The Proposals

Today I added information about the reasons a new water source is needed (the "Why" tab) and a synopsis of the most prominent proposal: the Water Supply Project. I also tried to summarize the various comments (for and against) that have been made, culled from various websites, testimony given at public forums, media interviews, etc. Most of the objections center around Cal-Am's ownership of the plant instead of ownership by the ratepayers who are paying for it. Not to defend Cal-Am, but playing devil's advocate for the moment I suppose it tried a public-private venture with the Regional Desalinization Project and it failed, which might be why it's now proposing to own the plant itself (not that I know what Cal-Am is thinking). On the other hand, the argument goes, since public-private didn't work, we could go the other way and have it totally public-owned by buying out Cal-Am. There's a general distrust of Cal-Am out there; I've attempted to summarize those arguments as well. I'm learning about the other proposals now and will add that information soon.

What Are We Gonna Do About the Water?

When I first moved to Monterey two years ago, I was vaguely aware that there were concerns about long-term water supply and that some sort of desalinization plant had been proposed. With the drought of winter 2013-14 declared an emergency, I started thinking about the water supply and set out to learn more about the desalinization plan. The more I researched, the more information was piling up in my head. I started making notes, and soon found myself organizing them in an online notebook (I can't help myself sometimes.) This blog is the result.

It is not my intent to advocate for any particular position in the controversy. I merely wanted to know what the issues are, and have attempted to document them here as neutrally as possible. I'm not an expert on water, desalinization, or anything like that. Just a consumer (and ratepayer!) on the peninsula who is trying to understand the various proposals in my own way. Eventually I'll probably form an opinion one way or another, but for now I am just gathering the facts.

I'm just getting started....lots more information is still to be added. It's my intent to continue to add information as I find it, as well as update with new developments. So please check back if you don't find everything you wanted to know on the first go.