Water Cutbacks in the Tea Leaves for Simi Valley

Even with above average snowpack in Northern California, things aren’t looking good for water supply in Ventura County. It’s noted as one of the driest counties in the state when it comes to water on hand with the reservoir at Casatic facing the possibility of unprecedented low levels.

Susan Mulligan, General Manager for Calleguas Municipal Water District gave a presentation at the Simi Valley Council November 14th meeting on the city’s water supply.  Simi gets over 98% of its water from imports.  Calleguas provides three water purveyors in Simi, Golden State, Brandeis Mutual and Ventura County Waterworks District 8.  Water is fed to them through the State Water Project’s aqueducts.

Supply problems started back in 2007 when a court order cut off water from the Sacramento River because of the Delta Smelt, a small bait fish.  Even with the periodic shut down of the pumps that draw supply from the river, which supposedly protects the fish, the Smelt population has continued to decline.  The reservoir at Oroville reached capacity last winter.  For the first time since the drought the spillway was opened to release excess water.  Yet this excess wasn’t pumped southward to So Cal but instead flowed out to sea through the Delta, because the pumps were cut off.

Oroville water flows through aqueduct to Delta

The Colorado River system, where water is also supplied to Simi Valley, presents another problem.  It has been over-allocated.  With Arizona and Nevada now claiming their share, Lake Mead is being depleted.

Governor Brown’s Twin Pumps/Tunnel project is still wending its way through the bureaucratic maze.  This project would bypass the Delta and allow the ecosystem there to recover while still being able to draw out water and move it south.  It is still years away from being built.

The Pumps/Tunnels Status

Mulligan also noted that President-elect Donald Trump had visited California earlier this year, pledging to loosen up regulations and turn on the pumps to save farming in the state. Even so, as far as urban use, Brown has mandated permanent water conservation beginning in January 2017.

Below is three of ten points from Max Gomberg who is a member of the State Water Resources Control Board.  It is what the State would like to see in the way of water supply and use:

Gomberg from State Water Resources Board

Note third item is the elimination of turf i.e. grass.  For all ten items on Gomberg’s “water wish list”: Water Deeply

Mulligan suggested that Council consider bringing the brineline to Simi Valley.  The brineline is a pipe being built from Port Hueneme to Moorpark to dispose of the heavy salts after the desalting of local brackish groundwater.  The line has so far been completed all the way into Somis.  Camrosa, Camarillo and Hueneme have, or are in the process of, hooking into it.  Simi Valley has a large supply of brackish groundwater which it now pumps into the arroyo.  The city so far has nothing planned to tap in to the brineline and use this water.

Other solutions: Ventura is looking into recycling wasterwater into potable drinking water. Desalting seawater is another avenue some coastal cities are taking to meet demand but it’s a very expensive process.  Carlsbad has completed its desalter which is producing potable water but at twice the cost of the imported supply.

Another solution is opening up an online water market where municipalities can bid for allotments.  This would involve revoking existing water rights which have been First In Time/First In Right in California.  This will most likely lead to pitted court battles. 

For now cities will continue to scramble for supply.

Video from last night’s meeting: HERE

Debra Tash is Editor-in-Chief of Citizensjournal.us, past president for Citizens Alliance for Property Rights, business executive and award-winning author, residing in Somis.

Get Citizensjournal.us Headlines free  SUBSCRIPTION. Keep us publishing – DONATE