Posted by BS, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Jan 18, 2012 at 10:21 pm

"...and diverts our water ..."

Please identify what water on the pennisula is being sent to palm springs? As I see it we rip off water from the sierras.

Posted by Jim H., a resident of the Duveneck/St. Francis neighborhood, on Jan 18, 2012 at 10:59 pm

Not sure if this is what JD is referring to, but I'm pretty sure, he's saying that water from the north, is being diverted to the south. Which, it is. Well documented that a lot of the water from the Sierras, is diverted south.

Bigger point that JD is making, is that Brown is equating past projects to this one and simply by saying there were projects in the past that were criticized but are now "succesful", he is trying to get buy in that HSR will be the same.

Posted by BS, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Jan 19, 2012 at 8:07 am

So it's ok to move water, east to west, but not north to south. ;-)

Anyway, don't get me wrong HSR is a bad idea, I am just diid not like the tired old "They stole our water" argument being trotted out for it.

Posted by Marie, a resident of the Midtown neighborhood, on Jan 19, 2012 at 3:52 pm
Marie is a member (registered user) of Palo Alto Online

I believe the comment about the Central Valley Water Project refers to Brown's proposal to spend $100m to improve it. The problem with that project was it diverted lots of water from the SF Bay and the delta, leading to problems with increased salinization of the water and further degradation of the Bay. The impact on fish (most importantly limiting the ability for salmon to spawn), although significant, was minor in comparison. The last proposal to divert more water that otherwise would have flowed into the Bay was defeated in the legislature.

The devil is in the details. I will wait to see what the proposal is before I oppose it but I'm suspicious of the proposal.

Given the minimal amount of water conservation implemented by the farmers and other inhabitants of SoCal, basically a desert, I am not inclined to support spending $100M so farmers can continue to use overhead sprinklers, grow rice in a desert and Anglenos can continue to grow green lawns and golf courses. I think that if the level of conservation we have implemented here was implemented there, they would have no shortage of water.

Posted by BS, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Jan 20, 2012 at 1:57 am

There are lawns and golf courses here, being watered by sources geographically distant from the peninsula. Habitat was destroyed to provided this region with that water. Somehow I don't see a difference.

Posted by JD, a resident of the Adobe-Meadows neighborhood, on Jan 21, 2012 at 8:18 am

The PA Daily 'Followed the Money' and pointed out that Labor Unions are behind this project. They paid to put Brown in office. Brown is paying them back. We are paying the consequences.

The water diverted to the peninsula generally ends up in the bay, where it was headed before diversion. The canal - supported by his dad - sends it to the desert....just a little bit different. And it is not an old argument, water diversion to socal has major environmental impacts today.

Posted by BS, a resident of Another Palo Alto neighborhood, on Jan 21, 2012 at 10:09 am

The desert, palm springs area, is irrigated by Colorado River water.