A look by the LA Times at the peripheral canal, (they like it), and the dams (they don’t like them) the governor is talking (kind of) about.
Good point made to talk straight to the public, big decisions require accurate information.
California's water works
Gov. Schwarzenegger deserves credit for taking on one of the state's most intractable problems, but his solution isn't complete.
October 1, 2007
It's the dawn of a crucial era in California water politics. For decades, officials have known that the vast system of pumps and pipelines that pushes 60% of the state's water supply through the environmentally sensitive Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta is not sustainable, but they've lacked the will and the political muscle to effect change. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger wants to overcome the inertia before he leaves office in 2009. He has made repairing the delta and securing the state's future water supply his pet projects.
The governor deserves an immense measure of credit and gratitude for this. But legislators should be skeptical of the $9-billion bond he's pushing as a "comprehensive upgrade to California's water infrastructure." As they work on a compromise during the special legislative session, they must insist on a more sensible way forward.
Both proposals under consideration -- the governor's and a $5.4-billion plan from Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata (D-Oakland) -- provide funds for improving the delta's ecosystem, for continued levee repair and for other regional water projects. Both also acknowledge that California may want to build a peripheral canal to carry water around the delta into Central and Southern California. In the past, the idea of a peripheral canal (or "conveyance," as the governor euphemistically calls it) has been political kryptonite. Today, however, there's growing acceptance that it offers the best means for balancing the delta's environmental needs and the thirst of a growing state.
