Managing Water in California

The Times editorial “Water: a New Age” (Nov. 14) did not come close to reflecting the serious consequences of a draft water management plan released recently by the State Water Resources Control Board. Nor did it highlight the unfairness of this proposal which would require acute conservation in Southern California while other parts of the state are expected to make only modest efforts, at best, to share the burden of future water shortages.

There is a misunderstanding concerning the task of the board at this point in the hearing process. The draft report was to identify reasonable water quality objectives for the delta and later balance the need for the delta’s water supplies equitably among cities, farms and in-stream uses.

Instead, the report leaped ahead to set limits on the amount of water Southern California can draw from the delta through the State Water Project based on the amount of water the region received from the system in 1985. This limited amount of water is supposed to be enough, even while 5 million more people will live in the Southland within the next 20 years and more than half of the region’s dependable water supplies from the Colorado River are being lost.

Contrary to The Times editorial, this situation seriously threatens the economy of Southern California and, therefore, the state. And, while the water-conservation requirements are unprecedented, they do not apply uniformly to the entire state. Southern California bears the greatest burden, by far, even though this region is a national leader in water reclamation and conservation activities.

The proposed plan does not meet the objectives of fairness and balance. It is not sensible, as The Times suggested, to stand idly by to see if it will work.

The obvious bias towards a minority of those Northern Californians who identify themselves as environmentalists has no place in a plan that impacts 26 million people throughout the state. It is no secret that California has an adequate supply of water to meet all demands and protect the environment. What is required is the careful balancing of existing supplies and the additional facilities needed to more efficiently store and transport water.

CARL BORONKAY

General Manager

Metropolitan Water District