8 responses to “Water Security: Nothing to Worry About?”

1. JP

   September 13, 2021

   So I can keep my toilet that actually works?

2. Peter Garrison

   September 14, 2021

   As long as it’s electric and you share it with four other people.

3. Handle Bard

   September 15, 2021

   There’s a nice new water main going in on ECR but do ya think they could fix the drainage at the same time? Nah. Too efficient.

4. Lynn

   September 16, 2021

   I am no math genius but shouldn’t the amount of water we have go down during a 5 year drought?

5. resident

   September 18, 2021

   You are more of a genius than the geniuses.

6. Joe

   October 30, 2021

   OK, here we go. Negotiations over the Bay Delta Plan have failed and the hammer is about to come down:
   For nearly three years, some of California’s biggest water users, including San Francisco, have been quietly meeting with the state to figure out how much water they should be taking from the San Joaquin River and its tributaries.
   The talks were launched to prevent some of California’s mightiest rivers from drying up, and keep fish populations from disappearing, while still allowing cities and farms to draw the supplies they need. The vision was nothing short of a grand compromise on divvying up California’s water.
   But late last week, the state conceded the negotiations had failed. In a letter to San Francisco and the other mostly agricultural water agencies involved in the discussions, state regulators told the parties they had made insufficient concessions on water use. The breakdown in talks means the state will begin directly regulating river draws, a move that could significantly squeeze the water users, and one they’re bound to fight.
   Under the plan, sometimes called the Bay Delta Plan, 40% of the natural flow of the Tuolumne, Merced and Stanislaus rivers would have to remain in these waterways during peak flows — not pumped out — to salvage the basin. This would leave 60% of the water for cities and farms, which compares to the 90% they currently draw at times.
   Officials at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, which manages the water supply for San Francisco and several other Bay Area communities, said they’re not happy to see the state fall back on regulation.
   “We’re disappointed,” SFPUC spokesperson Will Reisman said in a statement about the recent negotiations.
   https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/California-drought-Key-talks-over-water-use-16576132.php
   We going to be more than just “disappointed”. And in other news, B’game has approved an eight-story 241,000 square foot commercial building at 567 Airport Blvd.
   https://www.smdailyjournal.com/news/local/8-story-office-building-approved-in-burlingame/article_a7e88244-3931-11ec-8b5b-1372c686bd67?utm_source=smdailyjournal.com&utm_campaign=%2Fnewsletters%2Fheadlines%2F%3F-dc%3D1635602426&utm_medium=email&utm_content=headline

7. Joe

   November 3, 2021

   Here are the headlines from yesterday’s DJ– just yesterday’s edition:
   Oyster Point hotel project moves ahead
   6-story, 99-unit apartment building proposed in Millbrae
   Block 21 development adds 6th level
   San Mateo 40-unit condo development in the works
   ————-
   Nothing to see here, move along.

8. Joe

   December 19, 2021

   Fines are coming. From today’s SF Comicle:
   After two years of drought, Gov. Gavin Newsom remains reluctant to put limits on statewide water use. His administration, however, is looking to take a first step.
   Next month, the State Water Resources Control Board is expected to adopt temporary prohibitions on outdoor water practices, including hosing down driveways, filling up decorative fountains and watering lawns within 48 hours of rain.
   A violation of these rules would carry the threat of a $500-a-day fine.
   The 2014 wasteful water-use policy was followed up a year later with outright limits on water use. Then-Gov. Jerry Brown ordered cities and towns to cut water consumption a cumulative 25% statewide. Each community was given a quota, based largely on its past record of savings.
   Newsom has so far asked only for voluntary reductions during the current drought: a cumulative 15% statewide, compared with last year. Since his request in July, water use has dropped 5.6%, according to state data.
   The governor’s office declined to comment for this story.
   https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/California-to-crack-down-on-water-waste-with-16701985.php
   —————————-
   I believe this is a newbie water reporter (Kurtis Alexander) since he writes:
   “About 20% of the state’s total water use is human consumption, much of it going to the types of outdoor activities included in the proposed ban. The other 80% is agricultural.”
   Of course, that is impossible since there are also commercial, industrial and government categories in the usage statistics. But he’s trying.