Pure Water expansion could have new life
Monterey One Water board agrees to consider reviving environmental report
MARINA >> A newly constituted Monterey One Water board plans to consider whether to move forward with an environmental impact report for the previously stalled Pure Water Monterey expansion proposal.
Last month, the board unanimously agreed to direct agency staff to prepare a report on the cost and timeline for reviving the supplemental EIR for the board’s consideration at its March 29 meeting. The board would presumably decide whether to actually go ahead with the work to update the document for potential certification.
The expansion project is designed to add 2,250 acre-feet per year of recycled water to the currently promised 3,500 acre-feet from the core Pure Water Monterey project, which is still working to achieve its maximum production.
At the board’s Feb. 22 meeting, staff suggested the work to refresh the document could cost about $200,000, largely to pay environmental consultants and attorneys. It would be expected to
take about two months to accomplish, with board action at its May meeting at the earliest. Staff clarified those were preliminary estimates.
Staff also defended the document as essentially complete other than minor tweaks to the project description to acknowledge the injection wells. The differences of opinion in public comments on its conclusions were allowed without rendering it invalid.
Nearly a year ago, the agency board narrowly denied certification of the SEIR and project approval with the majority arguing it was flawed and the agency didn’t have the resources for a revision due to other priorities including the completion of the core Pure Water Monterey project and budget challenges. In response, staff discontinued all work on the document and the expansion project until last month.
Board members Tyller Williamson and Tom Moore, who voted for the SEIR and project approval, requested last month that General Manager Paul Sciuto prepare a report on options for moving forward with the SEIR and the project for last month’s meeting.
Those options included: *Directing staff to prepare a report and resolution for certifying the SEIR in its current form and approving the project ahead of board consideration within two months.
*Directing staff to work with environmental consultants and attorneys to update the SEIR reflecting changes to the project including the addition of new injection wells, work that would take about two months with subsequent board review
*Conducting a new 3045 days of public review and comment with staff responses, a process that could take 7-9 months.
Williamson made a motion to support the second option, a limited revision to the SEIR, and Moore seconded the motion.
County Supervisor John Phillips offered an amendment that the board “formally” consider moving forward on the SEIR and the project at its March 29 meeting after staff presented the cost and timeline information. He argued the board needed time to consider the ramifications of “completely changing” its approach to the proposal.
Earlier in the meeting, Phillips noted a shift in the agency board’s membership that suggested a willingness to move forward with the SEIR and the project. He argued such a decision should be made “sooner rather than later” because the project’s politics were “tearing the apart” and distracting from other crucial issues.
At the same time, Phillips said it’s still possible the board will decide not to move forward on the expansion or staff will say they need more time to complete preparatory work. He urged staff to include outreach to key agencies while mentioning the city of Salinas, Monterey County Farm Bureau, Castroville, and the Monterey County Water Resources Agency, who had all criticized the expansion project.
Phillips told The Herald this week that he still opposes moving forward on the expansion project because the agency needs to concentrate on other priorities. He argued there are still lingering concerns about source water for the project.
New board member Scott Donaldson, the Del Rey Oaks councilman considered to be a key swing vote on the previously deadlocked agency board, said his biggest concern was potential litigation over the SEIR. He said he wanted to be sure the document was the best it could be. Donaldson also suggested it would be prudent for the agency to reach out to “major partners” including California American Water, Salinas and the Marina Coast Water District to ensure the agency had “answered their questions.”
Salinas Councilwoman Christie Cromeenes, another new board member, said she needed to discuss the project with constituents and interest groups, and consider whether to support spending $200,000 to move forward with the proposal.
Moore suggested staff should look at whether to remove a parallel water delivery pipeline backed by Cal Am in the SEIR and the project, though staff suggested such a move would likely cost more money and take more time to complete the environmental report update.
Backers of the expansion, including Public Water Now Managing Director Melodie Chrislock, praised the board’s support for moving ahead with the proposal, arguing it is a long-term replacement for Cal Am’s desal and that certification of the SEIR and project approval would put pressure on Cal Am to sign a water purchase agreement that would help pay for the project. They also argued to remove the parallel pipeline from the project.
Cal Am representative Tony Lombardo said the company supports moving forward with the expansion as a short-term water supply if an “adequate” SEIR is prepared. He noted Cal Am’s “extensive” comments on the document and agreed other agencies needed to be consulted regarding their issues. Lombardo said there needs to be “real responses” to public comments on the document and suggested it be recirculated for additional public review.
He also argued the expansion would not provide enough water for the Monterey Peninsula or the Seaside basin recovery or Castroville, and that the pipeline is needed for both the expansion and existing projects, and should remain in the project.