June 23, 2022

Hello All,

In light of recent revelations about our water supply and upcoming elections for the Marin Water Board of Directors, it is critical that we all stay well informed about our tenuous water supply in Marin. For those of you who didn’t get a chance to see the June 21, 2022 article about the Marin Grand Jury report about our water supply, here is a link:

https://www.marinij.com/tag/drought/

Before you read the report (link below), please note a couple of inconsistencies. First, the report says our water storage is 80,000 AF.

In the June 2 and June 14 MMWD meetings about the Strategic Water Supply Assessment by Jacobs engineering, it was noted that 10,000 AF of that water is considered "uncertain and a dead pool." That leaves 10-15,000 AF for emergency storage, previously thought to be 25,000 AF. Which leaves 50-55,000 AF as operational storage. A far cry from 80,000 AF. We do not have a 2-year supply of water.

See slide 37 on the June 2 Strategic Water Supply Assessment presentations and slide 10 on the June 14 presentation. https://www.marinwater.org/sites/default/files/2022-06/06-14-2022%20Water%20Supply%20Assessment%20Working%20Session%20IV_0.pdf

Additionally, we can’t rely on Sonoma water when we are all experiencing drought.

To view the report itself, go to:

https://www.marincounty.org/-/media/files/departments/gj/reports-responses/2021-22/a-roadmap-for-water-resilience-for-marin-municipal-water-district.pdf?la=en

The findings of the report are copied here:

FINDINGS

F1. The prospect of Marin Municipal Water District’s reservoirs running dry within a year shows that the District has fallen short in its efforts to ensure a long-term resilient supply of water for its customers. The District and its ratepayers are vulnerable to the increasing likelihood of water shortfalls.

F2. Due to a failure to fully develop and act on long-term water resilience plans, Marin Municipal Water District left itself with only the expensive Richmond Bridge pipeline option for responding to the drought emergency, which could have preempted pursuit of other means of establishing long-term water resilience.

F3. Marin Municipal Water District has not adequately addressed climate change in developing its long-term water supply plans to date. Relying on historical data to predict future rainfall is not sufficient given ongoing and future changes in the climate.

F4. Even with ongoing successful conservation efforts, Marin Municipal Water District will need additional sources of water and storage capacity to provide a long-term reliable water supply for its ratepayers.

F5. Marin Municipal Water District has been slow to adopt proven Advanced Metering Infrastructure technology, which could enhance conservation by providing the District and its customers with real time data on water use and repairable leaks. (NOTE: Operative word is “enhance.” AMI won’t stop all leaks, especially distribution leaks.)

F6. Marin Municipal Water District could enhance its water resilience by constructing an East Bay pipeline for importing additional water. This option would also enable MMWD to participate in a regional desalination project and add storage capacity in the Los Vaqueros Reservoir.

F7. Marin Municipal Water District could improve its water supply resilience by restructuring its relationship with the Sonoma County Water Agency in order to increase imports and potentially develop additional storage capacity.

F8. Drought-proof supplies of water will become increasingly important in the coming years, with climate change-induced droughts expected to become more frequent and severe.

F9. Marin Municipal Water District has failed to place sufficient priority on development of drought-proof sources of water, such as recycling programs and regional desalination projects.

F10. The use of direct potable reuse presents a reliable, drought-proof, and cost-effective option for securing a substantial volume of additional potable water from within the Marin Municipal Water District.

F11. The use of direct potable reuse is a potentially more efficient and impactful use of wastewater, as compared to recycling that wastewater for non-potable use in a “purple pipe” system.

F12. Desalination is a feasible, drought-proof option for producing additional water for the Marin Municipal Water District.

F13. Marin Municipal Water District participation in a large-scale regional desalination project is likely the most feasible desalination option that could provide an additional droughtproof source of water.

F14. The measures needed to secure long-term water resilience will require additional funding and higher water rates for Marin Municipal Water District’s ratepayers.

F15. Marin Municipal Water District would improve its chances of receiving federal and state water resilience grant money by participating in regional partnerships.

F16. Marin Municipal Water District could significantly enhance water supply resilience and improve risk management during droughts, earthquakes, and other natural disasters by increasing its participation in regional partnerships with other water agencies.

RECOMMENDATIONS

R1. By September 30, 2022, the Marin Municipal Water District should commit to securing 10,000 to 15,000 AF per year of additional water supply before 2035.

R2. By December 31, 2022, Marin Municipal Water District should develop and act on a detailed long-term roadmap to resilience by identifying and prioritizing sources of additional supply.

R3. In its resilience roadmap, Marin Municipal Water District should prioritize the development of drought-proof sources of water, including direct potable reuse and regional desalination.

R4. In its resilience roadmap, Marin Municipal Water District should include strategies for collaborating with other Bay Area water districts to enhance its competitiveness in seeking federal and state grants.

R5. By December 31, 2022, Marin Municipal Water District should adopt a near-term plan for increasing Russian River imports and expanding the District’s relationship with the Sonoma County Water Agency.

R6. By December 31, 2022, the Marin Municipal Water District should commit to completing a District-wide installation of Advanced Metering Infrastructure by the end of 2024.

R7. By December 31, 2022, Marin Municipal Water District should develop a long-term plan for financing the prioritized resilience options and communicate this information to ratepayers.

YOU MAY WANT TO CALENDAR UPCOMING MEETINGS about the Marin Water Strategic Water Supply Assessment where future options to increase capacity and supply will be discussed. Just go to the corresponding dates on the Marin Water Board of Directors meetings list. All meetings are open to the public via Zoom.

· June 28 (5pm-7pm) – Initial Review of Water Management Options

· July 12 (5pm-7pm) – Review Desalination and Recycled Water

· July 19 (7:30pm – 9:30pm) – Review Interties, Local Supply Enhancement and Sonoma options

· July TBD – Public Workshop

· August 9 (5pm-7pm) – Evaluation of Water Management Alternatives

· August 23 (5pm-7pm) – Evaluation of Water management alternatives

· August TBD –