Dear friends,
If you take a look at our press release below, you will see that citizen action matters (thank you to all the members who came out to speak at Zone 7's meeting last night and sent the emails to Zone 7 board members)!
This is why it is important for you to sign or share our current petition asking Metropolitan Water District (Met) to reconsider their decision to buy the Delta Tunnels. We need to stop the Delta Tunnels on several fronts and Met's purchase of the islands is a path for tunnels construction. All it takes is two minutes of your time, sign today!
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For Immediate Release: March 17, 2016
Contact
Joan Buchanan, President, Restore the Delta, 925-980-6662
Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, Executive Director, Restore the Delta, 209-479-2053, barbara@restorethedelta.org
Jonas Minton, Water Policy Advisor, Planning and Conservation League, 916-822-5634, jminton@pcl.org
State Water Contractor Says
Livermore, CA – At an unusually packed Board of Directors hearing last night, Alameda County Water District Zone 7, a State Water Project contractor, rejected a request to vote in support of Governor Brown's Delta Tunnels (WaterFix) project. Board members noted the lack of key information including environmental impacts, costs, and willingness of agricultural contractors to pay their share.
Joan Buchanan, President of Restore the Delta said, “I appreciate the board’s willingness to listen and delay its decision until all the impacts and costs are known. It was the prudent and responsible action for the residents and ratepayers they represent.”
Speaker after speaker in the packed Board room expressed concerns about the irreparable environmental damage additional freshwater diversions from the Delta would cause and the need to rush to support the Delta Tunnels (WaterFix) prior to the release of the Environmental Impact Report and the cost impact on local water users. Many also questioned why Zone 7 should state its support when no other federal or state water contractor has gone on record.
Local taxpayers groups were also there in support of the letter from the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association delivered that day. The Association's letter outlined in precise detail the legal reasons that the Board could not pledge property taxes to help pay for the tunnels without a vote of the electorate.
Jonas Minton from the Planning and Conservation League reminded the Board members of their fiduciary duty to their ratepayers and bond holders to conduct full due diligence before acting.
After three hours of hearing, the Board voted overwhelmingly to await the final Environmental Impact Report, Record of Decision, and complete financial analysis before considering its position. Those documents are not scheduled to be available before next winter.
In a note praising Delta activists, Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, executive director of Restore the Delta said, “It was because of you that the Zone 7 Board of Directors voted to table a resolution of support for the Delta tunnels until the EIR, Record of Decision and Financial Data are complete!”