Kopf: TUD benefits, not conflicts

To the Editor:

As a TUD director for the last six years, I have focused on providing a safe, cost efficient and sustainable water supply with proper treatment and reuse of our wastewater which are critical to our quality of life in Tuolumne County. In 2015, we set TUD goals to address aging infrastructure repairs and improvements and adopted a fiveyear rate plan. Since that time, TUD has secured over $20 million in grants and invested $20.6 million in critical water and wastewater infrastructure while maintaining some of the lowest water and sewer rates in the region. We are working on funding the regional Sierra Pines Water Treatment Plant and have received a grant-loan package of over $20 million to upgrade the 50-year-old Sonora Wastewater Treatment Facility. These grants help keep rates low while investing millions in needed infrastructure and more reliable service. This year, we successfully added flexibility to accessing Pinecrest Lake water during dry years and submitted our application to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to secure water from New Melones Reservoir. Both efforts will improve water supply reliability for Tuolumne County. My land planning and business background provides a very solid foundation to lead the board as it sets policy at TUD for the short and long-term benefit of our county and TUD ratepayers. Over the last six years, the board has considered hundreds of agenda items to set policy. If there are any TUD conflicts with my clients (just a handful) I have checked with our general manager, TUD attorney and at times the FPPC to make sure I was in conformance with the rules. TUD still has many critical issues to address and the TUD knowledge I have gained and my land planning and business background is a benefit for TUD ratepayers, not a conflict.

Ron Kopf Sonora