October 1, 2004

Chairman Edwards and Members of the Board of Directors

Monterey Peninsula Water

Management District

P.O. Box 85

Monterey, CA 93942

Dear Chairman Edwards and Members of the Board:

The following significant events or issues are provided for your information. If you have any questions or desire added information, you can reach me at 658-5650 or david@mpwmd.dst.ca.us.

1. Water Supply Projects:   Staff participated in the September 29, 2004 Board Strategic Planning Workshop, with emphasis on issues relevant to the Planning & Engineering Division.  Of particular note was presentation of the consolidated matrix comparing water supply alternatives, and responses to Board questions about the information.  The Board determined that it would delay making a decision on which desalination project to pursue to allow the County of Monterey and Pajaro/Sunny Mesa CSD develop information in the next 90 days.  The Board did agendize an item to consider amending consultant contracts to prepare an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the District's aquifer storage and recovery project (ASR) at the October 18, 2004 meeting.  The EIR would be in association with a long-term water rights permit for use of excess Carmel River winter flows.  To date, the current test wells have operated under short-term, temporary permits.  Contact Henrietta Stern at 658-5621 or henri@mpwmd.dst.ca.us.

2. Seaside Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) Update: As noted in last week’s summary, a PG&E power failure occurred in Seaside late on September 14, 2004 and damaged the District’s Santa Margarita Test Injection Well (SMTIW). Last week, District staff and California American Water (Cal-Am) operators installed a temporary Cal-Am replacement motor and repaired damaged electrical components. Following an 18-hour negative bacteriological test, the well was put back into production on September 24 at 9:45 am. This week, staff made minor frequency adjustments to prevent the motor from overheating and PG&E has been contacted regarding variable voltages at the service entrance. In addition, District staff has been coordinating with Army staff on the details of a proposed new temporary pipeline that would facilitate water delivery to the Cal-Am system from the SMTIW. Contact Joe Oliver at 658-5640 or joe@mpwmd.dst.ca.us.

3. California American Water (Cal-Am) Compliance with SWRCB Order 95-10: During the first 29 days of September, Cal-Am’s water production from its Carmel Valley wells was four acre-feet over the revised monthly production target. However, for Water Year 2004 through September 29, Cal-Am’s production from its Carmel Valley wells (i.e., 11,067 acre-feet) is 186 acre-feet under the year-to-date production target for Carmel Valley and compliant with SWRCB Order 95-10. Water Year 2004 ended on September 30, 2004. Contact Darby Fuerst at 658-5651 or darby@mpwmd.dst.ca.us.

4. Carmel River Fish Rescues: Staff continued to monitor flow and habitat conditions in the vicinity of Cal-Am’s Begonia Iron Removal Plant (BIRP). Fortunately, the SMTIW was brought back into service in time to avert a further drawback of the riverfront. As of September 29, the river is beginning to advance downstream in the vicinity of the BIRP. If current flow releases can be maintained at Los Padres Dam through December, staff believes that no further steelhead rescues will be needed. Contact Dave Dettman at 658-5643 or dave@mpwmd.dst.ca.us or Cory Hamilton at 658-5646 or Cory@mpwmd.dst.ca.us.

5. Carmel River Streamflow Gages: Staff completed installation of a wireless modem at the District’s Highway 1 Bridge streamflow gaging site. The modem provides cost-effective, reliable, real-time access to the District’s continuous water level recorder at the Highway 1 site. This information is important for a number of water resources decisions such as lagoon management, steelhead rescues, and flood management. Contact Greg James at 658-5641 or james@mpwmd.dst.ca.us.

6. Sleepy Hollow Steelhead Rearing Facility: Staff began stocking fish at the Sleepy Hollow Steelhead Rearing Facility on May 11, 2004. Through September 30, 2004, a total of 16,137 fish have been stocked, including 15,481 young-of-the-year and 656 yearlings. Overall survival of stocked fish in the rearing channel remains high at 96% with daily-observed mortality now running at or near zero. Most fish are growing rapidly and many are approaching smolt size, approximately 6-8 inches, which is possibly a concern because of their potential to prey on smaller juvenile steelhead in the channel. Any potential effects of this will not be measured until the facility is demobilized this winter. This week staff diagnosed and repaired a faulty alarm relay in the motor control center that was signaling a false alarm for pump No. 5. Contact Beverly Chaney at 658-5644 or beverly@mpwmd.dst.ca.us or Dave Dettman at 658-5643 or dave@mpwmd.dst.ca.us.

7. Annual River Clean Up: On September 22, 2004, District staff (Christensen, Bekker, Lyons, and Hampson) performed a portion of the annual Carmel River clean up from the Highway One Bridge to just upstream of Rancho San Carlos Bridge. So far, 1,120 pounds of car parts, household trash, and 12 tires have been removed from the riverbed.

In addition to trash removal, the District also removed a debris pile including two trees over 20 feet in length off of a bridge pier on Rancho Canada's Golf Club property. Each tree was cut into two pieces and then placed downstream of the bridge to create "large wood habitat" in the river channel, consistent with state and federal resource agency requirements.  Contact Larry Hampson at 659-2543 or larry@mpwmd.dst.ca.us or Thomas Christensen at 659-2543 or thomas@mpwmd.dst.ca.us.

8. Meeting with California Public Utilities Commission Staff:  On October 1, 2004, General Manager David Berger and District Engineer Andrew Bell will meet with staff of the CPUC's Office of Ratepayer Advocates (ORA) to discuss issues relating to the current applications to the CPUC by Cal-Am.  Berger and Bell will meet with Dana Appling, ORA Director, and Dan Sanchez, ORA Program Manager.  Contact David Berger at 658-5650 or david@mpwmd.dst.ca.us.

9. Employment Update: A selection has been made for the vacant Conservation Representative I/II position in the Water Demand Division.  Mr. Michael Boles is anticipated to start work on Monday, October 4, 2004.  Michael brings a wealth of customer service experience to the District after an extensive career with Long's Drug Stores. Contact Cynthia Schmidlin at 658-5613 or cynthia@mpwmd.dst.ca.us.

10. CEQA:  Staff received and began reviewing the Partial Revision of the Draft EIR for the Del Monte Forest Preservation and Development Plan, with emphasis on water supply and demand issues.  Written comments are due on November 10, 2004. Contact Henrietta Stern at 658-5621 or henri@mpwmd.dst.ca.us.

11. Ex-Parte Communications List: Attached is the list of persons subject to ex parte communications rules. The list was last updated on September 14, 2004.

12. Important Dates:

Ÿ	Administrative Committee	District Conference Room	Oct. 6, 2004	11:00 AM
Ÿ	Water Demand Committee	District Conference Room	Oct. 12, 2004	3:00 PM
Ÿ	Closed Session of the Board	District Conference Room	Oct. 18, 2004	5:30 PM
Ÿ	Regular Board Meeting	Monterey Council Chambers	Oct. 18, 2004	7:00 PM
Ÿ	Special Board Meeting	District Conference Room	Oct. 28, 2004	7:00 PM

Respectfully Submitted,

David A. Berger

General Manager

Attachments: List of Projects Subject to Ex Parte Communication Rules

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S. Reyes – 10/01/04 – Wkly Letter – 3 pages