Ventura River Adjudication – Remembering the Past

Mission San Buenaventura
founded March 31, 1782
water supply through aqueduct
from the Ventura River
 at what is now Foster Park

The current controversy surrounding the adjudication of water rights to the Ventura River has focused on the most recent efforts by the City of Ventura to secure its water rights to the Ventura River.  Many may not know that this effort has deep roots in the past.

The City of Ventura was incorporated in 1886, but it claim to the waters of the Ventura River extend back to the establishment of Mission San Buenaventura in 1782.  In addition to the Missions, the Spanish and Mexican governments also established a series of Pueblos and Ranchos between 1769 and 1835 in what later became the state of California. Despite its not being a successor to one of the eight original Spanish or Mexican Pueblos, the City has periodically asserted its claim to the waters of the Ventura River based on a Pueblo water right.

In 1976 the City of Ventura attempted to assert a Pueblo water right against the Casitas Municipal Water District.  The appropriative water rights granted to Casitas in the 1950’s required them to bypass the first 20 cubic feet per second of flow at the Robles Diversion to protect downstream water rights.  The City claimed, however, that this provision did not fully protect its Pueblo water rights.


















Conjunctive Use

Ojai Valley News, Feb 18, 1979

To resolve this dispute, without formally asserting and establishing the City’s Pueblo water right, the City and Casitas proposed to enter into a Conjunctive Use Agreement. This agreement would have allowed Casitas to divert all of the low flow of the Ventura River at its Robles Diversion (up to 500 cubic feet per second) to Lake Casitas.  In exchange Casitas would guarantee the City up to 6,000 acre-feet of water annually from Lake Casitas.

In 1978, the Friends of the Ventura River filed a lawsuit challenging the Environmental Impact Report’s conclusion that the Conjunctive Use Agreement would not adversely affect the Ventura River.  In 1984, after losing in the lower courts, the California Supreme Court rejected the City’s appeal, effectively terminating the Conjunctive Use Agreement.




Endangered Species and Clean Water

In 1997, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) listed steelhead trout in southern California as an endangered species. Rather than comply with new regulatory requirements, the City decided to forego surface diversion and instead rely on its wells at Foster Park.

In 1998, the State of California formally recognized that the Ventura River was impaired by excessive pumping and diversions pursuant to the federal Clean Water Act.

In 2003 NMFS sent a letter notifying the City that the continued operation of the Foster Park wells posed a serious threat to steelhead. In 2007 NMFS issued a “draft jeopardy biological opinion” that specified a minimum flow to protect steelhead at Foster Park.  In response, the City chose to postpone repairs and enlargement of its well field, and recommenced the operation of its other existing wells in the Foster Park area.

A Dry River

In 2013, the City’s hydrology consultants concluded that their pumping was detrimental to critical habitat for endangered steelhead in the Ventura River. The City continued to pump unabated, and from 2014 to 2016 the Ventura River was pumped completely dry at Foster Park for a significant portion of the year.

In 2014, after many years of monitoring water quality in the Ventura River under a program certified by the State, Santa Barbara Channelkeeper filed a lawsuit asking the State to compel the City to reduce its pumping at Foster Park consistent with NMFS requirements. The City responded by petitioning to have the lawsuit dismissed and also simultaneously filed cross-complaints against all other water right holders in the watershed.  The Court rejected the City’s petition.

In 2018, the Appellate Court allowed the City’s cross-complaint against all water right holders to proceed. In 2019, the City signed an interim agreement with Santa Barbara Channelkeeper, based on the NMFS 2007 jeopardy biological opinion, and entered into a court-sponsored settlement agreement process with major water purveyors and several major agricultural landowners.


Adjudication

In January 2020, the City of Ventura commenced adjudication by serving legal summons to over 10,000 individual water rights holders in the Ventura River watershed.

(note: Adjudication is just a fancy word for suing everybody in the basin, and to resolve groundwater rights, you have to bring in all the users.)

Ventura Assistant City Manager, Akbar Alikhan, responding to questions about the Ventura River adjudication, claimed “…this is not a water grab. We are trying to find a solution that balances the needs of the local habitat while still providing the valuable water to our local residences.” 

Given the City’s long history of claiming unlimited, and unrestricted rights to the waters of the Ventura River, is it reasonable to ask what that balance will be?

Residents who use the watershed, whether as water supply or outdoor recreation, have a stake in the outcome of this latest chapter in the long history of exploitation of the Ventura River.



In the press:

Ventura River adjudication: Remembering the past, Ojai Valley News,  Friday, 14 February 2020

POWER TO SPEAK | VENTURA RIVER ADJUDICATION: REMEMBERING THE PAST, VC Reporter,  Feb 26, 2020

References:

The Friends of the Ventura River maintains a library of documents:  http://friendsofventurariver.org/document/

Ventura River 1978 Conjunctive Use Agreement & DEIR (Part 1), Casitas MWD & City of SanBuenaventura, June 1978

Ventura River 1978 Conjunctive Use Agreement & DEIR (Part 2) Casitas MWD & City of SanBuenaventura, June 1978

Friends Prevents River Untimely Death, Ojai Valley News, Feb 1979

It's Your River Too!, Ojai Valley News, March 1979


100 Trout Lead Court to Reject Plan to Tap Ventura Water, LA Times, June 1988


2013 Comprehensive Water Resources Report (Ventura), City of Ventura, 2013

Santa Barbara Channelkeeper Complaint v. State Water Resources Control Board and the City of San Buenaventura, Sep 2014

Ventura River Watershed Adjudication Website, City of Ventura, 2020

Presentations: KYH2O and Matilija Dam

Two recent presentations are now available for online viewing:

Why (Fresh) Water is Important to Surfers
November 21, 2013 - Channel Islands Maritime Museum.
This presentation describes the Ventura River watershed and Surfrider's "Know Your H2O" approach to solving the ongoing water management crisis.






Matilija Dam: Taking Another Look (A Brief History and Update)
March 22, 2014: Salmonid Restoration Federation Conference, Santa Barbara, CA
A summary of  the Matilija Dam Ecosystem Restoration project and update on the 2014 special studies.




Matilija Dam: Taking Another Look (A Brief History and Update) from Salmonid Restoration Federation on Vimeo.

Running Dry

Cover article in the Oct 10, 2013 issue of the Ventura County Reporter is titled "Running Dry - Ventura County has a water problem."   Writer Art Van Kraft takes a high level overview of some of the issues affecting local water management, and says, "Conservation advocates warn of imminent depletion of water resources."  He profiles the efforts of the Surfrider Foundation to alert residents to the 'cycle of insanity'  and quotes Mike Solomon, general manager of United Water Conservation District; "We are taking 30,000 acre feet more water out of the ground than we're putting in and that's not sustainable."  United supplies water in the Oxnard Plain where this overdraft threatens aquifers with sea water intrusion.

The article examines water conservation and Surfrider's Ocean Friendly Gardens partnership with the City of Ventura. 'Lawn killer' Lisa Burton describes how her garden designs eliminate water waste, saying "Lawns start to look really boring and sort of silly; so does the water bill." And Diane Underhill says straight out, "We need to stop approving future development projects."

Read more here:  Running Dry - VC Reporter

Eye on the Environment - Ocean Friendly Gardens & KYH2O

Eye on the Environment - How to Make Your Gardens Ocean Friendly

Published in the VC Star August 11, 2013
http://www.vcstar.com/news/2013/aug/10/how-to-make-your-gardens-ocean-friendly/


How would you like a big group of surfers to help you give CPR to your garden? The Ventura County Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation can help you create an Ocean Friendly Garden by applying the principles of CPR, which stands for Conservation Permeability and Retention.

Today is the last day of the Ventura County Fair, where the local chapter of the Surfrider Foundation has an actual Ocean Friendly Garden on display in the Floriculture Pavilion. If you miss it today, you still have many more opportunities to learn these principles. These landscapes merit the Surfrider-trademarked term “Ocean Friendly Garden” because they conserve water, native habitat and energy with local and edible plants; create permeable soil and hard surfaces to absorb and filter polluted runoff; and retain rainwater to irrigate plants, replenish creeks and groundwater, and prevent flooding downstream.

Surfrider volunteers recently re-landscaped a yard in Ventura’s midtown area to make it an Ocean Friendly Garden. They removed the lawn, then “sheet mulched” (smothered) the remaining roots. Rainwater from the roof was redirected into dry streambeds planted with climate appropriate plants plus mulch to slow, spread and sink the rainwater.

The project also created cuts in the curbs of the parkway (area between street and sidewalk) to absorb street runoff. The City has created a no-cost curb-cutting permit that makes it possible to re-do our planted parkways to capture the majority of street runoff for a fraction of the cost of a more engineered solution.

OFG is part of Surfrider’s larger program to “Know Your H2O,” which is described in our video titled “Cycle of Insanity.” While new development must apply CPR-type requirements, existing developments do not. It seems insane to channel all rainfall into storm drains that deliver polluted runoff directly to our rivers and coasts, wasting water that could be directed into our over-pumped aquifers and waterways. It also seems insane to discharge millions of gallons of highly treated wastewater (from sinks, showers, washing machines and toilets) into the ocean every day. From the dry Ventura River to the flooded McGrath State Beach Park, to the east county cities that import water from northern California, Ventura County has many signs that our management of water can be improved.

For example, while about half the water consumed within the city of Ventura is used on landscapes, the rest is used just once in our homes before we send it to the ‘wastewater’ treatment plant.  There it is treated and pumped into the Santa Clara River estuary, contributing to the flooding problem at McGrath State Beach.  One solution may be recycling this wastewater, which could not only enhance water supply but also reduce impacts on our drying rivers.  Ventura and other facilities in the County, such as the Moorpark Wastewater Treatment Plant, already sell recycled water for use on golf courses.  In Orange County reclaimed water is pumped into the ground to counteract the saltwater intrusion that is also a problem in our aquifers. And as technologies advance, direct potable reuse (for drinking) will become the norm.

Although individual citizens have little control over infrastructure, the solution begins at home.  This is why Surfrider's “Ocean Friendly Gardens” program is catching on throughout the region. Surfrider, City staff and trained professionals have helped many local homeowners improve their gardens as well as assisted with several municipal projects in the City of Ventura.

Surfrider volunteers may not be able to help everyone. So keep your eye on the environment at free classes on Ocean Friendly Gardens, sponsored by the City of Ventura and Aqua-Flo irrigation supply store, starting in September. Check out Surfrider events and see if your local chapter is able to assist you. Also, look at the gardens on the Ocean Friendly Garden map, and start evaluating your garden and making changes – or hire a professional who applies CPR.

On the web:
Calendar - http://ofgvc.wordpress.com/
Video - http://surfrider.org/programs/entry/know-your-h2o
Map – www.oceanfriendlygardens.org
Chapter - http://www.venturariver.org
City - www.cityofventura.net/water/landscape

Also published in the VCReporter:  http://www.vcreporter.com/cms/story/detail/?id=11195

Paul Jenkin is the Surfrider Foundation’sVentura Campaign Coordinator, and
Paul Herzog is the Surfrider Foundation’s Ocean Friendly Gardens Coordinator

Mid Town Ventura - Know Your H2O

Last week I was the guest speaker at the Midtown Community Council.  The midtown community has taken the lead on neighborhood Ocean Friendly Gardens and Green Streets retrofits to address stormwater runoff from this urban area, so this was a welcome opportunity to provide insight on how local actions fit into the 'big picture.'

The Water Cycle has become the 'Cycle of Insanity'

Surfrider's 'Cycle of Insanity - the Real Story of Water' video illustrates how the water cycle, upon which we all depend, has been modified in so many ways that it has become a 'Cycle of Insanity.'  We have developed our urban areas to channel rainfall into storm drains that deliver polluted runoff directly to our rivers and coasts, wasting water that could be directed into our over-pumped aquifers.  Millions of gallons of treated wastewater is being discharged into the ocean - where desalinization plants are being proposed to pump that water back out of the ocean to remove the salt and sell it as a new water supply.  All of this wastes precious fresh water AND energy, further exacerbating the impacts of climate change.

In the Ventura region the signs of stress are evident - but not always seen as connected.  

Ventura River at Foster Park - July 2013

Flooding at McGrath State Beach

Problem:  The Ventura river is dry at Foster Park while McGrath State Beach is flooded - how can this be?

This is where it helps to

 Know Your H2O - where does your water come from, and where does it go?   

Know Your H2O: simplified schematic of where Ventura water comes from and where it goes

From this simplified schematic we can see that about half the city's water supply comes from the Ventura River.  The wells at Foster Park provide about 25% of the city's water, and there is a high demand from this good quality source which is used to dilute the poor groundwater from east side wells. 

About half of the total water used in the city is discharged as wastewater into the Santa Clara River estuary.   So while it may seem 'natural' to discharge treated water into the estuary, much of it does not even originate from the Santa Clara River watershed. In dry years (like this) when the sand berm does not breach and drain the estuary into the ocean, that 9 million gallons a day keeps accumulating, often flooding the state beach.  Artificial breaches have resulted in fish kills, so solutions to the flooding problem have been hard to reach.  

These supply and demand numbers are taken from the city's recent 2013 Final Comprehensive Water Resources Report.  It is evident from this graph that if 'new' sources of water are not found the city will outgrow its water supply  in the near future.  (Indeed, we may already be there, as another year of drought will spell trouble.)

Solutions:  The red arrow shows that the potential for recycled water in Ventura is close to 50% of demand.  (Of course the actual volume would be less than this depending on treatment and reuse options, but this demonstrates the overall magnitude.) Therefore water recycling would provide an opportunity to reduce the flooding problem at McGrath as well as offset demand to reduce pressure on the supplies.  (i.e. an 'integrated solution')  The City of Ventura is currently investigating recycling opportunities and in the short term installing a system for controlled pumping of the estuary into the ocean.

Urban Runoff and Ocean Friendly Gardens:

Map of the urban watershed draining into Pierpont Bay, Ventura, CA

Another symptom of the Cycle of Insanity in Ventura is urban runoff.  Surfrider has studied the downtown/midtown areas and mapped the underground storm drains.  This infrastructure effectively directly connects to the ocean almost every gutter downspout, driveway, street, and parking lot in the area.  The 'impervious' landscape turns even the smallest rainfall into runoff.

Problem: Within the Midtown area (Prince/Sanjon drainage) high runoff volumes flood Sanjon Road and pollute the beaches every time it rains.

While individual citizens often have little control over this infrastructure, the solution begins at home.  This is why Surfrider's 'Ocean Friendly Gardens' program is catching on throughout the region.

 Last year's Ocean Friendly Garden project in the Midtown area not only installed a residential garden, but also included the first 'curb cut' in Ventura.

Midtown Ocean Friendly Garden with 'curb cut'

The 'curb cut' expands the effectiveness of Ocean Friendly Gardens into the public right-of-way, directing runoff from the street into the median where it is infiltrated into the soil.  Any excess water that cannot be absorbed is filtered and released back into the street.

Green Streets are designed to capture runoff before it enters the storm drains

Although the City of Ventura has been slowly retrofitting some of the urban area and planning to implement a 'green streets' demonstration project, budget cuts recently forced the city council to reverse its 2008 'green streets' policy which funds these projects.

Solutions: A less costly community-based green streets approach may be to install curb-cut bioswales along an entire city block.  This would capture the majority of runoff before it enters the storm drain and ends up on the beach for a fraction of the cost of an engineered green street demonstration project.  This may soon become a reality in Midtown Ventura if a 'block party' can be organized!

Do you   KNOW YOUR H2O?

Surfrider's Know Your H2O campaign aims to educate communities about water management issues that affect the health of our watersheds, coast and ocean.  Taking the time to learn where your water comes from, and where it goes when it leaves your home is a first step. Once we understand the problems, and can see how to solve them, we can take action to make basic changes.  In this way a new philosophy of water management starts at home and spreads throughout our communities.

The first step is to understand what the problems are

Developing a common vision for a restored water cycle is essential
 to community-based  action

Actionable solutions like Ocean Friendly Gardens empower communities
 to make the changes required to protect our water for the future

Know Your H2O can be implemented within many
 scales and jurisdictions within a watershed

More info:

Watch the video: Cycle of Insanity - the Real Story of Water

Ocean Friendly Gardens: www.oceanfriendlygardens.org

Ventura Water Supply:  http://www.cityofventura.net/water/supply

Patagonia Bioswale/Parking Lot Retrofit

On this blog:

http://www.venturariver.org/search/label/H2O

http://www.venturariver.org/search/label/wastewater

Estuary breach kills fish
Urban Watershed Planning - Ventura CA
Ventura Adopts "Green Streets" Policy
Ventura Curb Cut

Sustainable Water Use in the Ventura River Watershed

On April 23, 2013 the Ventura River Watershed Council received a presentation from the UCSB/Bren School team on the results of their year-long Masters project titled 'Sustainable Water Use in the Ventura River Watershed.'

Bren project website http://www2.bren.ucsb.edu/~venturariver/

The project objectives are:

1. Create a comprehensive watershed model
2. Evaluate the effects of climate change and land use change on the water budget
3. Identify actionable water resource management projects
4. Propose a set of recommendations relevant to securing Proposition 84 funding, increasing water availability, and improving ecosystem function

The team based its analysis on a comprehensive water supply and demand model utilizing local data and the established WEAP software.  The model provides the opportunity to assess water management scenarios watershed-wide.  Development of this model was no small task given the complexity of our system with its multiple jurisdictions, water districts, and water users. Two graduate students worked as interns over the summer to compile data and 'connect the dots' between supply and demand throughout the watershed.  

Description of the Ventura River WEAP model

Once all the data was input, the model was validated by comparing modeled and measured stream flows and reservoir levels over the planning period.  From this a general water budget could be estimated. (note that this was based on the 'average' over the 1990-2009 planning period)

Water Budget from the Ventura River WEAP model

 Water management strategies were evaluated based on six criteria: ability to decrease demand, ability to increase supply, cost-effectiveness, benefits to ecosystem health, benefits to water quality, and suitability for Proposition 84 funding.  Results from the analysis suggest that, while climate and land use change have the potential to severely impact water availability within the watershed, implementing water resource management strategies can offset the impacts. 

Results for the Ocean Friendly Gardens scenario from the Ventura River WEAP model

Conclusions:

Consumer-based strategies such as ocean friendly gardens and greywater systems in single family homes were shown to be very cost-effective options for reducing water demand and increasing water supply, benefiting riparian ecosystem health. Although they are less cost-effective than consumer-based strategies, infrastructure-based solutions such as decentralized infiltration basins were shown to be viable pathways towards increasing water supplies and improving water quality. Results further suggest that the most effective option for decreasing demand within the watershed is by increasing water rates, thereby incentivizing conservation.

Recommendations:

• Encourage widespread adoption of ocean friendly gardens and greywater systems
• Implement a program to install a decentralized infiltration basins to capture stormwater runoff
• Increase lowest water rates in the watershed to the state average

Two workshops have been scheduled (May 16 and May 23) to train watershed council members so that this model can continue to be developed and used in watershed planning efforts.  For more info contact Bill O'Brien: billo@ngeneng.com

References:

Bren Project:

http://www2.bren.ucsb.edu/~venturariver/

Bren Final Report: http://gallery.mailchimp.com/23ecb819d89925323a8b96d15/files/Ventura_River_Final_Report_sm.pdf

WEAP Home page: http://www.weap21.org/

WEAP Tutorial: http://www.weap21.org/downloads/WEAP_Tutorial.pdf

On this blog:  http://www.venturariver.org/2012/05/ucsb-bren-school-project.html

McGrath State Beach flooding

This year's drought combined with the constant artificial flow into the Santa Clara River estuary have resulted in a flooded campground at McGrath State Beach.  As documented by the ongoing studies, up to 9 million gallons per day currently discharged from the City of Ventura's wastewater treatment plant create artificially high water levels in the coastal lagoon.  Winter floods naturally breach the lagoon, which then takes months to re-fill, but without significant river flows the sand berm keeps the rivermouth closed.  In 2010 an artificial breach resulted in rapid draining of the lagoon and death of steelhead trout and other endangered species.  (see Estuary breach kills fish)

photo: VCStar.com

This is just one symptom of a complex water management issue that begins at the Ventura River - this year the river has dried up at Foster Park, one of the the city's primary water supplies.  This water is piped to homes and businesses in the city, used once, and discarded as 'wastewater' which is treated and discharged into the Santa Clara River.  We continue to advocate for 'Integrated Water Management' that would increase water use efficiency though conservation and decentralized re-use.

Surfrider submitted written comments on February 28, 2013 that included this statement:

The Surfrider Foundation’s national ‘Know Your H2O’ campaign recognizes the importance of integrated water management as a solution to coastal problems. Many municipalities are responding to the global water crisis through the implementation of water recycling to diversify their water supplies. The SCRE Phase 2 study does an excellent job of identifying opportunities for wastewater reuse throughout the City of Ventura, and has identified a number of projects that may become components of an integrated water management strategy.

As we have commented previously, it is important to recognize that, on average, two thirds of the water discharged into the Santa Clara River Estuary comes from the Ventura River. The report notes that the city’s water supply is stretched thin, and this is evidenced in the current drought that has dried up the Ventura River, including the City’s wellfield at Foster Park. Cumulative impacts within the Ventura River have resulted in a 303d impairment listing for pumping and diversion. Therefore, a watershed-based strategy designed to restore instream resources and protect groundwater basins is essential to addressing multiple regulatory pressures and to ensure the long-term viability of the city’s water supply.
We agree with the general consensus from the stakeholder workshop that implementing Indirect Potable Reuse (IPR) and Direct Potable Reuse (DPR) within the City of Ventura is the highest and best use of the city’s wastewater. As discussed in the report, the Ventura River provides higher quality water than the groundwater on the East side. Therefore there is some merit to keeping Ventura River water within that watershed as proposed with the North side decentralized treatment plant. We also recommend that an East side decentralized wastewater treatment plant remain as a possible alternative in this strategy. This plant should be included in planning for urban expansion on the east side because treating and reusing water nearer its source would provide other long-term benefits. For instance, the location of the existing treatment plant within the floodplain of the Santa Clara River and an area of potential sea level rise inundation makes it vulnerable to catastrophic events that may require its relocation within the 50- to 100-year time frame. A citywide decentralized water reclamation system would reduce this vulnerability and limit the potential impacts from future flooding while increasing overall water use efficiency. 

...To summarize, we strongly support an expanded water-recycling program within the City of Ventura, but disagree with the analysis of habitat enhancement from the wastewater discharge into the Santa Clara Estuary. We encourage the City to continue to develop an integrated water management plan that considers the broader long-term benefits of increased water use efficiency.



In the news:
     mcgrath-state-beach-campground-flooded-closed
     A no-win situation in the McGrath State Beach flooding

More info: SCRE Special Studies - http://www.cityofventura.net/rivers

On this blog: http://www.venturariver.org/search/label/wastewater

Surfrider comment letter:  https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/39386757/SCRE%20Studies%20Surfrider%20comments%20Feb-2013.pdf

..

West Coast EBM 2010

This week the West Coast EBM Network held its annual meeting. This year the meeting was held in Monterrey, CA, selected for its proximity to the Elkhorn Slough, the site of one of the West Coast projects.

Part of the meeting was dedicated to getting updates from the various projects, and strategizing next steps for the network.

We also received presentations on the following:

• EBM Tools and Training
  
• NOAA National and Regional Developments Update
  
• National Ocean Policy Update
• WCGA Update
• West Coast Integrated Ecosystem Assessments (IEAs)
• COMPASS
• Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary
• Green Fire Productions Ocean Film
• Surfrider Foundation

I took the opportunity to share the trailer for our 'Cycle of Insanity' film, which provides the 'big picture' of our misuse of fresh water resources and how we can fix the problem through 'Integrated Management' - or 'Ecosystem Based Management (EBM)' - which is basically the goal of Surfrider's Know Your H2O program.



We were also treated to a field tour of Elkhorn Slough by program managers Bryan Largay and Monique Fountain. Kayaks are the preferred vehicle for navigating the slough and observing wildlife - and we saw sea otters, sea lions, seals, pelicans, and plenty of shorebirds.

Bryan provided an overview of the problems facing the slough since the Army Corps constructed Moss Landing Harbor. The large entrance to the ocean greatly increased tidal currents in the slough. These currents subsequently caused erosion of the channels and banks, with loss of sediment out to the ocean. The changed hydrology resulted in changes in habitats, with the major loss of tidal salt marsh which makes up the foundation for this ecosystem.

The project is about to break ground on construction of a small 'sill,' or submerged weir in the back channels of the slough. The Parsons Slough Restoration Project is intended to begin a process to restore the historic tidal hydrology within the slough.

More info:

www.westcoastebm.org

Elkhorn Slough Tidal Wetland Project

Know Your H2O

Cycle of Insanity in Santa Barbara

Joe Geever, Surfrider Foundation Policy Coordinator and I made the trip up to Santa Barbara yesterday to present Cycle of Insanity - the Real Story of Water

The film was well received by the Santa Barbara Chapter, who are currently gearing up for Ocean Friendly Gardens... plus, they always throw a good party!

Know Your H2O: http://knowyourh2o.blogspot.com/

Cycle of Insanity: http://www.knowyourh2o.org/

Canada Larga moves forward

Regardless of the issues with annexing undeveloped Canada Larga canyon, it makes one wonder.

How did a developer con our decision-makers
into funding the EIR for his project,
while simultaneously providing a loophole
to our existing SOAR growth ordinance?

It makes for a good show - on Monday evening City Council was first serenaded by hundreds of their own employees protesting a request to 'chip in,' then over an hour of testimony on rezoning the failing auto mall to allow a poker club to move in. Then hours of testimony from concerned citizens destined to fall on deaf ears.

The mayor is concerned this may signal a return to the Bad Old Days "where developers engage in game-playing to try to get four votes, people on either side of an issue call each other names, and everything comes to a halt because it’s so contentious."

Too bad, because as a community, we aren't even asking the right questions yet. While our leaders use taxpayer funds to justify unlimited expansion, regional aquifers are failing and our 'wastewater' continues to be wasted.

Truly the Cycle of Insanity.

Watershed U - final session

The final evening of Watershed U provided an opportunity to wrap things up and provide some insight into the future. The agenda included presentations from Brock Dolman, who was also in Ojai on Wednesday evening, Sabrina Drill who coordinated the program, Doug Vu with the TPL river parkway plan, and myself. An interesting Q&A session provided an opportunity for participants to ask questions and make suggestions.



I spoke about the need for 'ecosystem-based management' to provide a holistic framework for addressing our coastal (and watershed) crisis. The 'Ventura ecosystem' project is part of current West Coast EBM efforts to generate case studies leading to real on-the-ground solutions.

Although the past 5 weeks of Watershed U provided lots of technical information about the physical parameters of our watershed, I wanted to make the case that the social issues are the real key to success (or failure) in reaching a sustainable management paradigm.

Plagiarizing from other great presentations, I used a few slides to illustrate the disjointed system of governance that we currently operate under, and the need for coordinated regional (watershed-based) governance.



I also described the challenge of conflicting world views and the concept of social process mapping.




Unfortunately, due to a series of technical difficulties, the 'crux' of my presentation was missing. I intended to use the following slides to describe the process of creating a shared vision within the full range of diverse stakeholders. I believe it is critical to first reach a common understanding of the problem(s), then develop a shared vision for the desired outcome.





Then, most importantly, solutions should be defined; actions that all watershed inhabitants can work on as a community to move toward a sustainable future.



These images are taken from the KYH2O video, which helps communicate the problems and solutions in an entertaining manner...

Watershed U was hopefully a first step in generating a shared understanding of the complex workings of our watershed, and the beginning of a broader community-based shift toward sustainable water management. But it will require an ongoing commitment from all of us...

Thanks to Sabrina Drill at UC Cooperative Extension, and the Ventura River Watershed Council for sponsoring Watershed U!

And extra thanks to Karen Bednorz and Patagonia for hosting us for 6 weeks - we couldn't have done it without you!

KYH2O and Basins of Relations

Around 100 people showed up at Chaparral Auditorium in Ojai to see 'Cycle of Insanity' and hear Brock Dolman's talk about water and watersheds. Many thanks to the Ojai Valley Green Coalition for sponsoring this event!




The 'Know Your H2O' video was well received by the audience. Comments included the recommendation to get this out to the schools, and provide more information on agricultural solutions. We love this kind of feedback, as it helps fine tune the message. Remember that the video is streaming online at knowyourh2o.org






It was a real treat to have Brock Dolman visit the Ojai valley from the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center in Sonoma County. Brock delivers a unique message; as we enter the era of 'global weirding' on this planet 'water,' our watershed is our lifeboat. It is essential that we get our Basins of Relations in order...

Much more info here: http://www.oaec.org/water-institute

Cycle of Insanity at SCWRP

I presented Cycle of Insanity at this month's meeting of the Ventura County Wetlands Task Force, a subgroup of the Southern California Wetlands Recovery Project. The taskforce serves a coordination role for all the diverse watershed stakeholders in Ventura County.

One purpose of the film is to communicate Surfrider's proactive vision for the 'restored water cycle,' and how our use of freshwater resources impacts the coast and ocean.


This vision comes from the need to develop truly integrated water management strategies, especially in Southern California where the majority of the population relies on imported water.
Comments from task force members included;

• This should be made available for all teachers in our region.
• Why isn't agriculture included in the solutions?

So if you're a teacher, or know a teacher, please help spread the word. This video is streaming online at http://knowyourh2o.org/

And in response to agriculture: the project was directed more to urban solutions since this is where the IRWMP integrated water management programs are directed. There is undoubtedly a need to support and develop sustainable agriculture, but you can't cover everything in a 20 minute video (...we almost did!)

Cycle of Insanity video

Know Your H2O website is up with the Cycle of Insanity video

The Cycle of Insanity: The Real Story of Water from Surfrider Foundation on Vimeo.

Cycle of Insanity debut

Monday was World Water Day

In celebration, the San Diego Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation hosted a premiere of 'The Cycle of Insanity' at UC San Diego.


The Cycle of Insanity: The Real Story of Water was created by a team of Surfrider Foundation activists, and sponsored by the California Chapters.

'Team Insanity' pictured here includes actor Zuleikha Robinson of the television show Lost.



The event at UCSD included a panel discussion following the film. Water experts gave thier impression of the film and an overview of the work they do, followed by questions from the audience.


In the film, the different water agencies are represented by animated 'drips' of water. Those who attended were greeted by 3 'drips' outside the building.


The San Diego Chapter throws a great event!

Cycle of Insanity film trailer

The Cycle of Insanity: The Real Story of Water

The H20 project is coming to fruition, thanks to a dedicated crew of creative Surfrider volunteers and staff. We recognize that our current water management systems are broken, and this 'Cycle of Insanity' is the root cause of many of our coastal problems.

This new short film dives into controversial problems and solutions related to water management and serves as a practical outline for citizens curious about water issues.

The Cycle of Insanity: The Real Story of Water - TRAILER 1 from Surfrider Foundation San Diego C on Vimeo.

The film's public premiere will cooincide with World Water Day, Monday March 22, 2010. The San Diego Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation will sponsor an event at The Loft on the campus of UC San Diego.

The project was spearheaded by the San Diego Chapter and co-sponsored by Surfrider Chapters throughout California, including the Ventura County Chapter.

If you don't see the film here (and are seeing this on FB), click on "view original post."

H2O project update

The Know Your H2O project is moving forward. Our chapter helped co-sponsor the creation of a flash-video production that describes the 'Cycle of Insanity' that is our current water management system...



More info on the KYH2O blog linked here

more cycle of insanity

We've been trying to explain the water Cycle of Insanity for a while...

A meeting of the minds on Friday produced some sketchy looking stuff like this:


Bottom line - all this 'stuff' we've done with 'fresh' water is at the root of our salty coastal crisis

Communicating this has become the mission of the latest initiative out of the San Diego chapter:

stay tuned as this one develops...




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