City leaders attend conference on water law in Sacramento
– Paso Robles Mayor Steven W. Martin and Paso Robles City Councilman John Hamon recently attended a two-day conference on water law in Sacramento. The conference was presented by Argent Communications and the California Law & Policy Reporter. It was co-sponsored by seven law firms including Best Best & Krieger, Brownstein | Hyatt | Farber | Schreck, Cox Castle Nicholson, Downey Brand, DUDEK, Gresham | Savage, and Jackson | DeMarco | Tidus | Peckenpaugh. The conference featured information about “Water Supply, Regulation and Policy in a Time of Ongoing Scarcity.”
“This is easily one of the most informative conferences I have attended,” said Mayor Martin. “The up-to-date information and legislative history surrounding the ongoing issue of water rights in the State of California put key issues in perspective for me and gave me great insight into actions we need to take as a city and a county in the future.”
Martin said the conference has prompted him to bring several items before his fellow councilmen in the near future.
“We have great water managements plans in place,” said Martin, “but we need to carry it further so our citizens and people outside of our city will be confident we are serious about addressing water needs now and in the future.”
Martin said he will propose a concise water mission statement:
“Paso Robles will be the leader in the responsible use of water.”
He also underlined his position that the City of Paso Robles must remain committed to participating in cooperative water partnerships with other agencies while working to secure and maintain multiple sources of water to cover the city’s future water needs.
“We must make sure our water sources in the future include a share of ground water plus water from the Salinas River and Lake Nacimiento. We must continue our conservation efforts and develop new ways of harvesting recycled water and storm water runoff.”
Martin also said the City must look to the design features required in homes as the City grows to its build-out capacity of approximately 44,000 residents.
“We expect 4,000 to 5,000 homes to be built in the next 20 years,” said Martin. Now is the time to make sure they are ready for future droughts.”
Martin suggested a Water Element be added to the City’s General plan and the development of new standards for drought resistant landscaping, recycled water delivery systems and adequate water storage and distribution facilities.
“I have shared my vision of a beautiful, water-efficient city with my fellow Council members and I am hopeful they will respond enthusiastically in making it a reality. By doing these things we can not only get through the current drought but also prepare for future droughts, all while complying with the still evolving legislation being enacted by our State representatives in Sacramento.”
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