Wastewater distribution plan needs full public review - Feb. 28, 2001

The Sonoma County Water Agency and a group of grape growers, known as the Coalition for Sustainable Agriculture, have embarked on the planning phases of an ambitious project to store and distribute millions of gallons of treated wastewater throughout the north county.

While there is widespread support for the reuse of treated wastewater, the nature of this project, the process by which it is being developed, and the lack of public awareness of its scope, raise serious questions about its viability. And that's not even considering the question of who will pay for such a massive project.

Using the controversial Geysers pipeline to get the water to the north county, the plan envision a network of some 75 miles of distribution pipelines, stretching from Cloverdale to Mirabel, bringing wastewater to farmers for irrigation and storage in a series of large reservoirs.

The general outline of the plan, known as Agricultural Use of Excess Capacity of Geysers Pipeline Project, appears to be directly tied to the Geysers pipeline, since it would be dependent on that pipeline for water. This raises the question that Geysers pipeline critics have been posing all along: Is this another example of segmenting a larger project?

And will the agricultural use project require a full environmental impact report?

For many north county residents, however, there is one common issue. Why wasn't anyone informed that this plan was in the works? Farmers, water agency officials and the Santa Rosa Board of Public Utilities have been meeting on this project for more than a year, but its existence took Healdsburg city officials by surprise.

Windsor town officials were aware of a water agency plan to distribute wastewater, but only in a general sense.

Residents along the wastewater distribution system route certainly haven't been kept informed that their property and lives mat be severely disrupted. We suppose it seems quaint and old-fashioned to suggest that common courtesy and respect for your neighbors might be a consideration for those planning such a system.

Considering the controversy that the Geysers pipeline has caused, and continues to cause, throughout the north county, officials planning an even more extensive project have every reason to keep its plans as quiet as possible. But all those reasons are wrong.

The public, elected officials, property owners and rate payers have the right to know, and the public agencies involved have the obligation to keep them fully informed, when a project of this magnitude is being planned. Anything short of that creates the perception, if not the reality, of a secret plan that is being pulled off at the expense of the taxpayers and in violation of the public trust. B.W.D.

Using the controversial Geysers pipeline to get the water to the north county, the plan envision a network of some 75 miles of distribution pipelines, stretching from Cloverdale to Mirabel, bringing wastewater to farmers for irrigation and storage in a series of large reservoirs.

The general outline of the plan, known as Agricultural Use of Excess Capacity of Geysers Pipeline Project, appears to be directly tied to the Geysers pipeline, since it would be dependent on that pipeline for water. This raises the question that Geysers pipeline critics have been posing all along: Is this another example of segmenting a larger project?

And will the agricultural use project require a full environmental impact report?

For many north county residents, however, there is one common issue. Why wasn't anyone informed that this plan was in the works? Farmers, water agency officials and the Santa Rosa Board of Public Utilities have been meeting on this project for more than a year, but its existence took Healdsburg city officials by surprise.

Windsor town officials were aware of a water agency plan to distribute wastewater, but only in a general sense.

Residents along the wastewater distribution system route certainly haven't been kept informed that their property and lives mat be severely disrupted. We suppose it seems quaint and old-fashioned to suggest that common courtesy and respect for your neighbors might be a consideration for those planning such a system.

Considering the controversy that the Geysers pipeline has caused, and continues to cause, throughout the north county, officials planning an even more extensive project have every reason to keep its plans as quiet as possible. But all those reasons are wrong.

The public, elected officials, property owners and rate payers have the right to know, and the public agencies involved have the obligation to keep them fully informed, when a project of this magnitude is being planned. Anything short of that creates the perception, if not the reality, of a secret plan that is being pulled off at the expense of the taxpayers and in violation of the public trust. B.W.D.

Geysers pipeline critics raise questions about excess water - March 7, 2001

Santa Rosa's disposal plans for its regional wastewater system are running into more roadblocks, the latest one from a new group called the Healdsburg Area Citizens for Wastewater Reform, which is threatening legal action over the Geysers pipeline EIR.

Critics charge that the environmental document is inadequate because of all the changes that have been made including rerouting the pipeline through Healdsburg. The Westside Road property owners who comprise the group are also alarmed over a plan by the Sonoma County Water Agency and a consortium of wineries to build a 75-mile distribution system to make use of the "excess" wastewater in the Geysers pipeline. We find merit in their arguments.

The excess wastewater envisioned by the Water Agency is only possible because Santa Rosa's pipeline was designed to accommodate 40 million gallons per day (mgd), while the city only needs to send 11 mgd to the Geysers. That's potentially 29 mgd that north county winegrowers would use for an extensive system of pipelines and reservoirs.

While few critics are opposing the concept of reusing wastewater, the premise under which such a massive plan is being developed, and the lack of full disclosure, is cause for suspicion.

First, it is difficult to imagine that the Geysers pipeline and the wastewater distribution system are not directly related. The wastewater distribution plan, developed quietly and, so far, at taxpayer expense, could not exist without the Geysers pipeline.

Is it plausible to believe those who designed the capacity of the Geysers pipeline, planned at three times the current demand, did not have some kind of extensive reuse plan in mind? Is it possible that such a convergence of like-minded uses came together by coincidence?

North County residents also deserve to be informed about the impacts of such a vast wastewater distribution plan, and the impacts of eventually being the location for millions of gallons of the Santa Rosa regional system's wastewater. While the plan may be in the development phase, shouldn't North County officials and community members have input into the plan before it goes any further?

The Healdsburg Area Citizens for Wastewater Reform want a new EIR that takes into account the wastewater distribution system and the various changes that have been made to the Geysers pipeline route. We believe the SCWA and Santa Rosa officials should be more forthcoming about the wastewater distribution plan and provide north county residents with the answers they deserve. B.W.D.