“A Bird in Hand …”
The Borrego Water District has
decided to abandon efforts to save the Borrego Valley aquifer in favor
of importing water while completely ignoring critical questions of
costs, who will pay them, and the future
availability of water at any price.
In light of this, consider the
following factoids:
- On the first of January 2010 residents of San
Diego began paying 7.75% more for water than they were paying on the
31st of December 2009 after the sixth water rate increase
since 2007;
- Such frequent increases are expected to
continue and include a “double-digit jump” in January 2011 that may
be as high as 20%, marking what the Chairman of the Metropolitan
Water District’s board calls “the end of cheap water;”
- A representative of California’s Department of
Water Resources cautions that “we must prepare now, conserve now and
act now so that we have enough water for … 2010 and in the future.”
(San Diego Union Tribune 01/04/2010)
No one should confuse what the
BWD is doing with responsible, intelligent planning for a predictable
future of scarce and expensive water. It is just throwing “stuff”
at a wall hoping something will stick.
01.22.2010
