Calhouns Can(n)ons

Level 3 Water Severity? Talk to The Hand

James Caruso from County Planning, came to the LOCAC meeting last night to present portions of the SLO County Resource Capacity Study 2007, the report that declares Los Osos is in a level 3 (severe) water shortage (“severe” as in, right now 500 acre feet a year in overdraft, with salt water intrusions permanently ruining portions of the lower aquifer, more overdraft if building is continued to occur). And, naturally, the LOCAC members point out that they repeatedly “advise” against County Planning issuing building permits (homes outside the PZ and even some inside are still being built/remodeled & etc.) and are repeatedly ignored since County can’t do anything about anything, it’s the water purveyors’ job, and their in litigation now to try to figure out something, but meantime, Oh, well, nobody can do anything, well, maybe LOCAC could ask the Planning Commissioners and/or the BOS to slap on a “temporary” moratorium until the wastewater system is finalized and the water purveyor’s legal wrangling is finished???

In short, nobody’s in charge of anything except wasting time on a “Resource Capacity Study” that indicates a “severity” about which nobody can do anything, Oh Darn. And people outside the PZ but inside the Overdrafted Severity Level Basin are free to build and draw water out of the same overdrafted pool thereby overdrafting it more, while those inside the PZ can’t build diddly. Go figure.

Gloss! Gloss! Get Me My Gloss! But For God’s Sake, Don’t Send A Copy To Ron Crawford! We’ll Never Hear The End Of All The Déjà vu!

Got my really cool, high-gloss Brochure 1 on the “Los Osos Wastewater Project” put out by the Dept of Public Works. Very spiffy. In the center spread, there’s three boxes with cute little pictures and diagrams and arrows, showing how “Viable Project Alternatives” get developed. And in the center box, under the Prop 218 Viable Project Alternatives, there’s a picture of a hand calculator, some greenbbacks and two apples.

Two apples? Apples? I looked around for the oranges, but they’re not there. I suspect the apples were put in there as a graphic illustration of the word “General Benefit” as in apples are good for you hence a benefit? The drawings of greenbacks make sense since that portion of the graphic is referring to $$. But apples? Will the author please ‘splain?

At any rate, a copy of your way cool brochure should be in your mailboxes now. And you can sign up for reports and updates online. The brochure itself is pretty slim pickings because the engineers are still chug-chugging along gathering steam and figuring out which pieces of the track should get laid.

This community can only hope that County Engineering will make sure of their destination BEFORE laying track. After all, a prudent man does not decide to go to Fiji and then start immediately building a locomotive in order to make the entire trip. Just as the job determines the tool to be used, a wastewater system will take its shape and scope and placement from the final end-use plans. Get that right, and the rest falls into place.

Apropos of Ron, he’s posted another document over on his blogsite (http://www.sewerwatch.blogspot.com/) “Why let silly little things like ‘facts and figures’ get in the way of a good sewer-park?” I emailed him to ask about the date of the publication he’s posted vis a vis the Coastal Commission and other reports on the Solutions Group solution. (documents and reports he has cached at his blogsite)

His reply: “ Cuesta Study = July 1998. The Coastal Commission comparative study that corroborated the Questa Study, and where [CC staff Steve] Monowitz writes, ‘Pursuit of the Solution Group alternative also has the potential to result in significant delays to the implementation of a wastewater treatment project for theLlos Osos area”[ was] October 1998. The “working Group” that included members of the County, RWQCB, CC, and Solution Group, where all those agencies were telling the Solution Group their plan wasn’t going to work = All through 1998”

The reason why I was curious about those dates, -- 1998? The Coast & Ocean article is dated Spring 2000. Huh?

It’s The Rock!

Latest copy of The Rock is out now. Here’s a few snipes from the front page:

“’Great Los Osos News Blackout’ Continues: Tribune ignores Ripley peer review report by NWRI panel and buries CDO hearings more than a week after the proceedings.”

“Ret. Judge Goldin on the RWQCB: ‘The Most Incredible Kangaroo Court I’ve Ever Observed’: Forty-plus years of experience in the law did not prepare Judge Goldin for the travesty of justice she witnessed at the RWQCB’s Jan 22 CDO hearing.”

“S.O.S. From Afar: ‘There’s something Going on in Los Osos – it’s Bad:’ David ‘The Waterguy’ Vehnuizen’s recent online thread on Los Osos provoked an array of responses from experts from across the U.S. . . . who are aware and watching.”

Plus an extensive interview with Dana Ripley of Ripley Pacific company, which prepared the Project Update Report as well as a proposal for a STEP system/AgExhange Los Osos wastewater plan.

Too bad the County didn’t include a copy of The Rock tucked inside their glossy brochure. That would have been a more balanced diet: Eye candy AND a good chunk of nourishing information (besides apples?) for the citizens to chew on.)

(For readers who live outside the Los Osos area where The Rock is distributed, you might call them at 528-1224 or email them at TheRockReader@yahoo.com to see about having a copy mailed to you.)

HOORAY! For AGP Video

AGP Video donated a good chunk of its own time to make sure the citizens could view the “kangaroo court” proceedings of the January 22 RWQCB CDO hearings. If you haven’t already sent them a donation to offset that incredible Public Service gesture, please do so: Their address is: 1600 Preston Lane, Morro Bay 93442.

Meantime, Good Karma and Good Job: AGP Video won the contract to “tape and show state Coastal Commission gatherings on the Internet.”

Reported the Trib: “Sarah Christie, legislative coordinator for the commission, “This is part of a growing trend in state and local government to make public meetings available to the public over the Internet.”

Hooray!