Regulators set to vote on Peninsula water supply and demand
MONTEREY – State regulators Thursday will decide whether to accept much of the future water supply and demand estimates submitted to them by California American Water Co., a move that’s already rankling four local agencies and a nonprofit because the state Public Utilities Commission will likely not allow any debate on the issue.
At issue is whether the Monterey Peninsula has enough water to satisfy demand by 2050. Cal Am, in documents filed with the CPUC, argues there won’t be enough water unless it can build its desalination plant.
But others, including the Monterey Peninsula Water Management District, Marina Coast Water District, the city of Marina, Monterey One Water and the nonprofit Public Water Now, continue to argue that Pure Water Monterey, the recycled water plant, and its expansion project coming online this year will be more than enough to satisfy demand by 2050 when combined with other water sources.
In addition, letters opposing Cal Am’s estimates have been sent to the CPUC by entities such as LandWatch Monterey County and individuals such as Monterey Mayor Tyller Williamson, Monterey County Supervisor Wendy Root Askew and state Senate Majority Leader Emeritus Bill Monning.
“Over-estimating demand can lead to over-building of unnecessary utility infrastructure,” Monning wrote to commissioners on July 17. “Developing utility projects that are not needed would in turn disproportionately burden the residents (ratepayers) of our community, who already pay some of the highest water rates in the nation.”
The CPUC’s own Public Advocates Office – established in 1984 by the state Legislature to ensure California ratepayers are represented at the CPUC – states that “Cal Am unreasonably omits certain water supplies from its forecasts and includes questionable components in its demand forecast.
“For several reasons, Cal Am’s demand forecasts are flawed and should not be adopted,” wrote Travis Foss, an attorney for the Public Advocate’s Office.
But in May, the CPUC issued a 50-page proposed decision that included supply and demand estimates more in line with Cal Am’s. Thursday’s action will, if passed, codify the proposed decision authored by CPUC administrative law judges Robert Haga and Jack Chang. Doing so, again, if passed, would provide Cal Am with additional documented evidence to move forward with its desal project – named the Monterey Peninsula Water Supply Project.
Thursday’s item is listed as part of the CPUC’s consent agenda, which is a section of any government meeting that groups together typically routine, noncontroversial items that do not require significant discussion or debate. Melodie Chrislock, the managing director of Public Water Now, questioned whether a battle that has raged for at least the past decade could be considered routine enough to be placed in the consent agenda.
Any of the commissioners can pull an item out of consent for a full commission review.
Cal Am stands by its estimates. The Proposed Decision adopts a current supply of 11,204 acre-feet per year and an estimated demand of 13,732 acre-feet per year by 2050, leaving a deficit that can only be addressed by a desal project, Cal Am argues.
Current water usage is under 9,000 acre-feet. An acre foot is enough water to cover a football field to a depth of one foot.
Cal Am, in a June 3 filing, describes the current water status as “water starvation.”
“Once a new long-term water supply is established, it is reasonable to allow existing customers to marginally relax extreme conservation behaviors and enjoy an adequate and reliable water supply, while still maintaining efficient water use consistent with state policy goals.”
While the proposed ruling didn’t directly address desalination, Josh Stratton, Cal Am’s external affairs manager, said in May that it affirms the Monterey Peninsula Water Supply Project is needed.
He called desal project a “part of a balanced and resilient supply for California American Water customers. The proposed decision projects a water supply deficit … of 2,528 acre-feet per year by 2050.”
Others, however, have raised the issue of cost to consumers of building a desal plant in an already expensive market. Tyller Williamson, the Monterey mayor, in a July 17 letter to commissioners, noted that Monterey faces some of the highest water costs in the country.
“Those costs are borne most heavily by our seniors on fixed incomes, young families, and workers in our hospitality and service industries,” Williamson wrote. “These are the very people who keep our community running. Any decision that contributes to rising water rates must be grounded in accurate, transparent analysis.”
To watch Thursday’s 11 a.m. meeting, click on www.adminmonitor.com/ca/cpuc
To view the meeting’s agenda, see https://tinyurl.com/bvk42dww
