California's Water "Portfolio" — Making the Right Investment

by Gary Toebben

Thirty percent of all water consumed in the six-county service area of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California flows from the Sierra Nevada Mountains. It makes its way through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta where it is transported by the California State Water Project (SWP) to Metropolitan's regional distribution system. This high quality water replenishes our reservoirs and makes it possible for Southern California to use the supply again and again via state-of-the-art recycling water treatment facilities.

The SWP has been a great investment, but the existing conveyance system through the Delta is dependent on aging levees and is vulnerable to disruption from a seismic event or a future rise in sea level. California needs an updated SWP just as we need continued investments in conservation and recycling.

Many stakeholders, including Gov. Jerry Brown, are urging an updated and smarter Delta conveyance system to transport water from the Sacramento River in the northern Delta to the aqueduct facilities heading south. State and federal agencies are currently studying options for both ecosystem restoration and water conveyance. This effort is called the Bay Delta Conservation Plan (BDCP). The current focus is on building twin tunnels that are about 60 percent the capacity of the current aqueduct systems that transport water to the Bay Area, Central Valley Agriculture and Southern California. This capacity guarantees that the system is able to capture big gulps of water in wet moments so that reliance on the Delta is reduced during droughts.

An alternate proposal, however, seeks to dramatically downsize the new tunnel system to only 20 percent of the capacity of the existing aqueducts. That is akin to shrinking the 405 Freeway to one lane. California needs to doeverything — conservation, recycling, groundwater cleanup and a full reinvestment in the SWP. Constricting the SWP makes no more sense than disabling any other piece of essential California infrastructure.

Today, 100 Chamber members are at the state capital for our annual ACCESS Sacramento trip, discussing issues that impact the business community and quality of life in our great state. The BDCP is one of our top priorities and our delegation will meet with Natural Resources Secretary John Laird and legislative leaders to advocate for smart engineering, sound science and a balanced portfolio for a reliable water future. Millions of jobs and billions in future tax revenue are dependent on a sound portfolio. 

And that's The Business Perspective.