Good overview on how the politics around water is shaping up these days.
Climate might be right to replumb water system
George Skelton
Capitol Journal
March 19, 2007
Sacramento — Mark Twain famously said whiskey's for drinkin' and water's for fightin'. But this year in Sacramento, water's also for compromisin'.
It's for using as trade bait — for applying leverage in wheeling and dealing.
"People are talking about it as a chit to be played," laments state water director Lester Snow, who'd like to keep the water debate focused on water. But that's not going to happen.
Problem is, water — generation to generation — always has been California's most contentious issue. It also has been one of the most eye-glazing, until there's a killer flood or a devastating drought. So politicians, especially during this nearsighted era of term limits, have been avoiding the subject.
This year, however, there's potential for rare action.
Democratic support for a new off-stream reservoir could be traded for Republican backing of a comprehensive healthcare plan. Or swapped for a state budget, if lawmakers get stuck in a long summer stalemate. Or, more appropriately, bargained for an environmentally friendly fix to the fragile Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
Or all of the above.
