COUNTYWIDE : County Issue Importing State Water

The Ventura City Council and the Casitas Municipal Water District board voted recently to fund a $275,000 environmental impact report on a pipeline to carry state

water. Ventura imposed a mandatory rationing program earlier this year. Should Ventura build a 42-mile pipeline along the Santa Clara River to Lake Castaic?

Dennis O. LaRochelle

President, Downtown Ventura Assn. Yes, I think they should build the pipeline. It seems to me regardless of whether we have a drought condition at any given moment, we should have a viable option of adding to our water supplies any portion of the state water that is available to us at any given moment. I don’t know what our particular allocation is or what right we have to X number of acre-feet, but I’m led to understand that it is a significant enough amount to make it worthwhile to spend the money to build the pipeline. I don’t think bringing in state water necessarily means we’re going to have an increase in growth. I think it’s necessary just to maintain our present lifestyle in terms of being able to use the amount of water necessary to do everyday chores. Whether it’s business needs or residential needs, you have to have X amount of water every day. On the other hand, how much more can we conserve before we reach a state where conditions are going to be intolerable?

Robert L. McCord

Attorney, chairman, Assn. of Quality Water Alternatives The answer is yes, but I do not know at this point whether the pipeline should be to the lake or the hook-up point should be some other location such as Pyramid Lake. A Lake Castaic hook-up would have the practical effect of excluding one of the major regional water partners, the United Conservation Water District. That district manages all of the Santa Clara River basin including Santa Paula, Fillmore, parts of Oxnard and Port Hueneme and agricultural users in the eastern part of Ventura County. Ventura and Casitas are saying we want to bring filtered water in, and that doesn’t meet United’s needs. I don’t think that you can operate in a region to the exclusion of all regional water users. There is a very long history of bad relations between the city of Ventura and Casitas and United, and when I attended the city water committee meeting back in August, while it wasn’t said, it was abundantly clear that the City Council members discussing the subject did not care one whit about United.

Alfonso C. Urias

City councilman, Santa Paula Yes, I feel the pipeline should be built. I’m a city councilman here in Santa Paula. We have written a letter of protest to the city of Ventura. They were going to dig a well in the Santa Paula plain, and at the same time they were furnishing water to Santa Barbara as an act of friendship or something. Our city took a dim view of that because we felt that if you need the water, how come you’re selling it to Santa Barbara? I do feel the pipeline should be built. The needs of this county are going to get worse, not better, and since Ventura is one of the larger cities, they do need the water. I think rationing is just horrible. The whole idea is just appalling to me. I still remember World War II when we rationed everything. When you’re into rationing, it seems the have-nots do more nots, and the haves always make out.

Nina V. Shelley

Mayor, Ojai I think it’s one possible solution, and I think that the determination to go forward with an environmental impact report is a good one and a very good place to start. We surely do have a real crisis on our hands, and I’m afraid that not all of us, including the public, understand quite how much a crisis it is. I think that it goes without saying that we really don’t have an option as far as conservation is concerned. We have to do that. There is just no question that we all know we’ve reached that point and, particularly related to the growth in California, that we just have to look at our water supply differently. As we approach the issue of regional government, our water policies are going to become more and more important in terms of being equitable. Water is not the least significant factor in determining appropriate regional representation to deal with California issues. Whoever owns the water has the power. I tend to believe that. It does dictate many, many decisions in issues.

Stephen A. Bennett

President, Alliance for Ventura’s Future Broad support for the pipeline would require three things. First, the completion of the major city studies giving our citizens the information we need on cost, reliability and alternatives. Second, if the studies indicate a pipeline is needed and a better long-term alternative than desalination, we must guarantee that state water will be used to build up reserves for future droughts and improve water quality rather than lead to excessive development. The state water project is already overcommitted. If all agencies in Southern California called for their allocation there is not enough water to meet this demand. It is potentially unreliable and cannot be used to justify excessive growth or abandonment of genuine conservation efforts. Finally, there should be a comprehensive water plan and the important decision about a pipeline should be made by Ventura’s voters with accurate, complete and current information.