Wednesday, September 12, 2012

MONTEREY PENINSULA REGIONAL WATER AUTHORITY (MPRWA) AGENDA SPECIAL MEETING & MINUTES September 12, 2012

RELATED NEWS ARTICLE: Public oversight proposal for Cal Am water supply projectclears first hurdle, JIM JOHNSON Herald Staff Writer, 09/13/2012

Excerpts Highlights:
"By a unanimous vote, the authority board adopted the public governance committee concept Wednesday night, and directed attorney Russ McGlothlin to send letters to the state Public Utilities Commission and Cal Am regarding the proposal, according to authority board chairman Chuck Della Sala."
"The authority's public governance proposal calls for a three-person committee designed to include members from the authority, the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District, and the county with varying degrees of influence over virtually every aspect of the Cal Am project. It would be charged with helping coordinate everything from the design, permitting and construction of the plant to its operations and maintenance."
"The adhoc subcommittee fashioned the proposal in private meetings that included officials from Cal Am and the water management district, whose board will consider the proposal on Monday."
"County supervisors, who just agreed to join the authority on Tuesday and contribute to its budget months after being invited, have not yet set a date to consider the proposal."



AGENDA PACKET
MONTEREY PENINSULA REGIONAL WATER AUTHORITY (MPRWA)
September 12, 2012
Consider Qualitative Risk Evaluation (Discussion)
MONTEREY PENINSULA REGIONAL WATER AUTHORITY
September 12, 2012



MPRWA Special Meeting DRAFT Minutes 09-12-12 -
DRAFT MINUTES
MONTEREY PENINSULA REGIONAL WATER AUTHORITY (MPRWA)
September 12, 2012

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Here are some immediate red flags.

1. It is not clear or convincing that a Water Authority mayor, MPWMD member and County Water Resources Agency member (three-member governance committee) have the expertise to consult with Cal Am on matters of design, permitting, construction, operations, maintenance, et cetera.
2. Herald writer Jim Johnson reported: Under the proposal, the committee would serve variously as the ultimate "decider" on certain issues, have an equal say as Cal Am on some, and serve in an advisory role on others. That is a recipe for a turf-fighting nightmare.
3. A member of the Mayors’ Water Authority’s own Technical Advisory Committee George Riley (founder of Citizens for Public Water) expressed concern that “the proposal was more a method to accommodate Cal Am rather than offer real public oversight that represents the Peninsula's interests, including lowest cost project options.”