Kevin Knauss: Health, History, Travel, Insurance
Posts specifically related to the Granite Bay area of south Placer County, history, development, water, trails, Folsom Lake, mountain biking.
The drought of 2014 is affecting California communities unevenly. Where Granite Bay residents may be facing a severe Stage 5 water emergency declaration by year’s end, homeowners 10 or 20 miles away may still be keeping their grass green with daily irrigation. The visual triggers in order to get people to conserve water along with […]
When it comes to water conservation in the face of our current 2014 drought situation, golf courses, with the numerous acres under irrigation, come under intense scrutiny. This is why I wanted to talk with my fellow San Juan Water District Drought Committee member Matt Dillon who is the Golf Course Superintendent at Granite Bay […]
With Folsom reservoir dropping to historically low levels in the autumn of 2013 and record low rain fall, there was no question that Northern California was in the grip of a drought. The question posed by San Juan Water District Board member Bob Walters to the assembled drought water committee at their second meeting was, […]
San Juan Water District convened their inaugural meeting of the 2014 Drought Committee at their district headquarters this past June 2nd. The committee is comprised of representatives from neighboring municipal districts, professionals from the pool, golf course and nursery industries, along with community residents served by the San Juan Water District. The focus of the […]
At a recent San Juan Water District (SJWD) Board meeting one of the Board members declared that the district would defend, with a lawsuit if necessary, their pre-1914 water rights to American River water during a period of drought. This board member’s passion that this government agency “owned” water because of a man made dam built during California’s gold rush struck me as pure folly. Water rights are a myth. No one owns the water flowing in a river.
All new ACA health plans include acupuncture as a covered health care service in California. So what is it like to receive acupuncture and can it potentially help relieve medical challenges that some of us face? I decided to try out this traditional Chinese medicine to see if it would alleviate the pain in my neck.
How much is water worth? For Starbucks, they are able to take $0.66 worth of Folsom Lake water and convert it into $11,668.80 dollars. The San Juan Water District, who treats and delivers drought depleted Folsom Lake water to residential and commercial customers, is asking homeowners to use less water and pay more for it while company’s like Starbucks generate handsome revenues from residential conservation. The current and proposed Stage 3 Water Warning rate structure continues to have residential customers pay more per unit than Starbucks and other commercial uses who use the water to create revenue and profits.
San Juan Water District dedicated their February Board meeting to reviewing the impending water shortage created by a drought shrunken Folsom Lake and the necessity for increasing retail water rates in their Granite Bay service area. While there was discussion on potential mandatory outdoor water restrictions, non-residential customers such as the exclusive Granite Bay Golf Club seem to escape any meaningful rate increase in the proposals.
With the impending drought in California we are long over due for a residential water rate restructuring. No longer can we continue to price water based on water district’s budgets to meet their financial goals. We need a reality based seasonally adjusted water rate structure model that should be based on a consumer’s lot size, home type and the specific climate of the region. Such a rate structure would give homeowners and irrigation managers a benchmark on how much water they should be using and real incentives to conserve.
Under the bright glow of the Granite Bay High School LED monument sign, local residents and students gathered to rally in support of the school play The Laramie Project. The famously anti-gay, hate filled, military funeral protesting Westboro Baptist Church had hinted that they might protest the LGBT themed play’s opening.
