Group protests formation of groundwater basin district
A map of the Paso Robles Groundwater Basin. About 60-percent of the basin is in San Luis Obispo County and 40-percent in Monterey County.
Group gathers signatures of 600 locals opposed to new district
– Paso Robles Water Integrity Network, or PR-WIN, a group of landowners and concerned citizens residing over the Paso Robles Groundwater Basin, is mounting a formal protest to the proposed AB 2453 water district formation. Teams of volunteers have staged protest signing events at major intersections in local communities to gather signatures on petition letters. Over 600 protests have been signed by landowners, according to the group.
Allen Duckworth has been at every signing event over the past two weeks. He says, “We’ve talked to hundreds of people and hundreds of cars have passed with thumbs up and honking in support of our ‘No new tax, no water district’ signs. A total of seven people have stopped to tell us they were in favor of the water district.”
A group advocating for the district, Citizens Advocating For Local Management (CALM), claims that most support local water district in a survey it released.
Cody Ferguson, manager of the political action committee for PR-WIN states, “CALM only received 231 of 2,000 surveys back and only 161 participants (70%) were in favor of the water district, yet CALM presumes in their press release that the ‘majority of residents support water district.” Ferguson claims that the survey was a push poll to a controlled distribution list which directed people toward the answer CALM wanted. “It was a public relations ploy, not a scientific survey done with integrity,” he stated.
The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act or SGMA requires that citizens become good stewards of the groundwater basin. PR-WIN said that they believe that the basin must be managed, but said that, “creating another bloated layer of government burdened with a million dollar annual cost just to cover administrative costs imposed by the county is an unacceptable solution. If passed the district will have the ability to tax landowners who will receive no benefit and strip the constitutional right of landowners to make their own decisions regarding reasonable use their own well water.”
“The Paso Robles Groundwater Basin is the only large groundwater basin in the county not in overdraft or facing serious water quality issues. The requirements of SGMA can be completely met by the already existing AB 3030 Groundwater Management District at far less cost and no loss of groundwater rights” said Ferguson.
PR-WIN said that it believes in, “educating residents about the laws regarding their water rights and encouraging an open and honest discussion on issues related to water banking, paper water, sustainability and new taxes.”
The group said that it believes that, personal decisions made by landowners about their own groundwater use is the “only true local control.”
“Informed citizens will not make irreversible decisions that can hurt them and the Paso Robles Groundwater basin in so many ways like a bloated government bureaucracy can and will,” said Ferguson.
For information and a protest form go to www.PR-WIN.org.
Keep up the good work
This is the most comprehensive and complete information on the water wars I've even seen. Thank you Paso Robles Daily News!!!
The owners of wells on these above properties are extremely frustrated and upset that their water rights are in jeapardy of being taken and sold. VERY HAPPY TO SEE THIS GROUP WORKING SO DILIGENTLY TO PRESERVE THEIR RIGHTS TO THEIR WATER as they do not want to be taxed and metered and mowed over by government control. So, thank you for helping the owners maintain THEIR water rights! 😀
Good job, PR-Win! There are plenty of us out here in the basin, who support what you stand for and will be voting NO on any new layer of bureacracy that will tax us, fee us, and control us, as they see fit!
The state has said, and good sense suggests, that groundwater should be managed, not pumped until it becomes too costly. How could this be accomplished by volunteers? And what would happen to the vinyards and ranches when getting the water became too costly for them to survive? Or don't you think that far ahead?
If they were to do this and meter our wells (which I'm going to do my damndest to keep those idiots' hands off my well), and my well runs dry, since they are taking my sovereignty and water source away from me by making me pay for what I already own, will they dig me a new well when mine runs dry?
I have a feeling those idiots would tell me that I'm still responsible for the $30,000 for a new well, but in districts on city water, they'd fix the problem and not make the homeowners in the cities pay for it themselves.
Be sure to put no trespassing signs all over your properties, especially your wells and let Big Brother know your permission is NOT given for any government representative or employee to set foot on your property without your expressed, written consent.
Regulations are a double edge sword, we must understand the best use of our water resource (as ground water is very slow to naturally replenish), while at the same time respecting property rights.
What concerns me is that as an owner of agricultural land with water rights to that land, what limits will be placed on me (on my rights) that can devalue me property and deny me my property rights, without compensation? I get the point that if there is no water (or not enough water), my property value can (and probably will) decrease. I do not want politicos (who do not understand the issues and/or have no vested right in the issue) making sweeping changes to my property rights.
The biggest changes we can do are very simple: Get rid of grass lawns; Use ever more water efficient devices (toilets, urinals, shower heads, dish washers, cloths washers…); and water reclamation. A lot of ag users have gone to drip irrigation (they pay for water or to pump water); it is in there finical interest to reduce costs. Perhaps the southwest US cannot support a growing population.
On the same note, drought cycles in the southwest are a historical fact. They have occurred, are occurring and will occur again. We must approach the issue from a logical stand and not a knee jerk reaction.
If they were to do this and meter our wells (which I'm going to do my damndest to keep those idiots' hands off my well), and my well runs dry, since they are taking my sovereignty and water source away from me by making me pay for what I already own, will they dig me a new well when mine runs dry?
I have a feeling those idiots would tell me that I'm still responsible for the $30,000 for a new well, but in districts on city water, they'd fix the problem and not make the homeowners in the cities pay for it themselves.
Be sure to put no trespassing signs all over your properties, especially your wells and let Big Brother know your permission is NOT given for any government representative or employee to set foot on your property without your expressed, written consent.
Regulations are a double edge sword, we must understand the best use of our water resource (as ground water is very slow to naturally replenish), while at the same time respecting property rights.
What concerns me is that as an owner of agricultural land with water rights to that land, what limits will be placed on me (on my rights) that can devalue me property and deny me my property rights, without compensation? I get the point that if there is no water (or not enough water), my property value can (and probably will) decrease. I do not want politicos (who do not understand the issues and/or have no vested right in the issue) making sweeping changes to my property rights.
The biggest changes we can do are very simple: Get rid of grass lawns; Use ever more water efficient devices (toilets, urinals, shower heads, dish washers, cloths washers…); and water reclamation. A lot of ag users have gone to drip irrigation (they pay for water or to pump water); it is in there finical interest to reduce costs. Perhaps the southwest US cannot support a growing population.
On the same note, drought cycles in the southwest are a historical fact. They have occurred, are occurring and will occur again. We must approach the issue from a logical stand and not a knee jerk reaction.
Keep up the good work
This is the most comprehensive and complete information on the water wars I've even seen. Thank you Paso Robles Daily News!!!
The owners of wells on these above properties are extremely frustrated and upset that their water rights are in jeapardy of being taken and sold. VERY HAPPY TO SEE THIS GROUP WORKING SO DILIGENTLY TO PRESERVE THEIR RIGHTS TO THEIR WATER as they do not want to be taxed and metered and mowed over by government control. So, thank you for helping the owners maintain THEIR water rights! 😀
Good job, PR-Win! There are plenty of us out here in the basin, who support what you stand for and will be voting NO on any new layer of bureacracy that will tax us, fee us, and control us, as they see fit!
The state has said, and good sense suggests, that groundwater should be managed, not pumped until it becomes too costly. How could this be accomplished by volunteers? And what would happen to the vinyards and ranches when getting the water became too costly for them to survive? Or don't you think that far ahead?
If they were to do this and meter our wells (which I'm going to do my damndest to keep those idiots' hands off my well), and my well runs dry, since they are taking my sovereignty and water source away from me by making me pay for what I already own, will they dig me a new well when mine runs dry?
I have a feeling those idiots would tell me that I'm still responsible for the $30,000 for a new well, but in districts on city water, they'd fix the problem and not make the homeowners in the cities pay for it themselves.
Be sure to put no trespassing signs all over your properties, especially your wells and let Big Brother know your permission is NOT given for any government representative or employee to set foot on your property without your expressed, written consent.
Regulations are a double edge sword, we must understand the best use of our water resource (as ground water is very slow to naturally replenish), while at the same time respecting property rights.
What concerns me is that as an owner of agricultural land with water rights to that land, what limits will be placed on me (on my rights) that can devalue me property and deny me my property rights, without compensation? I get the point that if there is no water (or not enough water), my property value can (and probably will) decrease. I do not want politicos (who do not understand the issues and/or have no vested right in the issue) making sweeping changes to my property rights.
The biggest changes we can do are very simple: Get rid of grass lawns; Use ever more water efficient devices (toilets, urinals, shower heads, dish washers, cloths washers…); and water reclamation. A lot of ag users have gone to drip irrigation (they pay for water or to pump water); it is in there finical interest to reduce costs. Perhaps the southwest US cannot support a growing population.
On the same note, drought cycles in the southwest are a historical fact. They have occurred, are occurring and will occur again. We must approach the issue from a logical stand and not a knee jerk reaction.
If they were to do this and meter our wells (which I'm going to do my damndest to keep those idiots' hands off my well), and my well runs dry, since they are taking my sovereignty and water source away from me by making me pay for what I already own, will they dig me a new well when mine runs dry?
I have a feeling those idiots would tell me that I'm still responsible for the $30,000 for a new well, but in districts on city water, they'd fix the problem and not make the homeowners in the cities pay for it themselves.
Be sure to put no trespassing signs all over your properties, especially your wells and let Big Brother know your permission is NOT given for any government representative or employee to set foot on your property without your expressed, written consent.
Regulations are a double edge sword, we must understand the best use of our water resource (as ground water is very slow to naturally replenish), while at the same time respecting property rights.
What concerns me is that as an owner of agricultural land with water rights to that land, what limits will be placed on me (on my rights) that can devalue me property and deny me my property rights, without compensation? I get the point that if there is no water (or not enough water), my property value can (and probably will) decrease. I do not want politicos (who do not understand the issues and/or have no vested right in the issue) making sweeping changes to my property rights.
The biggest changes we can do are very simple: Get rid of grass lawns; Use ever more water efficient devices (toilets, urinals, shower heads, dish washers, cloths washers…); and water reclamation. A lot of ag users have gone to drip irrigation (they pay for water or to pump water); it is in there finical interest to reduce costs. Perhaps the southwest US cannot support a growing population.
On the same note, drought cycles in the southwest are a historical fact. They have occurred, are occurring and will occur again. We must approach the issue from a logical stand and not a knee jerk reaction.