rates delayed (Stockton Record, 5/24) "Questions about how the city asked residents to weigh in on a possible water-rate hike postponed a council decision on the increase." Farmers worry about proposed water hikes (NC Times, 5/24) "A proposed water rate hike that would substantially raise preferential rates for Escondido's agricultural operations has some farmers worried that the higher fees will hang their businesses out to dry." —  Local/Agency News YC's Hoppin appointed to statewide water panel (Marysville Appeal-Democrat, 5/24) "Yuba City resident Charles Hoppin has been appointed to the State Water Resources Control Board, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced Tuesday." Elsinore Valley district considers hiring PR firm (NC Times, 5/24) "Fed up with 'unfounded criticisms' aired by opponents of its highly debated hydroelectric plant proposal, the Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District is considering hiring a public relations firm to promote the project." Oroville Dam postage stamp to be unveiled (DWR, 5/23) NEWS RELEASE. "A stamp depicting the Department of Water Resources’ Oroville Dam will be unveiled at the dam on Saturday, May 27 by the U.S. Postal Service. Oroville Postmaster Joan Cooper will preside over the 9 a.m. – noon May 27 stamp unveiling ceremony near the observation area of Oroville Dam’s Spillway Recreation Unit." MWD’s Solar Cup event draws 34 boats (MWD, 5/23) NEWS RELEASE. "A team of students from Diamond Bar High School won Metropolitan Water District’s fourth annual Solar Cup event Sunday by placing first in the sprint races, second in the endurance race and winning top prize for their technical reports." —  Everything Else AWWA announces the publication of a new book: Select ANSI/AWWA Standards for Small Systems (AWWA, 5/23) NEWS RELEASE. "This book presents a collection of Standards most relevant to small systems: (A100-97 Water Wells, B300-04 Hypochlorites, C651-05 Disinfecting Water Mains, C652-02 Disinfection of Waater-Storage facilities, and G200-04 Distribution Systems Operation Management). The book provides the small systems with a convenient reference for the Standards most often used." 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