August 14, 2009

Welcome to Weekly Update, a publication of Western United Environmental Services (WUES). Our goal is to provide you with the latest information about the WDR’s from the Water Board and how our organization can help you with your environmental challenges. If you have missed any of our past issues, they can be found on our website at http://www.wuenvironmental.com/updates.htm.

Sign-Up Now for Grant Monies

Western United Dairymen and the California Natural Resources Conservation Service are pleased to announce that sign-ups for the Central Valley Agricultural Water Enhancement Program (AWEP) are now open for all valley dairy producers.  The deadline for applications is August 28. This program is tailored to help dairy producers comply with the Dairy WDR, and to enhance ground and surface water quality and water conservation. The program is generally similar to the previously announced $1.2 million CCPI funding.  Funding priorities are comparable to the CCPI, with Waste Management Plan assistance as the highest priority.  The funding awarded is intended to:  first, complete assistance for preparing Waste Management Plans for those producers unable to acquire CCPI funding and second, to be available for infrastructure improvements.

The program has been tremendously successful so far, with the NRCS offices in Stanislaus and Tulare counties reporting over 100 signups to date in each county.  The large demand for funding should serve as a signal to dairy producers to get their applications in as soon as possible, points out Paul Sousa, WUD’s environmental specialist.

Note:

(1) Producers who have applied for CCPI funding should check with their local NRCS office to verify whether their application has been funded or not.  

(2) Unsuccessful applicants for CCPI are encouraged to re-apply for AWEP.

(3) All producers including those successful in obtaining CCPI funds are eligible to apply for AWEP for other on-farm projects not previously covered.

There is currently $5.8 million allocated for 2009. Funding will be distributed through the NRCS-EQIP process.  Do not let this opportunity for assistance pass you by, as the deadline for applications is rapidly approaching.

The application period will end close of business August 28, 2009. To file an application, contact your local NRCS office. Appointments are advised. If you have questions about the program, contact the local NRCS office, or contact WUD staff: Paul Martin at (707) 763-8874, Paul Sousa at (209) 527-6453, or the WUD field representative in your area.

Interior Dept.: Calif. water a national priority

California's ongoing water crisis is a major national priority, akin to restoring Florida's Everglades or the Chesapeake Bay on the East Coast, a top Obama administration official said Wednesday. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar intends to hold a public meeting in Washington next month to discuss plans to save the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, the freshwater estuary that supplies drinking water to two-thirds of Californians and is one of the most important wildlife habitats on the West Coast, Deputy Interior Secretary David Hayes said. Hayes was in Sacramento to update farmers, city dwellers and environmentalists about federal efforts to free up water for crops and fisheries as the state hobbles through its third year of drought. <more> Aug. 12, 2009 AP

Water battles loom for state legislature

When California lawmakers return on Monday from summer recess, they'll be transitioning from one seemingly insurmountable issue to another.  

Having wrapped up -- at least for now -- an epic budget battle, the legislature now turns to one of its top issues, water management. It's a complex subject area topped by the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

On Tuesday, the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee and the Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee will hold the first of several joint hearings on Delta issues.

Legislative leaders have ordered their respective committees to hold hearings on the recommendations of the Delta Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force, an advisory body appointed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in early 2007. The group published its final strategic plan on Delta management late last year.

Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg -- who filed suit against Schwarzenegger's budget vetoes, including elimination of the Williamson Act -- said he still has budget bones to pick with Schwarzenegger after the recess.

After that, he said, priority shifts to water -- managing the Delta, establishing enforceable conservation standards, managing ground and surface water and providing funding "to bring the state's water system into the 21st century," Steinberg said in a statement, "Our first priority when we return in August is to restore the draconian cuts to Health and Human Services," Steinberg said. "Our second priority will be to take the next major steps on fashioning a set of solutions to our state's water challenges."

Lawmakers have also opted for the unusual approach of a conference committee to shape five water bills into forms amenable to a wide range of stakeholders. The bills address creation of a Delta-management council and a management plan, urban and agricultural water efficiency, water rights and groundwater management. <more> Aug. 13, 2009 Capital Press

CALENDAR OF MONTHLY MONITORING ACTIVITIES

AUGUST

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