<html xmlns:v="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word" xmlns:st1="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40">
<head>
<META HTTP-EQUIV="Content-Type" CONTENT="text/html; charset=us-ascii">
<meta name=Generator content="Microsoft Word 11 (filtered medium)">
<!--[if !mso]>
<style>
v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
.shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
</style>
<![endif]--><o:SmartTagType
namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="PostalCode"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="Street"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="address"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="City"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="PlaceType"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="PlaceName"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="country-region"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="State"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="place"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="PersonName"/>
<!--[if !mso]>
<style>
st1\:*{behavior:url(#default#ieooui) }
</style>
<![endif]-->
<style>
<!--
/* Font Definitions */
@font-face
{font-family:Wingdings;
panose-1:5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0;}
/* Style Definitions */
p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";}
p.MsoEnvelopeAddress, li.MsoEnvelopeAddress, div.MsoEnvelopeAddress
{margin-top:0in;
margin-right:0in;
margin-bottom:0in;
margin-left:2.0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-element:frame;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";}
a:link, span.MsoHyperlink
{color:blue;
text-decoration:underline;}
a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed
{color:purple;
text-decoration:underline;}
span.EmailStyle18
{mso-style-type:personal-compose;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
color:windowtext;
font-weight:normal;
font-style:normal;
text-decoration:none none;}
@page Section1
{size:8.5in 11.0in;
margin:1.0in 1.25in .8in 1.25in;}
div.Section1
{page:Section1;}
/* List Definitions */
@list l0
{mso-list-id:1004430487;
mso-list-template-ids:-1581591828;}
@list l0:level1
{mso-level-number-format:bullet;
mso-level-text:\F0B7;
mso-level-tab-stop:.5in;
mso-level-number-position:left;
text-indent:-.25in;
mso-ansi-font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:Symbol;}
ol
{margin-bottom:0in;}
ul
{margin-bottom:0in;}
-->
</style>
</head>
<body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple>
<div class=Section1>
<p class=MsoNormal><st1:State w:st="on"><b><font size=4 color=black face=Arial><span
style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:black;font-weight:bold'>CALIFORNIA</span></font></b></st1:State><b><font
size=4 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:13.5pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black;font-weight:bold'> <br>
Toxic runoff disposal could imperil water <br>
<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:country-region w:st="on">U.S.</st1:country-region></st1:place>
agency offers 3 options; critics prefer retiring farmland</span></font></b><b><font
size=6 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:24.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black;font-weight:bold'><o:p></o:p></span></font></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=1 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:
7.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'><a href="mailto:glenmartin@sfchronicle.com"><font
color="#000066"><span style='color:#000066'>Glen Martin, Chronicle Environment
Writer</span></font></a></span></font><font color=black face=Arial><span
style='font-family:Arial;color:black'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=1 color="#cc3333" face=Arial><span
style='font-size:7.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:#CC3333'>Tuesday, November 1,
2005</span></font><font color="#cc3333" face=Arial><span style='font-family:
Arial;color:#CC3333'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='line-height:1.2pt'><font size=1 color=black
face=Arial><span style='font-size:1.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<table class=MsoNormalTable border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=right
width=160 style='width:120.0pt;margin-left:6.0pt;margin-bottom:3.75pt'>
<tr>
<td style='padding:2.25pt 2.25pt 2.25pt 2.25pt'>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-element:frame'><font size=3 color=black
face=Arial><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'><a
href="http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object/article?f=/c/a/2005/11/01/BAGPUFH6HC1.DTL&o=0"><font
color="#000066"><span style='color:#000066;text-decoration:none'><img
border=0 width=64 height=64 id="_x0000_i1025"
src="cid:image001.gif@01C5DEB9.4BE82BF0" vspace=1
alt="Drain Pains. Chronicle graphic by Joe Shoulak"></span></font></a><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
margin-left:0in;text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1;mso-element:frame'><![if !supportLists]><font
size=2 color=black face=Symbol><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:
Symbol;color:black'><span style='mso-list:Ignore'>·<font size=1
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'>
</span></font></span></span></font><![endif]><font size=1 color=black
face=Arial><span style='font-size:7.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'><a
href="http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/11/01/BAGPUFH6HC1.DTL&type=printable"><font
color="#000066"><span style='color:#000066'>Printable Version</span></font></a>
<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto;
margin-left:0in;text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1;mso-element:frame'><![if !supportLists]><font
size=2 color=black face=Symbol><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:
Symbol;color:black'><span style='mso-list:Ignore'>·<font size=1
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font:7.0pt "Times New Roman"'>
</span></font></span></span></font><![endif]><font size=1 color=black
face=Arial><span style='font-size:7.5pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'><a
href="http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/11/01/BAGPUFH6HC1.DTL&type=friend&emailcolor=%231E519F&origin=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi%3Ff%3D%2Fc%2Fa%2F2005%2F11%2F01%2FBAGPUFH6HC1.DTL"><font
color="#000066"><span style='color:#000066'>Email This Article</span></font></a>
<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style='padding:2.25pt 2.25pt 2.25pt 2.25pt'>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-element:frame'><font size=3 color=black
face=Arial><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
</td>
</tr>
</table>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>A pending decision on the disposal of contaminated wastewater
produced by <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San Joaquin</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Valley</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> agriculture could
have disastrous consequences for Bay Area drinking water, fisheries and
wildlife, officials say. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which is expected to make a final
decision next year, has presented three options. One would dump the water into
the delta of the San Joaquin and <st1:City w:st="on">Sacramento</st1:City>
rivers, a source of drinking water for several <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">East</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Bay</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>
cities. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>A second would pipe it to the ocean near <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Morro</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Bay</st1:PlaceType> (<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">San Luis Obispo</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">County</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>).
The third would divert it to <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San
Joaquin</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Valley</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>
evaporation ponds that could harm wildlife. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>The delta alternative is particularly worrisome to Bay Area
government officials. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>"If that alternative is chosen, the pipeline would run close
to the canal that delivers water from the delta to our service facility,"
said Greg Gartrell, assistant general manager for the Contra Costa Water
District, which serves several <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">East</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Bay</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> cities with delta
water. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>"If there's a leak in the pipeline, it could contaminate our
canal," Gartrell said, adding that the proposed drain would dump into <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Suisun</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Bay</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>,
possibly near the district's water inlet. The district is also concerned about
the effect of the additional pollution on delta fisheries and wildlife, he
said. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>"Everything considered, we support the (evaporation pond)
alternative," Gartrell said. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>But none of the options will do what critics say is necessary to
solve the problem once and for all: take 300,000 acres of tainted farmland out
of production. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>Drain water contaminated with selenium has bedeviled farmers in
the western <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San Joaquin</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Valley</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>, astride
Interstate 5, for decades. When lands in this area are irrigated, salt, boron
and selenium present in the soil dissolve, then concentrate near the surface. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>Selenium is highly toxic to fish and wildlife and has been
implicated in both fishery declines and the deaths of thousands of shorebirds
and waterfowl. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>Crops can grow in the presence of selenium, but not boron or salt.
So the soils must be flushed with additional water to remove the minerals. To
stay in business, farmers must then dispose of this drain water -- a dilemma
for which there is no easy solution. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>The problem is especially difficult for the Westlands Water
District, at 600,000 acres the largest irrigation district in the country. Some
of its tracts are so waterlogged with drain water that the district has retired
about 40,000 acres of land from production. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>The evaporation pond alternative would involve some retirement of
agricultural land from irrigation. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>But <st1:PersonName w:st="on">Tom Stokely</st1:PersonName>, a
natural resources planner, is convinced there's only one sound solution: Stop
irrigating land rich in selenium. Stokely estimates that retiring about 300,000
acres of land would solve the problem. Most or all of the retired land would
come from Westlands, which accounts for most of the cropland in the west
valley. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>As a planner for <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Trinity</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">County</st1:PlaceType>, Stokely is concerned about the state's water
systems sending so much water from the Trinity and Klamath rivers to <st1:place
w:st="on">Southern California</st1:place> that the rivers' salmon fisheries are
endangered. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>An equitable drain solution, he said, is critical to the general
issue of water in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:State w:st="on">California</st1:State></st1:place>.
Retiring west valley land, he said, would not only eliminate the need for an
expensive drain system, but would free large amounts of water for cities and
the environment. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>Stokely's contentions are shared by many environmental and fisheries
advocacy organizations, including the Natural Resources Defense Council, the
Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations and the Environmental
Working Group. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>But the manager of Westlands, Tom Birmingham, said the district's
farmers could not sustain the economic hit that would result from retiring
roughly half their cropland. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>"We are meeting the terms of our federal contracts -- putting
our water to reasonable and prudent use," <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:City
w:st="on">Birmingham</st1:City></st1:place> said. Under the original terms of
the federal project that delivers water to Westlands, "the bureau is
required to provide a solution to the drain water issue." <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on"><font size=2 color=black face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'>Birmingham</span></font></st1:City></st1:place><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'> said his district had made tremendous strides in reducing the
volume of drain water by using water more efficiently. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>Heavy investment in new irrigation and crop monitoring technology,
he said, has greatly increased the district's water efficiency -- so that more
than 90 percent of the water applied to fields is used by crop plants and less
than 10 percent ends up as drain water. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>That still adds up to millions of gallons of drain water annually.
<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on">Birmingham</st1:City></st1:place>
acknowledged that a long-term solution to the problem must be found if
thousands of acres of west-side land were to remain productive. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>"We don't have a preferred alternative at this point,"
he said. "From an engineering standpoint, a drain to the ocean makes the
most sense, but it is unlikely for political reasons. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>"We do intend to work with the bureau for a solution that is
permanent, cost effective and environmentally sound." <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>Stokely said all of the options presented by the Bureau of
Reclamation put the environmental and economic onus on the public. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>"All of the alternatives involve huge environmental
downsides," he said. "Disposal in the delta would affect fisheries
and birds and could affect drinking water quality for <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">East</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Bay</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>
cities. You'd have similar environmental impacts for coastal disposal." <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>Evaporation ponds, he said, would result in a reprise of the
Kesterson National Wildlife Refuge debacle of the 1980s. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>That event occurred when selenium-contaminated drain water from <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San Joaquin</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">Valley</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> fields was used to flood the
refuge's marshes and ponds. Thousands of waterfowl and shorebirds died from
selenium poisoning. The San Luis drain, the partially completed pipeline that
transported the contaminated water from the fields, was closed. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>Since then, west valley farmers have been allowed to reopen part
of the San Luis drain to eke out a portion of their wastewater to the <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San Joaquin</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">River</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>In the early 1990s, farmers sued federal regulators to provide a
long-term solution to the problem, such as completion of the San Luis drain to
the delta. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>In 1995, a federal judge ruled that the Bureau of Reclamation had
to file for state permits to complete the San Luis drain, and in 2000, the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit agreed that the agency must provide some
kind of wastewater solution. In response to the court's decision, the bureau
presented its alternatives. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>In March, Stokely made a presentation to the State Water Resources
Control Board to promote land retirement over a completed drain. He emphasized
that the board's own reports identified west-side irrigation as the primary
cause of the salt pollution problem that plagues <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">San Joaquin</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Valley</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>
croplands. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>Stokely planned to make the same pitch to the Siskiyou County
Board of Supervisors, which is concerned with declining salmon populations on
the <st1:place w:st="on">Klamath River</st1:place>. The Trinity is a Klamath
tributary and the basic source of cold water for the Klamath. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>But before Stokely could make his pitch, he got a call from <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on">Birmingham</st1:City></st1:place>, Westlands
manager. <st1:City w:st="on">Birmingham</st1:City> threatened <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Trinity</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">County</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>
with lawsuits unless Stokely toned down his rhetoric, Stokely said. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on"><font size=2 color=black face=Arial><span
style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'>Birmingham</span></font></st1:City></st1:place><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'> said he was puzzled by Stokely's allegations. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>"I never told him or anyone else they shouldn't be involved
in these issues. ... I did ask of his interest, and said I wanted to sit down
and talk things over. And I did express deep concerns about his rhetoric."
<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<div class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><font size=2
color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>
<hr size=2 width="100%" align=center>
</span></font></div>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:black'>Drain pains <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation is looking at three alternatives
for completing the San Luis drain, which would dispose of selenium-tainted
agricultural wastewater from the western <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">San Joaquin</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Valley</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>:
<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>1 Drainage to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Sacramento</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceName w:st="on">River-San</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Joaquin</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">River</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> Delta: <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>Disposal would be either near <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Chipps</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Island</st1:PlaceType> off <st1:City w:st="on">Antioch</st1:City>
or near the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Carquinez</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Bridge</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>. Concerns include
threats to drinking water, fisheries and wildlife. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>2 Drainage to the ocean: <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>A pipeline traversing the <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Coast</st1:PlaceType>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Range</st1:PlaceType> would end in <st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Morro</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Bay</st1:PlaceType> (<st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San Luis Obispo</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">County</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>.) Advocates say the open sea
would provide ample room for diluting the effluent to safe levels, but
environmentalists say fish and birds could still be affected. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>3 The in-valley solution: <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>This approach would consist of a combination of retired
agricultural lands and evaporation ponds. After the drain water evaporates in
the ponds, the remaining solids would be disposed of in approved landfills.
Environmentalists favor complete reliance on land retirement, arguing that
evaporation ponds, no matter how configured, would poison birds. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=2 color=black face=Arial><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Arial;
color:black'>Source: ESRI, TeleAtlas, <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on">USGS</st1:City>,
<st1:country-region w:st="on">U.S.</st1:country-region></st1:place> Dept. of
Interior <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><st1:PersonName w:st="on"><em><i><font size=3 color=gray
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:gray'>Byron
Leydecker</span></font></i></em></st1:PersonName><em><i><font color=gray
face="Times New Roman"><span style='color:gray'>, </span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><em><i><font size=3 color=gray face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;color:gray'>Chair, Friends of <st1:place w:st="on">Trinity
River</st1:place></span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><em><i><font size=3 color=gray face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;color:gray'>Consultant, California Trout, Inc.</span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><st1:address w:st="on"><st1:Street w:st="on"><em><i><font
size=3 color=gray face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
color:gray'>PO Box</span></font></i></em></st1:Street><em><i><font
color=gray face="Times New Roman"><span style='color:gray'> 2327</span></font></i></em></st1:address><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:City w:st="on"><em><i><font
size=3 color=gray face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
color:gray'>Mill Valley</span></font></i></em></st1:City><em><i><font
color=gray face="Times New Roman"><span style='color:gray'>, <st1:State w:st="on">CA</st1:State>
<st1:PostalCode w:st="on">94942-2327</st1:PostalCode></span></font></i></em></st1:place><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><em><i><font size=3 color=gray face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;color:gray'>415 383 4810 ph</span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><em><i><font size=3 color=gray face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;color:gray'>415 383 9562 fx</span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><em><i><u><font size=3 color=blue face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;color:blue'><a href="mailto:bwl3@comcast.net">bwl3@comcast.net</a></span></font></u></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><em><i><font size=3 color=blue face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;color:blue'><a
href="mailto:bleydecker@stanfordalumni.org">bleydecker@stanfordalumni.org</a><u>
</u></span></font><font color=gray><span style='color:gray'>(secondary)</span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><em><i><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'><a href="http://www.fotr.org">http://www.fotr.org</a></span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><em><i><font size=3 color=blue face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;color:blue'><a href="http://caltrout.org">http://caltrout.org</a></span></font></i></em><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'> </span><o:p></o:p></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
</div>
</body>
</html>