Water Supply

In 2003, the City Council rejected Poseidon's environmental report and identified three issues the company needed to resolve. Nearly two years later, Poseidon officials argued that they've met those demands and city staff has signed off on the report, but concerns linger from nearby neighbors and environmentalists. Here's an update on the three issues that might come up during the desalination debate: Marine life o7The Issuef7: The original report didn't adequately address the impact of Poseidon's use of AES' intake pipeline on marine life.

It’s no secret that California is facing a water crisis. Environmentalists have been warning the public for years, and now public policy makers are beginning to pay attention. Fountain Valley is looking to boost water prices because the city needs the money to maintain its water system. The Huntington Beach Public Works Department is cutting down on its watering, a move that will save more than $87,000 each year. Last week Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced a 20-year, $1.5 billion water supply strategy.

As far as crises go, the Newport Beach water shortage of 1956 and 1957 won't top anyone's list. Still, for residents living in the area and for former City Manager Robert Shelton, it did take a coordinated effort to avert a major problem. Shelton -- who worked for the city from 1956 to 1961 and later served on the City Council -- said that back then Newport Beach's population was about 17,000 during the winter, and double that during summer months.

The lieutenant governor of California has urged Poseidon Resources, the company that plans to build a desalination plant in Huntington Beach, to seek more environmentally friendly ways of creating drinkable water. Lt. Gov. John Garamendi, in a letter dated July 15, told Poseidon Chairman and Chief Executive James M. Donnell that he would oppose any new desalination plants that use ocean water until all options for treating wastewater had been tested and rejected. Using wastewater would use less electricity and have a much smaller environmental impact than using ocean water, he said.

Make no mistake: A plan in the works to ensure Huntington Beach's future drinking water supply is a tough one to swallow. It's an idea that obviously will take some getting used to, and one that raises legitimate questions about safety standards. The $600-million plan being proposed by the Orange County Water District would convert 150-million gallons of treated sewage water each day into potable water, for use both in the tap and to keep seawater from entering the area's underground aquifer.

NATURAL PERSPECTIVES In a recent column, we wrote about the Orange County groundwater basin, how it is currently over-drafted and how Huntington Beach is likely to face cuts in the amount of water we can draw from it. The backup supply for Huntington Beach is the Metropolitan Water District, which gets water from Northern California and from the Colorado River. Well, it turns out that the Metropolitan Water District may not be such a reliable source, either.

This change has been written on the wall for a long time. The writing was faint, but we could see it. A growing population plus a dwindling water supply add up to bad news. The City Council passed a new water restriction ordinance in November that will go into effect Jan. 6. That’s less than two weeks from now. The ordinance includes:  Irrigation of lawns/landscaping is prohibited between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.  Irrigation is limited to a maximum of 15 minutes per day per station.

hbi-natperspectives07TextTO27E01CNatural Perspectives The last few columns on global climate change, organic farming and sustainable living have been leading up to today's column on the importance of conservation. A couple of months ago, I was asked to give a talk on that topic to staff at the Orange County Conservation Corps. Vic suggested I lead off with pictures of California to show what a beautiful planet we live on. I chose a picture of Bolsa Chica and one of Yosemite.

In bid to convince council, company officials say they will provide discounted water to Huntington.Poseidon is offering Huntington Beach a discounted water supply in hopes of securing approval for its desalination facility at Monday's meeting. Officials with the Connecticut-based company said they're prepared to sell Huntington Beach three million gallons of water per day at a rate 5% cheaper than it currently pays the Municipal Water District of Orange County if the city gives it a conditional use permit to build a $250-million desalination plant behind the AES power plant at Newland Avenue and Pacific Coast Highway.

A man who lives across the street from a toxic landfill undergoing cleanup said his house has been overrun by droves of rats. Dominic Menaldi, who is well-known in his neighborhood for his medieval castle-style home on Bermuda Drive, said he thinks that the landfill renovation has caused "hundreds" of dislocated rats to run onto his property, scaring him and his family. Cleanup of about 100,000 tons of toxic material from the 70-year inactive Ascon Landfill in Huntington Beach began last month.

Vic and I returned recently from a birding trip with his class from Irvine Valley College to the eastern Sierras. I've been sick ever since. This summer, Vic offered optional transportation to his class of senior citizens. Because of the large number of students in the class, I took a driving test at the college so I could be one of the van drivers. But somewhere along our four-day trip, I caught some kind of "terminal tiredness" virus that has just wiped me out. I've been on the couch this week, sleeping, sleeping, sleeping.

The construction of the Huntington Beach Seawater Desalination Facility is clearly in the best interest of the city and its residents. Here are the facts: 1. The project will produce more than % $2 million annually in tax revenue, new revenue the city can use for general fund needs like parks, street repair and police and fire services. 2. No taxpayer money will be spent constructing the project, and it will create 950 jobs during construction and more than 300 direct and indirect permanent jobs, helping our local economy.

In 1992, the United Nations designated March 22 as World Water Day. The first celebration was in 1993. That’s why you may have noticed increased media coverage of water lately. For example, the entire April issue of National Geographic is devoted to water stories. One article, “California’s Pipe Dream: A heroic system of dams, pumps and canals can’t stave off a water crisis,” is about Southern California. Southern California is in a real water crisis, and it’s not going to go away.

Vic and I just returned from a three-day weekend in Yuma, Ariz., and Brawley. In case that sounds like an odd vacation, I should point out that it was not a holiday for us. Vic was working, leading his natural history class for senior citizens on a field trip. I tagged along to provide comic relief. This outing was mainly a birding trip, but we learned about other things as well. At Yuma, we visited Imperial Dam, where water from the Colorado River is diverted into California’s All-American Canal and Arizona’s Gila Gravity Main Canal.

The Parthenon it is not. There are no monumental facades, ornate columns or elaborate sculptures. And set back from Ward Street in Fountain Valley behind a screen of trees and bushes, it’s barely even visible to passersby. You’ve likely never seen it, but the Orange County Water District’s Groundwater Replenishment System is an architectural gem. Just ask the folks at Mammoth, an architecture blog that in January named the facility to its list of the best architecture of the decade.