1 Santa Lucian • Sept. 2014 SANTA LUCIAN...Santa Lucian EDITOR Greg McMillan Lindi Doud Linda...

Santa Lucian • Sept. 20141

Protecting andPreserving theCentral Coast

SANTA LUCIAN

IIIII n s i d en s i d en s i d en s i d en s i d e BOS & Paso: A basin too far 2

SLO & LUCE: Vision wanted 3

Cambria CSD: Still crazy 5

Los Osos basin: Last chance 6

Help Heidi Run! 8

Classifieds 11

Outings 12

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This newsletter printed on100% post-consumer recycled paper with

soy-based inks

Sept. 2014Volume 51 No. 8

Santa LucianSanta Lucia Chapter of the Sierra ClubP. O. Box 15755San Luis Obispo, CA 93406

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SAN LUIS OBISPOCA 93401

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SLO Nature throughSLO Nature throughSLO Nature throughSLO Nature throughSLO Nature throughArt is ts ’ EyesAr t i s ts ’ EyesAr t i s ts ’ EyesAr t i s ts ’ EyesAr t i s ts ’ Eyes

- see page 2

YYYYYour chance to be anour chance to be anour chance to be anour chance to be anour chance to be anelected Chapterelected Chapterelected Chapterelected Chapterelected Chapter

leaderleaderleaderleaderleader- see page 8

T h e o f f i c i a l n e w s l e t t e r o f th e S a n ta L u c i a C h a p te r o f t h e S i e r ra C l u b ~ S a n L u i s O b i s p o Co u n t y, C a l i f o rn i a

Are you concerned about themany oil projects developing in ourcommunity?

Are you concerned about thegrowing climate crisis?

Do you want your representativesto take action on the most impor-tant issue of our day?

Then come to Mitchell Park in SanLuis Obispo on Sunday, Septem-ber 21, at 2 p.m. Bring a sign totell this community why you wantaction on climate change.

This event is being held in conjunc-tion with millions of people whowill be gathering that day all overthe world.

Contact Heidi Harmon for ques-tions and details:[email protected].

In September, global heads of state -- and the global media -- will be inNew York City for a historic summit on climate change. With our future on the line, we will take a weekend and use it to bendthe course of history. New York City will see a climate mobilization unprecedented in size,beauty, and impact. But this moment will not be just about New York orthe United States. Our demand is for Action Now, Not Words: take the action necessary tocreate a world with an economy that works for people and the planet –now. In short, we want a world safe from the ravages of climate change. We know that no single meeting or summit will “solve climate change,”and in many ways this moment will not even really be about the summit.We want this moment to be about us – the people who are standing up inour communities, to organize, to build power, to confront the power offossil fuels, and to shift power to a just, safe and peaceful world. To do that, we need to act – together.

A Weekend to Bend theCourse of History

“Since we’llnever have thecash to competewith ExxonMobil,we better work inthe currencieswe can muster:bodies, spirit,passion.” - Bill McKibben

2Santa Lucian • Sept. 2014

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Outings, events, and more!

Santa Lucian

EDITORGreg McMillanLindi DoudLinda SeeleyThomas A. CyrSandy SimonEDITORIAL COMMITTEE

The Santa Lucian is published 10 times ayear. Articles, environmental information andletters to the editor are welcome. The deadlinefor each issue is the 13th of the prior month.

send to:Editor, Santa Lucianc/o Santa Lucia Chapter, Sierra ClubP.O. Box 15755San Luis Obispo, CA [email protected]

Santa Lucia Chapter

2014 Executive CommitteeMichael Jencks (12/15) CHAIRPatrick McGibney (12/14) VICE CHAIRLinda Seeley (12/14) SECRETARYPat Veesart (12/16) MEMBERLindi Doud (12/14) MEMBERGreg McMillan (12/16) MEMBERVictoria Carranza (12/15) MEMBER

Cal French COUNCIL OF CLUB LEADERSLindi Doud, Patrick McGibney TREASURERS

Committee ChairsPolitical Michael JencksConservation Sue HarveyDevelopment Greg McMillanNuclear Power Task Force Rochelle Becker

Climate Change Task Force Heidi Harmon [email protected]

Other Leaders

CNRCC Delegates Linda Seeley, alt: Greg McMillan John Burdett

Calendar Sales Bonnie Walters 805-543-7051Outings Joe Morris [email protected]/Kayak openWebmaster Monica Tarzier [email protected] Guide Gary Felsman

Chapter Director Andrew Christie 805-543-8717 [email protected]

Andrew [email protected]

[email protected]

Printed by University Graphic SystemsCal Poly, San Luis Obispo

Office hours Monday-Friday,1 p.m.- 7 p.m., 974 Santa RosaStreet, San Luis Obispo

The Executive Committee meetsthe second Monday of every monthat 5:30 p.m. The ConservationCommittee meets the secondFriday at 1p.m. at the chapteroffice, located at 974 Santa RosaSt., San Luis Obispo. All membersare welcome to attend.

Coordinator Kim Ramos, Admin and Development [email protected]

Santa Lucia ChapterP.O. Box 15755San Luis Obispo, CA 93406

Denny MynattPRINT MEDIA COORDINATOR

Sierra Club, PO Box 421041, Palm Coast, FL 32142-1041

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search: “Santa Lucia” and become our friend!

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Linda Seeley [email protected]

Assistant CoordinatorVictoria Carranza, [email protected]

Sierra Club85 Second St., 2nd FloorSan Francisco, CA 94105-3441

SLO Nature Through Painters’ Eyes

Sierra Club General Meeting7 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 18

BASIN continued on page 9

An evening of purepleasure! Five eminentartists from SLOPE,San Luis OutdoorPainters for theEnvironment, willdisplay their favorite depictions of land and seascapes throughout ourcounty. Each will also briefly discuss how they went about creating theirworks. There will be time to chat with the artists and Denise Schryver, the

president of SLOPE, which represents morethan 15 professional painters. Go to www.SLOPE-Painters.com to seemore. Conservation news will begin themeeting.

Steynberg Gallery, 1531 Monterey St., SLO.Info.: Joe Morris, 549-0355.

In his August 8 Tribune column(“Government a boon to the people”),Phil Dirkx neatly summed up the officialstory of AB 2453, the bill to establish aPaso Robles Basin Water District:

A Basin Too FarBalancing the Paso Robles groundwaterbasin may be above the pay grade of theSLO County Board of Supervisors

embraced the notion that the cave-inof Pro Water Equity to PRAAGSrepresented the will of the people. Actual public opinion. It pleasedthe Board majority to believe that theoverwhelming opposition to the“hybrid” district that they heard atevery Board hearing on the subjectcame from a few obstructionists.Those alleged obstructionists in-cluded North County Watch, SierraClub California, California Rural LegalAssistance Foundation, the Planningand Conservation League, CaliforniaTeamsters Public Affairs Council,Defenders of Wildlife, Center for Bio-logical Diversity, Clean Water Action,Food and Water Watch, SouthernCalifornia Watershed Alliance,Community Water Impact Networkand California Coastal ProtectionNetwork. As we wrote in the June 13edition of the Tribune: “None ofthese organizations oppose manage-ment of the Paso Robles groundwaterbasin. All have been involved in theproblem of how best to manage therights to safe, clean water sources forhumans and wildlife. None of thegroups oppose local management ofgroundwater basins, and all supportwater management districts based onthe election of directors and forma-tion vote based on the principle ofone person, one vote.” On its first vote in the Assembly,AB 2453 received 150 letters inopposition and 10 in support. Thebroad unpopularity of the bill willlikely come back to bite when thetime comes for residents to vote onwhether to form a district. Democracy matters. The biggestlandowners over the basin havemade their position clear, in publichearings and in flyers circulated byPRAAGS: They want a district tounderwrite the infrastructure to bringin more water to make possible theendless expansion of vineyards, andthey are adamantly opposed to anyrestrictions on their pumping fromthe basin or any measures that mightotherwise tame their water consump-tion in any way. Their numbers aresmall but their influence is great, andwith the one-person/one-vote model

Local government listened, andwe now stand a good chance offorming a district to manage thedwindling Paso Robles ground-water basin. The state Legislatureseems ready now to approve abasin management plan. It’s based on a compromiseproposed by two organizations,one representing the basin’s largelandowners and the other thesmall ones. They originallyopposed each other but thenfound common ground. They were acknowledged bylocal government — our countysupervisors — who forwardedtheir proposal to our stateassemblyman, Katcho Achadjian.The state Legislature is nowreported ready to approve a PasoRobles basin management planderived from the original compro-mise.

Five days later, the Senate passed thebill and it went off to the Assembly,which passed it to the Governor for hissignature. It’s a nice story, due to theomission of details. In truth, Mr. Dirkxcouldn’t have picked a better exampleof the failure of local government andlocal control. Here are the parts of the story thatthe Tribune, our County Supervisorsand Assemblyman Achadjian haveresolutely ignored: The perils of false compromise.The Paso Robles Agricultural Alliancefor Groundwater Solutions — rep-resenting the largest landowners overthe basin and insisting on a one-acre,one-vote district — rolled Pro WaterEquity, which abandoned its positionthat district elections should be basedon the basis of one-person/one-voteand settled for a permanent three-seatminority for non-landowning voters,with the other six seats elected on thebasis of acreage. Multiple PRO WaterEquity board and committee memberssubsequently resigned in protest. TheBoard of Supervisors and local media


Can LUCE Change?

Read the LUCE Update at slo2035.com.Tell the Planning Commission and theCity Council that Significant Class 1Traffic and Air Quality impacts and aprojected spike in greenhouse gasemissions support adoption of theReduced Development Alternative.

Planning Commission meeting Wed.,Sept. 10. City Council meetings: Tues.,Sept. 16, and Tues., Oct. 7. Go toslocity.org/citycouncilmeetings .asp orslocity.org/communitydevelopment/plancom/agenda.asp a week prior tothe meeting to check the agenda.

The update of San Luis Obispo’s LandUse and Circulation Elements needssome vision

For the next twenty years, development and transportation planning in the cityof San Luis Obispo will be guided by the policies the City adopts in the update ofits Land Use and Circulation Elements (LUCE). Which is to say, the nature andcharacter of the city and the quality of life for its residents is being determinedright now by the City Planning Commission and City Council. To our SLO members: This is going to happen with or without your participa-tion. We strongly suggest you opt for “with.” That’s because there is a considerable gap between aspirations and outcomes inboth the updated plans and the Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR) thataccompanies them.

San Luis Obispo prides itself on cityplanning based on community valuesand goals. The beginning of the Land UseElement, the core of the City’s GeneralPlan, lists the following CommunityGoal:

We are urging the City to do more in the way of crafting specific measures in allthree documents that will serve to provide additional mitigation of currentlyunmitigatable Class 1 significant impacts identified in the EIR and continue toraise the bar for protection of the environment, public health and the quality oflife. SLO is nationally known for its planning legacy. (First city in the world to bansmoking in the workplace and bars, bans on outdoor smoking and drive-thruwindows, the decision to create Mission Plaza rather than build a parking garage,the creation of a Natural Resources Manager position and programs to acquireopen space and create a green belt.) Twenty years ago, SLO was at the leadingedge of the American planning renaissance and created the quality of life thatmade SLO “one of the happiest cities in the United States.” It did not get there byadopting a policy of adherence to the status quo. The focus of the LUCE update in planning for the next twenty years should beto match or exceed the legacy of the last twenty years, laying out a future for SanLuis Obispo commensurate with the accomplishments of the past.

The EIR, in its consideration ofmeasures to mitigate the impacts offuture development, offers sadevidence that the few attempts by theLUCE Task Force to do so have beenstruck out of the public review draftand replaced by generic directives tocomply with existing ordinances,specific plans and design standards. The requirement of providingmitigation for potential impactsprovides the City with an opportunityto innovate. This update will serve asthe planning bible for the next twentyyears, but in analyzing mitigationmeasures the EIR offers more of thosegeneric directives, hewing to thestandard practice of simply citingcompliance with the Building Code,

Whose Values?

policies in existing elements and“reliance on establishment of project-specific mitigation measures” andcalling it done. Rather than reaffirming the statusquo, the City can and should gobeyond these minimum requirements.The LUCE update should be settingthe bar and establishing a planningvision for the next twenty years. We suggest that specific mitigationswhich go above and beyond therequirements of the City’s currentmanagement plans be made a promi-nent feature of the EIR. Those thathave been suggested and deleted inthe Task Force process should berestored, and more should be added.These should augment the standarddirective of adhering to the policiesfound in other planning documents toachieve minimum required levels of

mitigation that will reduce the environ-mental impacts of future development. We expect City to argue that specificmitigation measures are best left to thespecific plans because they willthemselves be updated over the nexttwenty years, presumably with revisedmeasures that will require the imple-mentation of new techniques based onimproved knowledge that willstrengthen environmental protections,therefore the Draft EIR’s regimen ofciting these plans as mitigation willproduce the desired result. We submitthat this amounts to the tail waggingthe dog. Future updates of the Citypolicies should be guided by the visionthe City provides in the LUCE Update.This guidance is all the more necessarybecause those future plan updates willbe conducted on a much smaller scalethan the LUCE Update, with nothinglike the public outreach componentthat has been part of the LUCE Updateprocess. For that reason, mitigationsthat exceed current minimums shouldbe central to this update, rather thansettling for status quo citation ofexisting plans in the EIR. If the City isto build on its public planning achieve-ments of the last five decades, thisdocument is the place where that musthappen. Vision is the critical element the LUCEupdate must have if it is to succeed.We remind the planning commissionand city council of the legacy that is intheir charge, and we urge them to bringthe vision and values to the LUCEupdate necessary to preserve thatlegacy. Our full comments are posted atsantalucia.sierra club.org/news/news.html.

The LUCE UpdatePlans to Make ClimateChange WorseSLO’s current greenhouse gasemission reduction strategiesshould result in reduced GHGemissions by 2020. But the LUCEUpdate projects that its proposedland use and transportation policieswill result in the City exceeding itsTarget Emissions Limit by 86,200metric tons by 2035. The City willneed to adopt additional GHGreduction measures if it is to stayon track to meet the state’s long-term emission greenhouse gasreduction goals, which call foremission cuts 80% below 1990levels by 2050.

The Sierra Club is urging the City toget back on track and recommit toreflecting the values of its residents byadding several policies to the draftLUCE Update and amending ordeleting proposed policies that are atodds with residents’ values.

In conformance with the City’s Open

Protect and enhance the naturalenvironment...protect, sustain,and where it has been degraded,enhance wildlife habitat...protectand restore natural land formsand features in and near the city,such as the volcanic morros,hillsides, marshes, and creeks.

City residents have made it very clear,in extensive 1994 and 2012 surveysconducted in the course of preparingthe Land Use Element and its currentupdate, that they value this goal aboveall others. Unfortunately, the highest priority ofcity residents has not been reflected inthe budget process, the City Council’sgoal-setting (open space preservationdisappeared as a Major City Goal in2009 and has been downgraded to the“other goals” category ever since), orthe expenditure of some three percentof collected Measure Y funds on openspace acquisition and main-tenanceover the eight years since the sales taxmeasure was adopted. The Councilfailed to compensate for this departurefrom the values of its citizens when itdesigned the oversight committeethat’s supposed to assure voters theirvalues will be reflected if the sales taxmeasure is renewed. In 2005-06, citystaff made a concerted effort to undothe 1994 Open Space Element, unilater-ally dumping major environmental andopen space protections in their staff-written draft.

Space ordinance, which mandates thatthe City’s open space areas shall beacquired and maintained for the use ofresidents, tourism programs should notinclude the state or national-levelmarketing of the City’s designatedOpen Space areas, thereby sparingoverburdened neighborhoods and anequally overburdened resource thatwas intended to serve the open spaceneeds of residents.

Delete language implementing theEconomic Development Strategic Plan

and all references to its concept thatnew development should pay asubjective “fair share” in impact fees, adeveloper subsidy that represents asignificant departure from the long-standing policy that development payits own way. “Fair share” potentiallyshifts much of the cost of new devel-opment — new streets and mainte-nance, sewerage, police and fire pro-tection, bike lanes, sidewalks, pedes-trian paths, bus turn-outs, reconstruct-ing existing facilities, etc. — fromprivate developers onto the public.This is just one of multiple sweepingchanges to City policy that would betriggered by the casual incorporationby reference of the Economic Develop-ment Strategic Plan in one sentence inthe Land Use Element. The LUCEUpdate does not propose to implementany comparable documents fromorganizations advocating for thepreservation of the City’s establishedneighborhoods or natural resources,and there has been no comparableopportunity for those stakeholders toproduce a “strategic plan” and havetheir goals implemented by fiat in theLand Use Element.

The City should require, not “encour-age,” the use of methods to facilitaterainwater percolation for roof areas andoutdoor hardscaped areas.

LUCE continued on page 9

TAKE ACTION


Dear County Health Commission...

HEALTH COMMISSION continued on next page

At their August 11 meeting, the SLOCounty Health Commission got anearful on the potential impacts offracking on human health. Abouttwenty people showed up to voice theirconcerns and ask the Commission tocontact the Board of Supervisors witha recommendation to ban fracking. The Santa Lucia Chapter of the SierraClub submitted the document at right asour comments. The Board has directed AssistantCounty Administrative Officer GuySavage to prepare a report on theimpacts of unconventional oil and gaswell stimulation — including hydraulicfracturing and acidization — and theresponse of local governments to thespread of this practice in California. As we go to press, the staff report isexpected to be heard at the Board ofSupervisors in late summer or early fall,at which time staff will seek guidancefrom the Board — i.e. whether to moveforward with a ban, moratorium or otheraction.

On July 24, with an assist from theSanta Lucia Chapter, SLO Clean Energyheld a key forum in the long-term effortto bring Community Choice Aggrega-tion (CCA) to the Central Coast. Cordell Stillman, chief engineer for theSonoma Water Agency, came to theSLO City Library to tell attendees aboutthe benefits of CCA. Sonoma County is the secondjurisdiction in California to get a CCAprogram up and running, and Stillmanquickly laid out the case: Having a CCAmeans you can determine the sourceand content of the energy a communityconsumes, providing rate stabilizationand local control of energy programs,competition for the big utilities andchoice for the customers, encouraginginnovation. Net revenues go back intothe community, stimulating the localeconomy with job creation and energyefficiency programs. Sonoma Clean Power has already cutthe county’s greenhouse gas emissionsby 30 percent, delivering 33 percentrenewable energy, 1.5 times more cleanpower than PG&E, at 5 percent lowerrates (a percentage that’s bound togrow as PG&E’s rates are set to headskyward over the next three years). The state’s first CCA program, MarinClean Energy, encountered “vicious”resistance from PG&E, said Stillman,showering their prospective customerswith trumped-up CCA horror stories,but a law was subsequently passed“saying you can’t do that anymore.”With the success of the Marin andSonoma programs, getting a CCA upand running has become easier, fasterand cheaper. His talk was very well received by theroom. The day after Stillman spoke, SLOClean Energy arranged a luncheon withlocal elected officials and representa-tives of local business community,where Stillman received an even warmerreception.

Community +Choice = CleanEnergy + LocalControl

Here’s how it works Cordell Stillman told the crowd at the SLOLibrary what a CCA program is doing for Sonoma and can do for us.

On May 20, SLO Clean Water Actiondelivered 4,000 signatures to the Boardof Supervisors asking them to banfracking in SLO County.


Health Commissioncontinued from page 4

Los Osos: Last ChanceEMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

Executive Director Greenspace – The Cambria Land TrustGreenspace seeks a candidate who understands the ecological attributesand challenges to the environment on the Central Coast. Its mission is toprotect the area’s ecological systems, cultural resources and marinehabitats through land acquisition and management, public education andadvocacy.

Full time with an initial one-year contract. The current executive directorwill remain on staff part time to support the transition. Pursuing fundingfor conservation and related projects will be a job priority. Energy andcommitment are a must. Salary will be negotiated.

For a full job description contact Wayne Attoe, President, Greenspace –The Cambria Land Trust, PO Box 1505, Cambria CA 93428, [email protected]. For more background, go towww.greenspacecambria.org. Application deadline is Nov. 1, 2014.

Twin landmarks in the long struggleto save the Los Osos groundwaterBasin – the adjudication of the basinand the approval of a sewer project –are about to be joined by two more: abasin plan prepared for the SuperiorCourt by Los Osos water purveyorsand the County as parties to theadjudication, and a Resource WaterManagement Plan to be presented tothe California Coastal Commission as acondition of the County’s permit tobuild the Los Osos WastewaterProject. The Sierra Club and the Los OsosSustainability Group were on the frontlines of the fight to make the Countydo the sewer right, circa 2005-2010,forcing the County to scrap its plan todump treated wastewater outside theaquifer, inevitably depleting the basin,and instead recycle and reuse thewater. The LOSG reevaluated theofficial calculations of the rate at whichseawater intrusion is contaminating theaquifer, persuading the CountyPlanning Commission to discard theoutdated, overly conservative figures

it was relying on and put the urgentneed to halt seawater intrusion frontand center in a drastically revisedsewer project. On August 11, the Sierra Club,following up on a detailed technicalsubmission the LOSG sent to theCoastal Commission last May, sentthe County a letter — cc’ing theCoastal Commission, the RegionalWater Board, Golden State WaterCompany, S & T Mutual WaterCompany and the Los Osos Commu-nity Services District — urging themto take specific actions to improve theLos Osos Wastewater Project’sRecycled Water Management Plan(RWMP) and adjudicated Basin Plan. The sewer project’s CoastalDevelopment Permit requires that therecycled water plan “maximize thehealth and sustainability of theground and surface waters.” Wepointed out that the RWMP pro-grams the County has been propos-ing to implement, by themselves or in

LOS OSOS continued on page 10

Can this basin be saved?

CambriaCSD StillCrazy AfterAll TheseYears

CRAZY continued on page 8

It’s a shame no one’s giving outmedals for environmental insanity,because the Cambria CommunityServices District has been competingso hard for so long they deserve totake home the gold, silver and bronze. While the entire county has earned aspecial statewide reputation for intran-sigence and incomprehension when itcomes to compliance with the Califor-nia Coastal Act (see: attempts to turnHearst Ranch into a golf resort, buildMorro Bay’s new sewer plant in a floodplain, build sea walls and restrictcoastal access in Pismo Beach on ashoot-first-ask-questions-later basis,the fencing of Ontario Ridge, etc.), ofall the coastal jurisdictions notoriousfor trying end-runs around the coastalprotections voted into law by thecitizens of California, nobody canmatch the Cambria CSD. Their latest effort just might be apersonal worst. But before we get tothat, some historical context is re-quired. Let’s review the CCSD record ofepic environmental fails:

The law is a ass! In 2004, the CCSD sued the CoastalCommission over its denial of a waterstorage tank expansion plan that wouldhave decimated a rare Monterey pineforest and violated the Coastal Act’sprotections for EnvironmentallySensitive Habitat Areas (ESHA). TheCoastal Commission issued a ceaseand desist order and told the CCSD toscale back their plan for giant watertanks and get them out of the ESHA.(The tanks had to be huge to accom-modate “quality of life bonus” water,an undefined but fairly transparentscheme to bust the moratorium on newdevelopment.) The CCSD board spent hundreds of


The Bioneers are Coming It’s back! Bioneers, the environmental andsocial justice idea celebration, returnsto the Central Coast on Friday andSaturday, October 24-25 at a newvenue, the SLO Grange Hall. With something for everyone,CCBioneers will feature speakers, work-shops and field trips on eleven dif-ferent topics over the two days, includ-ing ecosystem restoration, youth acti-vism, food and farming, indigenousknowledge, economics and biomimicry. New this year will be a World Café,led by David Shaw, a permaculture andwhole systems designers, facilitator,educator and co-founder of theCommon Ground Center at U.C. SantaCruz. He will be assisted by localgraphic recorder Ruth Rominger inhelping conference participants syn-thesize what they are seeing at the con-ference to actively shape the future ofour community. Featured Bioneers keynotes recordedat the National Conference in Marin theweekend before will include NaomiKlein on capitalism vs. climate, PaulStamets on how mushrooms can helpus survive Extinction 6x and Eve Ensleron One Billion Rising for Justice. Localworkshops will feature Dreaming aSustainable SLO County, a panelheaded up by local visionary architectKen Haggard, will show us what itwould take to make San Luis Obispo aprototype sustainable county. Checkout his amazing conceptual drawing ofgiant wind machines on the DukeEnergy Plant smokestacks at theCentral Coast Bioneers web sitewww.centralcoastbioneers.org. On the youth activism scene, threeBrower Award winners from theNational Bioneers stage will leave nodoubt there are capable hands pre-pared to take on the fight from some ofus who are ready for a little rest. 14-year-old Xiuhtezcatl Martinez, youthdirector of Earth Guardians will explainwhy Our Generation Was Born toChange the World. Arielle Klagsbrun’stalk will be on Why People Need to GetArrested: the Climate Crisis RequiresBold Action. And Chloe Maxmin, theforce behind Divest Harvard, will giveus Lessons from the GrassrootsClimate Movement. Individuals andbusinesses are stepping up to providescholarships so that local high school

and college students can attend theconference. Speaking of the climate movement,this year’s local keynote address onFriday, October 24, on The ClimateJustice Project, will feature UCSBProfessor of Sociology John Foran andUCSB doctoral candidates, Corrie Ellisand Summer Gray. They will talk abouttheir trip to the Warsaw COP 19 and theGlobal Youth Climate Justice Move-ment. Summer will premiere her new filmNot Yet the End of the World. Field trips this year will feature an all-day pre-conference trip on October 23to see the Hi Mountain Condor Look-out above Pozo. Your reward for therugged ride up will be a spectacular360° view that stretches from theCarrizo to Point Sal to Pismo Beach.Docents will talk about the condorrecovery program, show you how touse the telemetry equipment to tracktagged condors, and talk about themillions of years of geology you areviewing. Cal Poly students will discussthe work they do at the lookout whileschool is out, trapping and countingwildlife. On Friday morning we will see thefuture of farming in drought-strickenPaso Robles when we visit KukkulaWinery, where the vines and walnuttrees are completely dry-farmed. KevinJussila will explain how he manages on85,000 gallons of water per year whilethe neighboring vineyards use over200,000 per week. You will have theopportunity to taste the difference inthe wine. On Saturday you will have achance to see how cohousing worksduring a tour of Tierra NuevaCohousing. The program rounds out with aconference bookstore hosted byVolumes of Pleasure, the GreenMarketplace on Saturday, featuringeco-friendly businesses, products andnonprofits, and local organic foodprovided by the Centrally Grown foodtruck. Afia Walking Tree, a world classpercussionist who appears on theNational Bioneers stage, will be onhand to perform on our stage and givea drumming workshop during lunch onSaturday. Tickets for the Fridayafternoon National Bioneers keynotesare only $30. For more information goto www.centralcoastbioneers.org or call(805) 548-0597.

About those Big Dumb Concrete Pipes... Central Coast Bioneers will feature aworkshop presentation by the Sierra Club onalternatives to the risky and expensive BayDelta Conservation Plan (BDCP), aka theTwin Tunnels, proposed by the Brownadministration as a solution to the ongoingdrought. Charming Evelyn, Water Committee Chair ofthe Sierra Club’s Angeles Chapter, willdiscuss better ways to address California’swater challenges. “Alternatives to the Giant Bay DeltaTunnels” will be held Saturday, October 25, at1:30 p.m., at the SLO Grange Hall.

Bioneers keynote Hear about the Warsaw COP 19 and the Global Youth Climate JusticeMovement on October 24, and preview Not Yet the End of the World.

Pulling for thePismo Preserve

On July 30, SLO Land Conservancy biologist Brooke Langle came to our generalmeeting at the Steynberg Gallery in SLO to talk about the Conservancy’s cam-paign to acquire the Pismo Preserve. In addition to the benefits that the purchase of the 900-acre ranch would conferby preserving water quality, chaparral, coast woodlands and habitat for thesteelhead and red-legged frog, the acquisition would open up ten miles of newpublic trails and provide “views you don’t get anywhere else – all of Edna Valley,Bishop Peak, Sierra Romauldo, the Irish Hills and down to Point Sal.” The Sierra Club has sent letters of support to decision makers and testifiedbefore the County Parks Commission to urge the donation of funds toward thepurchase. As we go to press, the Land Conservancy is hoping to receive a $4 millionaward from the Wildlife Conservation Board at an August 28 board meeting inSacramento, and is working to locally raise the remaining $1.1 million toward the$12 million purchase price.

by Stacey Hunt, Ecologistics Inc.


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Voice of the wild MattSayles of the CaliforniaWilderness Alliance toldour guests assembled atthe Tolosa Winery aboutthe Central CoastHeritage Protection Act.

A Wild TimeWas Had by All

Denny Mynatt has been serving as Print Media Coordinator for the Santa LuciaChapter of the Sierra Club for over ten years. As such, he’s the reason why theSanta Lucian gets into the mail and correctly delivered every month. At the Face of the Wild event, the Chapter honored Denny with our Founder’sAward, the Kathleen Goddard Jones Award.

“Ninety percent of everything in life is about showing up,” saidExecutive Committee member Victoria Carranza, who elaborated onDenny’s tasks: “He puts all 2,200 printed copies into his car, haulsthem to the Senior Center, unloads those 2,200 copies for the volun-teer labeling group, tags the bags, matches the mail bags and thelabeled copies in zip code order, checks to see that all those copies getinto the right bags, puts those 2,200 copies back in his car, hauls themto the post office, hauls those 2,200 copies back out of his car andonto a loading dock, and hands over the bulk mail forms — whichmake an IRS Form 1040 look like a child’s poem — perfectly filled out.He shows up at the office every single day, and every month heoversees a complex, physically demanding process, with no supervi-sion, no complaints, no mistakes, and not much in the way of reward— until now. It’s my great personal pleasure, on behalf of the execu-tive committee, to bestow the Santa Lucia Chapter’s highest honor,the Kathleen Goddard Jones Award, on Denny Mynatt.” Congresswoman Lois Capps then presented Denny with a Certifi-cate of Congressional Recognition. Saying “There are unsung heroes in every organization,” sherecalled that in all her Congressional campaigns, “the people that youknow you’re going to remember forever are the people like Denny,who show up and will do anything to get the job done. The SierraClub couldn’t be more privileged, more honored, than to have a

Denny Mynatt Wins Chapter Founder’sAward and Congressional Recognition

Congratulations! Congresswoman Lois Capps presented Denny Mynatt with a Certificate of Congres-sional Recognition, saying “Denny represents the best of our nation’s principles and values.”

person like Denny available to help.” What she said.

Sierra Club supporters converged onthe Tolosa Winery south of San LuisObispo on the night of August 3 for theSanta Lucia Chapter’s annual fundraiser. The theme of the event was “The Faceof the Wild,” with live and silentauctions of nature art and masks bylocal artists, commemorating the 50thanniversary of the passage of theWilderness Act, which has resulted inthe preservation of 110 million acres ofpublic land as unspoiled wildernesssince 1964. Guests were serenaded by the musicof Moonpie while indulging in grilledmarket vegetable skewers, PeacockFarms tomato mezzo sauce, bacon-wrapped dates, mini smoked fish tacos,rosemary chicken skewers and more,catered by Two Cooks Catering, and, ofcourse, Tolosa Wines. Members of theCal French Donors Circle enjoyed a VIPtour of the winery with winemaker LarryBrooks and a barrel tasting. Volunteer event coordinators SandySimon and Victoria Carranza oversawthe logistics of the event, including liveand silent auctions. Under the organiz-ing hand of former Chapter Chair KarenMerriam, community members youngand old expressed their “faces of thewild” by creating hand-held masks thatwere displayed, worn and sold. Threemasks judged the most creative by thejury panel were auctioned off in the live

auction, along with local artwork andtwo week-long South African photosafaris. Congresswoman Lois Capps, a long-time environmental advocate and chairof the National Marine SanctuariesCaucus was the keynote speaker. “We have some of the most diversehabitats and ecosystems, right on theCentral Coast, of any place in NorthAmerica,” she said. “We have aresponsibility to protect these placesfor future generations.” Matt Sayles of the California Wilder-ness Coalition spoke on the CentralCoast Heritage Protection Act, a billthat Capps introduced in May toprotect 245,500 acres of wilderness,safeguard 159 miles of wild and scenicrivers in the Los Padres National Forest

and the Carrizo Plain National Monu-ment, and establish the 400-mileCondor Trail from Los Angeles toMonterey. Representatives JuliaBrownley and Sam Farr are co-sponsoring the legislation. Santa Lucia Chapter ExecutiveCommittee member Greg McMillansaid, “My family has lived in this areafor six generations and it is my heart. Iown and operate a small scale grass-fed beef operation on family land andhave planted an olive orchard. We areblessed to live in an area that containssome of the most rural and wild landsin the West, but the pressures on thisland are great. The Central CoastHeritage Protection Act will ensure thatour wildest lands and rivers remainintact.”


thousands of ratepayers’ dollars on alegal crusade against the Commissionand the County based on the absurdclaim that the Coastal Commission hadno jurisdiction over water projects inthe Coastal Zone. The CCSD lost everylegal motion, lost the case, and endedup building the tanks to the designspecs worked out by the Commission.Had they prevailed, the CCSD wouldhave set a statewide precedent open-ing up environmentally sensitivehabitat for development and destruc-tion throughout the coastal zone. Andthere can be little doubt that this wasthe ultimate goal of the district’s legaladventure. Then CCSD president andreal estate lawyer Greg Sanders was apartner in the law firm NossamanGuthner Knox & Elliott, whose websiteboasts of its ability to “overcome theraft of legal, environmental andpolitical obstacles that stand in theway of development” and successfullydefend “development projects againstenvironmental challenges.” Sanders said that the CoastalCommission “cost us $400,000” in thefight over the water tanks (much of it,he did not add, due to the legal maneu-vers needed to bust a conservationeasement), perpetuating the myth thatthe Coastal Commission was to blamefor the CCSD’s steep expenses. But itwas the CCSD that sued the Commis-sion over the tanks, not the other wayaround. The CCSD lavished further funds onlobbyists and the services of twooutside legal firms in the quest tosomehow make the California CoastalAct not apply to them. The Districtcould have saved all that money if ithad submitted a project designed tocomply with the County’s LocalCoastal Plan in the first place insteadof being forced to do so at the end ofan extended legal process of their ownmaking.

Terrorists, schmucks, and do-overs Then the district board contemplatedserving subpoenas on citizens whohad dared to criticize the project inpublic hearings. A board memberdefended the subpoena threat assimilar to “investigating a terrorist.”

By Joe Morris, Outings Chair By now, most chaptermembers probably know thatHeidi Harmon, endorsed bythe Sierra Club, has taken onthe challenge of running forState Assembly District 35,representing SLO County,Santa Maria and Lompoc. She faces a comfortableincumbent, Katcho Achadjian,who “has both private andpolitical ties to the oil industryand thousands of dollars incontributions from the fossilfuel industries” (Santa MariaSun). His Assembly voteshave reflected that allegiancein their consistent oppositionto legislation for cleanenergy. Katcho voted againstAssembly Bill 650, whichwould have improved accessto public transportation, andvoted for AB 2145, whichwould prevent local communi-ties from making their owndecisions about energy rather than continue at the mercy of the big utilities. And if you hate any move toward gun control, you will love Katcho’s 100%rating by the NRA. As Heidi has pointed out, Katcho is an affable man, who may show up for yourson’s birthday party, but not for his future. People (including myself) who talkwith her are enthused about her articulate grasp of today’s social problems andher commitment to solve them. Her passion is the environment and doing some-thing about climate change, which is fast becoming the defining issue of ourtime. Katcho has never had to really fight for his seat before. But things are differentthis time around. With great energy and an ability to connect to people, Heidi iscrisscrossing the District and speaking at house parties, fundraisers, fairs, andother events. Her articles about climate change and clean energy, droughtsolutions, a living wage and education have appeared repeatedly in local paperslike the Tribune and New Times. She’s been interviewed several times on localradio. Katcho has been noticeably absent. As you read this, we are in the crucial post Labor-Day months of Septemberand October — the final campaign stretch before the November 4 election. Wehave a unique chance now, probably our only one for years, to elect someonewho has the potential of becoming the environmental conscience in Sacramento. If people like you and me don’t support her, who will? If we don’t do it now,when? Here are some ways you can help: 1. Go to her website, www.heidiharmon.org and learn more about her: the issues,the people who endorse her, her platform, and her next appearances. 2. Donate, and please be generous. You can do it online with a credit card. Running for office is expensive these days. 3. Contact Heidi and put in some hours volunteering — two, twenty, or what-ever. There are a bunch of things to do right now, like sending out letters,helping out at a house party, putting up signs, etc.

I’m having fun working on a grassroots campaign with people who really careabout the things I do. I bet you will, too.

Now’s the Time: Help Heidi Run!Crazycontinued from page 5

Then the board denied they had madeany such threat. Future SLO Mayor Jan Marx pointedout to the board that their legal counselhad in fact informed the state AttorneyGeneral of the CSD’s intent to issuethose subpoenas. Marx informed theCSD that “the Anti-SLAPP statuteprotects any written or oral statementor writing made in a place open to thepublic or public forum in connectionwith an issue of public interest or anyother conduct in furtherance of theexercise of the constitutional right offree speech,” and that “no othergovernmental entity in this County hasever abused the subpoena power theway the CCSD is doing right now. The

Let’s try it on another State Beach! In 2008, the District conductedground penetrating radar studies fordesalination test wells at Santa RosaState Beach — “without necessaryCoastal Development Permits orlandowner approvals,” as CoastalCommission staff noted. The districttried (and failed) to declare that its planto drill desal test wells at the mouth ofSanta Rosa Creek should be exemptfrom environmental review. Citizen

CRAZY continued on page 10

permit, franticallyoffering to pro-vide informationthey had previ-ously withheldabout the plansfor the desalfacility. As recon-sideration of aCoastal Commis-sion permit onlyoccurs when newinformation hascome to light thatcould not havebeen known tothe applicant atthe time of theoriginal hearing— not when theapplicant realizes

that its prior strategy of piece-mealingand concealment was a bad idea —their request was denied.

Call for Candidates

Not a good sign Dead fish were turning up in large algaeblooms in San Simeon Creek in August. Highly toxic methyl-mercury thrives in these conditions, where the Cambria CSD pro-poses to put its emergency desal facility and then make it perma-nent, no matter what future environmental review may find.

community will not tolerate this kind ofgovernmental intimidation againstcitizens who are exercising theirfreedom of speech.” In 2006, the CCSD proposed conduct-ing geophysical surveys at San SimeonState Beach for desalination test wells.The Coastal Commission noted that theDistrict’s plan violated Coastal Actprovisions for public access, environ-mentally sensitive habitat areas, marinebiological resources, visual resources,etc. The CCSD coyly withheld informa-tion about plans to build a desal facilityin the immediate vicinity if the testwells produced the desired results. TheCommission looked past the test wellsand deemed the location unacceptablefor a desal plant, the siting and con-struction of which was the obviousgoal of the survey project. (“We’vemade it very clear, time and again,” saidExecutive Director Peter Douglas, “thatwe do not believe this is an appropriatesite for a permanent facility.”) Permitdenied. With Cambria’s desal project dead,the Tribune published an op ed bySanta Lucia Chapter Director AndrewChristie urging the CCSD to break offfrom its single-minded pursuit ofdesalination and start consideringother water conservation and reclama-tion options, pointing out that nodesalination plant in the United Stateshas ever been brought to scale andbeen able to produce potable water atthe volume promised, or otherwisefunction as advertised. CCSD engineerBob Gresens retorted that many desalfacilities have been functioning justfine…in Singapore, Australia and SaudiArabia. At a September 2007 meeting, CSDDirector Ilan Funke-Bilu, still smartingover the water tanks, called the CoastalCommission “a bunch of schmucks”and complained that “we spent$400,000 of our money to placate theseschmucks who felt that we weresomehow violating some sort of naturalhabitat, and therefore you’ve got delay,delay, delay.” Funke-Bilu made these remarks as thedistrict was in the midst of requestingthe favor of reconsideration of theCoastal Commission’s denial of their

The world’s most democraticenvironmental organization needsyou! Yes, Santa Lucia Chaptermember, you can run for ExecutiveCommittee and have a say in decision-making in the Sierra Club as an electedClub leader. The ExCom is an admin-istrative body; we need people whocan take minutes, organize com-

2015 Executive Committee nominations open

mittees, inspire participation and/ororganize members. Conservation-ists are welcome, but the Chapteralso needs volunteers who like tohandle the needs common to allorganizations. If you have sometime and would like to help thisgreat organization, pleasevolunteer to run for a seat on theExCom. Each winning candidatewill be elected to a three-yearterm. The Executive Committeemeets monthly at the Chapteroffice in SLO. You may nominate yourself or

suggest anyone else to any member ofthe committee. Members may also runby petition, signed by 25 members ofthe Chapter in good standing.Nominations will be accepted until 5p.m. Monday, September 22. You may submit nominations [email protected] or Sierra Club,P.O. Box 15755, San Luis Obispo, CA934304.


Basincontinued from page 2

discarded, once they get control of theboard of a water district there’s nomystery as to how they’ll vote onmatters before the board. (The mosttelling moment in the legislative processcame when a Senate committee amendedthe bill to require actual management ofthe basin, including water meters andmonitoring, and PRAAGS and PROWater Equity immediately withdrew theirsupport, claiming the bill had become“complicated.”)Stewart Resnick is in the mix.Lawyers and lobbyists in the employ ofthe billionaire lord of a Central Valleyalmond dynasty — and current owner ofJustin Vineyards — were all over AB2453. Google “kern water resnick,” minusquotation marks, to view the uniquehistory of the relationship between thiswater district take-over artist andCalifornia’s groundwater. You will get apretty good idea of why the biggestplayer over the Paso basin might wantthis district structured in such a way thatthe guys with the most acres stand tocontrol the most votes. Our CountySupervisors call this a conspiracytheory. Water speculators call it abusiness plan. All of the above foretells the likelyoutcome of the process the CountyBoard of Supervisors opted for and onwhich they have betthe farm. That outcomewas also foreseeablewhen a majority of theSupervisors refused toconsider three simpleamendments to AB2453 that the SierraClub proposed as thebill neared a vote onthe Senate floor inAugust: Add: “The import offoreign water to thebasin, export of nativewater from the basin,and the storage ofexcess State Waterallocations in thebasin by other entitiesis prohibited.” (Thestorage of excess StateWater allocations inthe basin is the neat

basin via its theoretical storagecapacity when that water’s notneeded, then lay claim to real waterwhen it is needed.) Add: “District board elections shalltransition to registered voterelections. In two years, three of thesix directors in the three landownerclasses shall be elected by registeredvoters living within the district; in 4years the remaining three directorsin the landowner classes shall beelected by registered voters livingwithin the district.” (The Supervisorsclaimed this would disenfranchisenon-resident landowners. But regard-less of who’s on the district board, allwater projects would require passageof a Proposition 218 vote. Prop. 218votes are acreage-based. Whenprojects are proposed, those who willpay the most will have the mostvotes.) Amend the bill to read: “Candidatesfor the six directors elected pursuantto this subdivision shall be within thesame landowner class as the electorsfor that class.” As the approved billreads instead, “Candidates for the sixdirectors elected pursuant to thissubdivision may be within any land-owner class.” With that language

Frozen out Democracy didn’t make it into the Paso Robles groundwater basin bill.

trick whereby anotherdistrict can store its“paper water” in this

intact, the largest landowners can runcandidates for all the seats in all threelandowner classes –small, medium andlarge. Guess which candidates will haveall the money they need to blanket thedistrict, get out the vote, and secure amajority? That’s called seizing theadvantage to protect your interests,and when the law allows it, that’s whatis done by entities with the resources todo so. Why would they not? Including any one of these amend-ments would have gone a long way tocure what ailed AB 2453 and greatlyallayed the trouble that lies ahead. Asnone of those provisions were in-cluded, it’s not hard to see where this isgoing: A district that, as structured,inevitably will be run by people whosemain purpose will be importing water fora few vineyards and ensuring that ruralresidents pay for it, and whose demon-strated lack of interest in managing thebasin could cost the state one of itsmajor aquifers. A dozen local, state andnational public interest organizationssaw the serious problems with the bill;our county supervisors and newspaperof record did not. Only a failed district formation vote,the State of California, and/or anadjudicated basin can save us now.

The City should require, not “en-courage,” project designs that minimizedrainage concentrations and impervi-ous coverage.

Drop the biologically dubiousconcept of “offsite mitigation.” Theidea that protecting land elsewhere willmake up for habitat reduced or de-stroyed by development is a recipe forhabitat fragmentation, violating thefundamental principle of wildlifebiology: the value of open space as anecosystem and habitat increases whenthe size of the contiguous area in-creases, and declines as size is re-duced. Unless the City is prepared toshow that off-site lands always pro-vide not only equivalent acreage butequivalent environmental values andidentical biota, and the research andconfirmation of such values can beshown to be a regular staff functionwhen determining mitigation, per-formed by credentialed personnel withthe ability to carry out such an evalu-ation -- including monitoring andfollow-up to ensure those valuescontinue in perpetuity -- the concept of

off-site mitigation should be removedfrom City policy.

Implement a builder incentive programthat will encourage new homes to bebuilt with onsite water recycling systemincluded. Earlier this year, the City ofLancaster and KB Homes created the“Double ZeroHouse,” which achievesnet-zero energy and uses zero freshwater for irrigation, recycling 95% ofdrain water via a gray water system, and80% of the energy via a gray water heatrecovery system that extracts energyfrom drainwater and uses it to preheatwater in the home’s water heater.Lancaster is pursuing the goal ofbecome America’s first net-zero city. SanLuis Obispo should join it.

Support the use and development ofbiodiesel fueling stations, EV rechargingstations, and other alternative fuelstations in the San Luis Obispo area, notjust compressed natural gas fuelingstations. A policy favoring a single typeof alternative fuel is clearly inappropriateas policy and inadequate to meet theCity’s overall planning goals for energy

LUCEcontinued from page 3

use and pollution reduction.

Introduce unbundled parking,congestion pricing, shared parking,fair price policies, positive transporta-tion demand management (TDM) andthe other components of an Intelli-gent Parking program for schools andgovernment buildings, with the goalof creating a Request for Proposalprocess for full implementation.There is no such thing as “freeparking,” which always increases thecost of housing and reduces wagesdue to higher employer costs ofproviding parking. Unpriced parkingis often “bundled” with buildingcosts, which means that a certainnumber of spaces are automaticallyincluded with building purchases orleases. Unbundling parking meansthat parking is sold or rented sepa-rately. Parking policies that eliminateor reduce minimum parking require-ments have been shown to be one ofthe least costly tools to reduceVehicle Miles Traveled (VMT). Per theVictoria Transport Policy Institute,unbundling car parking costs has

reduced parking requirements up to30% in cities where this has beenimplemented, reducing vehicle traffic,congestion, accidents, energy con-sumption, pollution emissions andconsumer costs. Reducing parkingsubsidies promotes equity, so transitusers and other non-drivers are notsubsidizing drivers. People who takepublic transit or walk do not have topay higher prices at stores to pay forparking or receive reduced wagesbecause their employers spend moneyto provide parking to employees.

The California Coastal Commissionhas announced the 30th annualCalifornia Coastal Cleanup Day, thestate’s largest volunteer event. The event will take place at more than800 locations around the state onSaturday, September 20, from 9 a.m. tonoon. The Cleanup is the State’slargest effort to remove the debris thathas accumulated on our beaches andinland shorelines over the past year,bringing tens of thousands of volun-teers out annually to protect the marinewildlife and habitat that can be badlydamaged by marine debris. ECOSLO has been organizing CoastalCleanup Day locally since 2005. Lastyear, over 1,600 volunteers removedover 5,700 pounds of marine debrisfrom 29 beaches throughout San LuisObispo County. Statewide in 2013,nearly 60,000 volunteers picked-upnearly 750,000 pounds of debris.Marine debris can be harmful and evenfatal to wildlife, which in turn candamage our state’s economy, and caneven become a human health hazard. Organizers are urging all participantsto take part in the BYO (Bring YourOwn) campaign, designed to encour-age volunteers to help decrease theecological footprint of the Cleanup.Volunteers are encouraged to bringtheir own bucket or reusable bag,gloves, and reusable water bottle sothat they won’t have to use thedisposable items that the Commissionsupplies. To sign up for the SLO CountyCoastal Cleanup, go to theecoslo.ivolunteer.com/ccd_2014, or contactKrista Burke at (805) 544-1777 [email protected].

30th AnnualCaliforniaCoastalCleanup Day


conjunction with theprovisions of the BasinPlan, will not maximizebenefits on the Basin. This is the chance forall parties to addressthe severe, long-termseawater intrusionproblem in the LosOsos Basin, reverse it,and establish a sustain-able water supply forthe community and vitalhabitat of the MorroBay National Estuary. We asked for:

A requirement for animmediate and thor-ough seawater intru-sion assessment withsemi-annual updates.The assessment shouldmeasure and evaluatethe condition of each

Los Ososcontinued from page 5

recharge with clean rainwater.) Improvements to the LOWWPrecycled water use program to prioritizerecycled water reuse in the Westernand Central Basin in order to maximizepumping reductions and seawaterintrusion offset. Improvements shouldinclude added recycled water pipes andconnections to allow a greater reduc-tion in potable water use. They shouldalso maintain/improve water balance inall parts of the Basin and optimizemanagement options. Improvements to the LOWWPconservation program to achieve anaggressive conservation target andencourage the elimination of potablewater for outdoor use. The programshould include a stronger outreachprogram to the community informingresidents of the seawater intrusionproblem (including radio and TVspots), a stronger indoor program (e.g.,a stronger washer replacement pro-gram, more options, leak detection and

Cleath & Associates/Keith Wimer, LOSG

That was then In 2009, the Los Osos Sustainability Group showed the County that the rate of seawater intrusion into theLos Osos basin over the previous four years was at least four times faster than had been thought. And now...?

repair), and a complete outdoorconservation program with grey water,rainwater harvesting, and LID options.We suggested that the County askSLO Green Build to expand the septicsystem repurposing program into acomprehensive outdoor program. The$5 million the Coastal DevelopmentPermit requires for conservationshould be spent to maximize thisprogram, with any remaining moneyspent on improving recycled waterprograms. Consistent with permit conditions,

aquifer and the entireBasin, providingadequate data andanalysis to showcurrent conditions and changes sincethe 1970’s, along with predictedimpacts from the drought and climatechange (less rainfall/higher sea levels). Designation of the Basin as ahigh-priority, threatened basin. A County Basin ManagementOrdinance as provided for in the Basinplanning agreement, with measurable,time-specific, and enforceable objec-tives set to reverse seawater intrusionas soon as possible. The ordinanceshould also ensure all pumping in theBasin is monitored, conservation andrecycled water use is maximized, andpumping is limited if necessary. A provision that conservation,recycled water use, and low impactdevelopment (LID) are maximized andgiven ample opportunity to reverseseawater intrusion before outsidesources of water or desalination arepursued. (LID provides the triplebenefit of reducing water use, reducingpolluted runoff, and increasing Basin

there should be nonew building over theBasin, inside oroutside the wastewaterservice area, untilseawater intrusion isreversed and conclu-sive well tests showample surplus waterexists to sustainablysupport addeddevelopment, with amargin of safety toaccount for impactsfrom the LOWWP,climate change, andother impacts anduncertainties. The community andagencies should beable to review the finaldraft of the Los OsosBasin ManagementPlan prior to itssubmission to theSuperior Court forapproval.

The State Legislature is emphasizingwater use efficiency via conservationand recycled water as the first priorityin managing threatened supplies. Withthe Los Osos Basin facing the threat ofsevere seawater intrusion, the worstdrought on record, changes in pump-ing regimes and increasing sea levelrise from climate change, we are urgingactions we feel are necessary to allowthe Los Osos Basin to continue tosupport estuarine and riparian habitatin Coastal Zone, the Community of LosOsos, and the farmland over the Basin.

Crazycontinued from page 8

activist Lynne Harkins proposed, andthe Sierra Club funded, testing formercury in Santa Rosa Creek, down-stream from the abandoned andunremediated Oceanic mercury mine.She found mercury at four locations,with the highest concentration at themouth of the creek. The CCSD’s new trick: stepping asideas lead agency and replacing them-selves with the Army Corps of Engi-neers, hoping thereby to get aroundthe California Coastal Act and theCoastal Commission by turning thedesal plan into a federal project. Butthe Coastal Commission invoked itsauthority to determine if the projectwas consistent with California’sCoastal Management Program. InDecember 2011, the Commissionunanimously determined that it wasnot, blasting the district for the leadagency switcheroo, terming the testwells project “a complete waste ofpublic funds” and noting the “avoid-ance of proper procedure” in theattempt to gain a permit. Why spend years on securingpermits for a desal test project at a sitewhere you know you will not beallowed to build a desal plant — twice?Why not design water storage tankscorrectly in the first place? This is just a highlights reel of theCCSD’s greatest whiffs. In August,Cambria Water Watch posted a very

long list at www.cambriawaterwatch.org. The piece duh resistance None of the above can compare withthe trouble the Cambria CSD is askingfor with its emergency desal project,aka Advanced Water Treatment Plant(AWTP), and its decision, afterreceiving an emergency permit, to plowahead with a long-term financialcommitment to a permanent facilitywithout first obtaining a CoastalDevelopment Permit for it. A few of the things wrong with thatdecision: A boundary dispute overadjacent State Park land has arisen for aportion of the project site. CoastalCommission staff and other agencieshave submitted comments on theCSD’s application for their regularCoastal Development Permit andpointed out a significant number ofglossed-over areas which need sub-stantial improvement in order to protectsensitive coastal resources andthreatened species. To the dismay ofmany in the community, the CSD Boardand staff are shrugging off complianceguidance, particularly from CoastalCommission staff. Writing in the August 7 edition of TheCambrian, reporter Kathe Tanner citede-mails to the CSD from CoastalCommission staff scientist Tom Lusterwarning the CSD that the project “willlikely cause ‘take’ of listed species andcause long-term harm to sensitive

habitat” and recommending that thedistrict start showing “an interest inworking with the key resourcesagencies to identify needed changes.”Luster pointed to potential environ-mental impacts that could have seriousconsequences for Cambria and con-cluded “I believe the district wouldwant to know these answers beforelocking into a long-term project and itsassociated liabilities.” At its August 4 meeting, a few hoursafter the Coastal Commission sentthem that warning, the CSD directorscast caution to the winds and voted todirect CSD General Manager JerryGruber to sign a twenty-year financingagreement, putting the community onthe hook for a $13 million loan torender the temporary project perma-nent, despite the lack of a permit for apermanent facility. To all appearances, the CCSD ispressing forward to get infrastructurein place under its County-issued six-

month emergency permit and parlaythat into a fait accompli, no matterwhat a future environmental reviewprocess may reveal. The Cambrian reported “discontentwas so profound” at the “outburst”-filled 2 ½-hour meeting “that someoneapparently set off a small stink bomb.” Gruber said “This is a criminalactivity and shows the outright dis-respect that certain members of thecommunity have for the electedofficials, general manager, staff and thegeneral public.” It’s a well established fact that re-spect must be earned. Yes, outburstsand stink bombs normally don’t have aplace at public meetings. When onenotices such things starting to pop upat one’s meetings, the entity holdingthose meetings should take notice ofthis as a symptom of something awryin the body politic, do some groupsoul-searching, and perhaps recon-sider the way they do business.


ClassifiedsNext issue deadline is September 15.To get a rate sheet or submit your adand payment, contact:Sierra Club - Santa Lucia ChapterP.O. Box 15755San Luis Obispo, CA [email protected]

CYNTHIA HAWLEYATTORNEY

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTIONLAND USE

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P.O. Box 29 Cambria California 93428Phone 805-927-5102 Fax 805-927-5220

Les Kangas

Solar Energy ConsultantREC Solar, Inc.775 Fiero Lane, Suite 200San Luis Obispo, CA 93401

Office: (805) 528-9705Cell: (805) 305-7164

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Outings and Activities CalendarSeller of travel registration information: CST 2087766-40. Registration as a seller of travel does not constitute approval by the State of California.

This is a partial listing of Outingsoffered by our chapter.

Please check the web pagewww.santalucia.sierraclub.org for

the most up-to-date listing ofactivities.

All our hikes and activities are open to all Club members and the general public. Please bring drinking water to alloutings and optionally a lunch. Sturdy footwear is recommended. All phone numbers listed are within area code805 unless otherwise noted. Pets are generally not allowed. A parent or responsible adult must accompanychildren under the age of 18. If you have any suggestions for hikes or outdoor activities, questions about theChapter’s outing policies, or would like to be an outings leader, call Outings Chair Joe Morris, 549-0355. Forinformation on a specific outing, please call the listed outing leader.

Joe MorrisSierra Club(805) [email protected]

Activities sponsored by other organizations

Sat., Sept. 6th, 9:45 a.m., CitizensClimate Lobby. Unitarian UniversalistFellowship, 2201 Lawton Avenue, SLO.Learn what you can do to slow climate

change and make a difference in ourcommunity. Become a climate activistand be part of the solution to the mostpressing issue of our time. For moreinfo, email: [email protected].

Sat., Sept. 13, 1 p.m. - 3 p.m. BotanicalIllustrations at SLO Botanical Gar-den. Discover the art of observing anddepicting nature structurally andaesthetically while enjoying fresh airand the outdoors. Join artist BarbaraRenshaw, at the San Luis ObispoBotanical Gardens as we stroll throughthe Garden sketching your favoriteplants. No experience necessary. Bringa sketch book and watercolors, coloredpencils, or pastels. Meet at the Gar-den’s purple entrance bridge. $5 formembers/$10 public. More info atslobg.org/art. $3 county parking feeApril – Sept. For more info, call 805-541-1400x304 or email [email protected].

Sun., Sept. 7th, 9 a.m. Irish HillsHike. Join us on a slightly strenuous6-mile hike, 1500 ft. gain, treading a newtrail in the Irish Hills, leading to anabandoned manganese mine. Trail wasbuilt mostly by members of CentralCoast Concerned Mountain BikeOrganization. Bring water, snacks, hat,sunscreen, sturdy shoes, and dress inlayers for changing weather. Meetat southern end of Madonna Rd., nextto DeVaul Park, at trail entrance to IrishHills. Leader: Bill Waycott 459-2103 [email protected]. Sat., Sept. 13th, 9:30 a.m. Guadalupe/Paradise Beach Hike. Moderate 6-milehike along pristine Guadalupe Beach toMussel Rock and beyond, durationabout 5-6 hrs. Bring water, lunch,windbreaker, hat, and dress in layersfor varying weather. Lunch also after-wards for those interested. From Hwy101 in Santa Maria, take Main St./Hwy166 to end at Guadalupe Beach. Meetnear interpretive signs and picnictables. Rain cancels. Leader: AndreaOrtiz, 934-2792 or [email protected].

Sun., Sept. 14th, 10 a.m. San SimeonState Beach Hike. Three-mile, 300 ft.

gain hike through meadows, pineforest, grassy mesa, and coastal scrub.Enjoy a variety of footbridges, board-walk, and dirt trail, viewing mountains,valleys, and ocean. Duration about 3hrs. Meet at Wash-burn Day Use Area,about 2 miles north of Cambria, left offHwy. 1. Leader: Vicki Marchenko, 528-5567 or [email protected].

Thurs., Sept. 18th, 7 p.m. SLOThrough Painters’ Eyes. An eveningof pure pleasure! Five eminent artistsfrom SLOPE, San Luis Outdoor Paintersfor the Environment, will display theirfavorite depictions of land andseascapes throughout our county.Each will briefly discuss how they wentabout creating their works. There willbe time to chat with the artists andDenise Schryver, president of SLOPE,which represents more than 15 profes-sional painters. Go to www.SLOPE-Painters.com to see more. Conservationnews will begin the meeting. SteynbergGallery, 1531 Monterey St., SLO.Info.: Joe Morris, 549-0355. Sat., Sept. 20th, 8:30 a.m. Vicente Flatto Nacimiento Summit Hike Versusprevious there-and-back hikes on the

Vicente Flat trail, this time we walk thetrail in its entirety and then down roadto the intersection. Thus there will be acar shuttle. This is a scenic butstrenuous 11-mile, 3100-ft. experience,not for beginners. There is poison oakon or adjoining the trail. Bring lunchand sufficient water. Leader will have awater purifier to replenish at VicenteCamp. Meet at Washburn Day UseArea off Hwy 1, about 1.7 miles northof Main & Windsor in Cambria. Extreme heat will postpone this outing. Leader: Carlos Diaz-Saavedra, 546-0317. Sun., Sept. 21st, 10 a.m. SycamoreSprings Trekking Pole Hike. Polecats is dedicated to leading localSierra Club hikes to model the benefitsof using trekking poles effectively. This is a 2-mile, 600-ft. elevationchange, hike. Meet near the entranceto Sycamore Springs Resort, 1215 AvilaBeach Dr. Need to confirm beforehandwith Leader: David Georgi, 458-5575 [email protected]. Sat., Sept. 27th, 8:30 a.m. Salmon andSpruce Creek Trails to Dutra FlatCamp. Moderate 8.4 mile, 2200-ft. gainhike in southern Big Sur. Beginning atthe Salmon Creek trailhead, we willascend through Spruce Creek Canyon,viewing Silver Peak, winding aroundgrassy hills, and then dropping downinto Dutra Camp. Possibility of ticksand poison oak on the trail. Bringlunch, water, and dress for the weather. Meet at Washburn Day Use Area inSan Simeon State Park, off Hwy 1,about 2 miles north of Cambria. Probable stop for eats afterwards. If itis too hot, we will choose anotherdestination, but rain cancels. Leader:Gary Felsman, 473-3694. Sun., Sept. 28th, 2 p.m. City Walk:Jazz-Age San Luis Obispo to WorldWar II Where is the hotel whereHearst entertained his guests, thespeakeasies of the twenties, and the

original French Hospital? Find out andmuch more on a guided downtownstroll past historic stores, theaters, andhotels. Learn about SLO city life fromthe years of the Model T to Prohibitionand Pearl Harbor. Meet at corner ofMarsh and Toro Sts. Leader: JoeMorris, 549-0355.

Sept. 14-16, Island Hopping in Channel Islands National Park. Join us as weexplore these enchanting islands! Hike wild, windswept trails bordered withblazing wildflowers. Kayak rugged coastlines. Marvel at pristine waters teemingwith frolicking seals and sea lions. Train your binoculars on unusual sea and landbirds. Watch for the highly endangered island fox. Look for reminders of theChumash people who lived on these islands for thousands of years. Or just relax

at sea. A ranger/naturalist willtravel with us to help lead hikes,point out items of interest andpresent evening programs. Allcruises depart from SantaBarbara. 3 islands in 3 days. The$590 cost includes an assignedbunk, all meals, snacks, andbeverages plus the services of aranger/naturalist. To reserve space, send a $100check, written to Sierra Club toleader Joan Jones Holtz, 11826The Wye St., El Monte, CA91732. For more informationcontact leader; 626-443-0706;[email protected].

Field Tripping

Hello fellow Santa Lucians. My name is Greg McMillan.I serve on your Executive Committee and am the co-chairof the Development Committee for the chapter. I havesome ideas for future events that might be of interest toyou and will make a few bucks that we can use to furtherthe efforts of the Chapter. I am asking for your input to see if this interest exists. My proposal is to arrange a series of field trips to some of my favorite places inthe world. These trips might be local and only a day or two in duration andrange to multi day (up to two weeks) trips to more exotic and distant places.They would be limited to a small groups and would be escorted by yours trulyand utilize local experts to interpret the local habitats. The local trips might vary from 1-day small bus field trips to the Carizzo Plain orother places nearby to 2 or 3-day trips to Yosemite, Death Valley, or other wildand environmentally important areas. The more far flung projects might go any-where in the world. The Pantanal of Brazil is one of my favorite places for wild-life, a place of amazing flora and fauna and wonderful people. Another site ofgreat interest to me is the Northern Jaguar Preserve in Northern Sonora, Mexico.It’s very difficult to get to but has been described to me as one of the wildestplaces in the world. These trips would give you a chance to travel with like-minded folks and helpyour Chapter at the same time. Please get back to me at [email protected] put “field trips” on the subject line. I await your input.

1 Santa Lucian • Sept. 2014 SANTA LUCIAN...Santa Lucian EDITOR Greg McMillan Lindi Doud Linda...

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Transcript of 1 Santa Lucian • Sept. 2014 SANTA LUCIAN...Santa Lucian EDITOR Greg McMillan Lindi Doud Linda...