Category: Central Coast

Awaits President’s signature

Congressman Salud Carbajal has announced that the House and Senate have agreed on the biennial Corp of Engineers water project bill called the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) that this year includes $8 million to build a 2.5 mile pipeline that would connect Los Osos to the State Water Project.The 12-inch pipeline would connect to the existing pipeline near Morro Bay and would bring Northern California reservoir water to the Central Coast.

Also in the measure,Cal Poly spokesperson Matt Lazier says the college worked with Rep. Carbajal to secure authorizing language in the WRDA bill to build a turnout and 1.1-mile pipeline to the City of San Luis Obispo’s water treatment facility located at the north end of Cal Poly’s main campus.Funding will still need to be sought in an appropriation request.

“The Cal Poly project will allow interconnection for between 100 and 400 acre-feet of state water to allow for future housing growth on campus as well as providing significant resilience to Cal Poly and the City of San Luis Obispo.”

Cal Poly already owns a 9 pct capacity share in the city’s water treatment plant, and this additional water supply could be integrated into the existing water distribution with minimal additional treatment. explains Lazier.

For Los Osos the news is a game changer.

Los Osos is 100% dependent on rain-fed groundwater for its drinking supply and an additional supply will be welcome, says Ron Munds, GM of the Los Osos Community Services District who is shepherding the project.

Asked what the next step would be, Munds said “Assuming the President signs the bill, the project still needs the Army Corp of Engineers review and approval. According to Greg Hass, local Carbajal staffer, that will probably be in March.

“I will be reaching out to the Corp to get the project on their radar even though the bill hasn’t been signed. We’re in the home stretch but it’s still not finalized.”

The Los Osos CSD would negotiate for a water supply likely with the county who has a contract with state water and a surplus allotment.Munds has said the community of 14,000 would need 200 acre-feet annually that would be sunk to replenish the groundwater supply or traded for groundwater not pumped.

In a press statement Carbajal announced the news in late November that multiple local projects will be funded.

The U.S. House of Representatives advanced a bipartisan deal reached between the House and the Senate on legislation containing more than $53 million in Central Coast water projects championed by Rep. Carbajal.

The deal advancing in Congress this week authorizes funding for water projects in Ventura, Los Osos, Los Olivos, Montecito, and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

“Water infrastructure is critical to the continued functioning of our communities on the Central Coast. As a senior member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee I have worked this year to see critical projects in our communities approved by Congress to ensure we invest in clean, accessible water access for all of our residents,” said Rep. Carbajal, a senior member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.”

List of projects

Central Coast projects authorized by the 2024 Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) are:
$18.25 million for the City of Ventura’s Seaside Transfer Station
$18.25 million for improvements at Montecito Sanitary District’s Water Treatment Plant
$8 million for the Los Osos Water Pipeline Project
$5 million for the Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Canyon State Water Pipeline project
$4 million for wastewater processing upgrades at the Los Olivos Community Service District

The Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) is biennial legislation crafted by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee that authorizes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) Civil Works Program to carry out projects to improve the nation’s ports and harbors, inland waterway navigation, flood and storm protection, and other aspects of our water resources infrastructure.

The bill supports locally-driven projects that also deliver regional and national benefits to strengthen U.S. global competitiveness and supply chain, grow the economy, move goods throughout the country, protect communities from flooding, and more.

The final version of WRDA follows negotiations over recent months to reconcile House- and Senate-passed versions of the legislation.

Congressman Carbajal has helped see a WRDA approved by Congress in each of his four terms.
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Los Osos may be in line for an $8 million federal grant to hook up the community to the State Water Project that connects to Morro Bay. Los Osos – the San Luis Obispo County town of 14,000, is 100% dependent on groundwater wells for drinking water.

In Washington,the annual Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) funding through the Army Corp of Engineers has passed both houses of Congress this summer and is expected to be signed into law, says a congressional source.

That House version of the bill includes an earmark for Los Osos Community Services District to receive $8 million to pay the cost of laying a 2.5 mile, 12-inch pipeline to connect to the State Water Project that brings northern California reservoir water to the Central Coast.

Representative for Congressman Salud Carbajal, Greg Haas has said that funding for the project was included in the bill passed by the House although he doesn’t have an update on the final version agreed to in conference.

Ian Mariani of Carbajal’s office confirms that the funding for the Los Osos project is still in the WRDA bill passed by the House earlier this year but the overall legislation still needs to be reconciled with the Senate version of the legislation and signed into law by year’s end.

“We’re hopeful to see it moving in December.”

The National Assn of Counties reports “The Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) is the authorizing legislation for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), which allows the Corps to conduct studies, construct projects and research activities to improve U.S. waterways. Since 2014, WRDA legislation has passed in a biennial cycle.

Both the U.S. House and Senate have passed their respective WRDA 2024 legislation. The House passed their version of WRDA 2024 on July 22 in a bipartisan 359-13 vote while the Senate passed their WRDA bill by unanimous consent on August 1.”The bill has wide support from both sides of the ailes since the measure includes hundreds of projects in Red and Blue states.

Making the cut

Proponent for the request Ron Munds, General Manager of Los Osos Community Service District says he is “hopeful we can make the final cut.” The local CSD has already completed a Mitigated Negative Declaration environmental clearance on the project as well as the preliminary engineering for the pipeline.

During wet years and based on supply, the LOCSD could receive unused allocations of State Water Project water through the Central Valley project to offset pumping in the Los Osos Groundwater Basin or for an emergency water reserve. The project is expected to bring in 200-acre feet a year of State Water Project water to Los Osos and be used to recharge groundwater supplies- in overdraft for decades. Los Osos uses about 1000af a year pumped from wells around town.

Despite the 200arce-feet number, the County has informed the LOCSD that up to 600 AFY of potable water from the Central Valley Project can be made available at the proposed intertie location near South Bay Boulevard and Highway 1.Here the water transmission system is the Chorro Valley Pipeline (CVP), which delivers State Water to the City of Morro Bay

Construction of the pipeline and intertie could begin sometime in 2025 and be operational by 2026,one report predicts.

The idea is that the project would bring potable water to the District’s water distribution system, thereby reducing the amount of local groundwater pumping from the Los Osos Groundwater Basin (and providing further protection against seawater intrusion).

“We will be able to supplement our water supply”, notes Munds, likely on a year by year basis depending on supply.”We won’t be dependent on it,”he adds.

“Without it -Los Osos is vulnerable” in a time of climate change.

“With the project in place we will be better able to balance the basin.”

As to where the water supply would be coming from, Munds says he has had continuing discussions with SLO County staff who has a contract with State Water and a surplus supply.

If the project gets a green light from Congress,”we will work out something with the County and won’t wait to move forward” expects Munds.

Caption: Pipeline project in Los Osos

On November 12 the San Luis Obispo Board of Supervisors gave a preliminary thumbs up to the idea of a pilot program to allow retail cannabis dispensaries to locate in coastal parts of the county. The vote was 3 to 2.

Supervisor Dawn Ortiz Legg is promoting the idea of the pilot program for unincorporated coastal towns like Avila Beach,Oceano, Los Osos, Cayucos, and Cambria that do not have retail marijuana dispensaries. Staff released a map showing properly zoned parcels in each of those communities where retail establishments could open.

Supervisor Bruce Gibson noted that few complaints have been received regarding the operation of cannabis dispensaries in incorporated towns like Grover Beach, San Luis Obispo and Morro Bay.

Ortiz Legg also pointed out that these potential new stores could bring in more tax dollars to the county.” Quite frankly, we are losing business,” she stated. There are three dispensaries in Grover Beach, just down the block from Oceano. Morro Bay has two. Right now these municipalities get the tax dollars.

Defending the idea of a pilot “It’s important to go step-by-step,” she said,given that the coastal area is where tourism is.

By contrast, Supervisor Debbie Arnold said SLO County is already suffering red ink and that the county cannabis program allowing growing, manufacturing and delivery has yet to make a profit.

Supervisor John Peschong read a recent state court ruling that suggested federal law stands in the way of mauajuna availability and opposes any expansion of activity here.

With the 3 to 2 vote, staff will return to the board with draft findings and a resolution that would allow such a pilot program.

“This just the first step” in handing the project off to the county planning department to come up with potential regulations and setbacks, noted Gibson.

Floating offshore wind farmCalifornia continues to move forward with offshore wind awaiting the change in administrations

PUBLISHED NOV 14, 2024 5:24 PM BY THE MARITIME EXECUTIVE

Both at the federal and local level efforts are continuing to push forward for the potential development of offshore wind power generation along the California coast. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) took another step forward for what could become the first floating wind turbines in the U.S. while the Port of Long Beach continues to move forward to become one of the leading assembly and staging sites for offshore wind.

BOEM conducted the first offshore wind lease auction for California covering two zones in December 2022. A total of five lease areas were contracted bringing in over $757 million for the rights and laying the groundwork for the start of the West Coast industry.

As a next step in the process, BOEM today published the California Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for the five areas. It concluded that offshore wind development with or without mitigation efforts could benefit the local environment and economy. They concluded the mortality risk is low and not expected for whales in the areas while also noting the need to address large volumes of vessel traffic. They looked at the possibility of steps such as acoustic masking to help protect marine life but did recognize the largest potential risk is to bids.

This is only the second time BOEM has conducted a regional analysis of offshore renewable energy development and operations over multiple lease areas. BOEM reports it selected the approach because of the proximity of the areas and the anticipation that future project plans would be filed around the same time. The regional approach lays a foundation for the future specific analysis of individual plans while also accelerating the overall approval process.

BOEM reports the leases, which total over 373,000 acres have the potential to produce over 4.6 GW of offshore wind energy. With today’s publication of the notice BOEM is inviting public comments and starts a 90-day comment period.

Port of the uncertainty however comes in the timing. The comment period will close on February 12, 2025. Public meetings to provide comments are scheduled for January 28 and 30, all days after the new Trump administration begins. Trump has been a vocal critic of wind turbines and during the campaign vowed to block future wind energy development.

The trade group Offshore Wind California however issued a statement calling today’s development “good news and another important step forward.” It cites California’s ambitions to become a global leader for floating offshore wind and the California Public Utilities Commission which this year adopted a goal of procuring up to 7.6 GW of offshore wind power by 2035. The California Energy Commission is aiming for 2 to 5 GW of offshore wind power by 2030.

The Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners also took steps on November 11 to push forward in their efforts to become a local for the industry. The port has proposed a 400-acre terminal called Pier Wind at the Port of Long Beach to assemble and deploy floating offshore wind turbines. The Commission agreed to commit up to $14 million in matching funds as they also apply in December for a state grant aimed at covering the cost of design, environmental review, and community outreach.

Long Beach also authorized $6.5 million from the port’s capital budget to continue the effort. They will be proceeding with environmental documentation and project delivery activities while the grant application is under consideration.

The proposal for Pier Wind projects a construction cost of $4.7 billion. Work could begin as early as 2027 with the first 200 acres completed in 2031 and the additional 200 acres completed in 2035.

State and local officials emphasize they are continuing to move forward and are ready to work with the federal authorities. As part of the Department of the Interior, BOEM’s future depends on the pending nomination of a new Secretary of the Interior for the Trump administration.

Energy Commission & Coastal Commission will weigh in

October 28,2024 : Houston-based energy company Vistra, today, informed the City of Morro Bay of their decision to pause the application to build a battery storage facility at the Morro Bay plant site through the City. Instead, it is “our intention of pursuing the permitting path available through the State of California via Assembly Bill 205. This decision was primarily made because the City, within the past several weeks, published timelines and consideration processes that would add at least 18 months of municipal review prior to any preliminary vote.” 
Given this extension of municipal consideration, the State’s Opt-in Certification process will provide a more defined pathway for consideration, says the company.

“The uncertainty and ongoing delays in obtaining a decision regarding a permit to construct were impacting the planning for the project, including long-lead time items and matters involving transmission. We continue to believe that building this new state-of-the-art energy storage facility to capture and better utilize excess renewable solar electricity is good for the community and the State of California’s reliability needs and clean energy goals”

“We will spend the next several months preparing a comprehensive application, and we do not currently envision this new permitting process formally beginning before the end of this year.”

For convenience ” we’ve posted today’s letter to the City in its entirety on our project website: https://morrobayenergystorage.com/ We will retain this project website moving forward and provide updates and information to the community as appropriate. ”
Here is that letter.

______________

October 28, 2024

The Honorable Carla Wixom and Members of the City Council
Mr. Airlin Singewald, Community Development Director
City of Morro Bay
595 Harbor Street
Morro Bay, CA 93442

Dear Mayor Wixom, Members of the Council & Director Singewald:

On behalf of Vistra Corp., thank you for your service to the community. As you know, California has been modernizing its grid and generation capacities to reduce the reliance on carbon-intensive power plants to generate electricity. In 2020, recognizing the evolving needs of California’s grid, our company submitted a development application that proposed constructing 600 megawatts of energy storage on 24 of our 107-acre retired Morro Bay Power Plant property adjacent to critical transmission infrastructure.

We appreciate the work conducted over the past several years to analyze how our plan to repurpose our Morro Bay Power Plant into a battery energy storage facility could benefit the city, region, and state. Recently, there have been several comprehensive technical studies and reviews completed and made available to the public, including:

Draft Environmental Impact Report: The City’s draft EIR was completed in May 2024 and found environmental impacts to be “less than significant with mitigation incorporated” or “less than significant impacts without the need for mitigation.”  
Offsite Consequences Analysis: A Vistra-commissioned safety report was peer-reviewed by a City consultant this summer, concluding that “a credible worst-case scenario would not present any significant health or safety risk to the public.”
Economic and Fiscal Impact Analysis: The City was provided an analysis that projected a fiscal windfall for the City of Morro Bay of $24.2 million in the first 10 years, providing financial resources for municipal leaders to invest in initiatives and services to improve the community and quality of life for residents and visitors.
To advance the ongoing consideration of this important project, Vistra intends to pursue Opt-in Certification before the California Energy Commission as established in Assembly Bill 205, which was passed in 2022. The Sept. 17 Staff Report and accompanying discussion at the Sept. 24 council meeting provided updated processes and timelines that added a minimum of another 18 months to the municipal consideration calendar, which began in 2020. Given this extension of municipal consideration, the Opt-in Certification process will provide a more defined pathway for consideration. Please accept this as a formal request that the City of Morro Bay pause its municipal consideration of our development applications.

By pursuing this State-led process, based on the site’s coastal location, the California Energy Commission and California Coastal Commission will undertake the statutorily required analysis and review of this proposal.

Vistra recognizes that the plant property is adjacent to the most precious and defining aspect of Morro Bay, your coastline and harbor. We welcome the opportunity the Opt-in Certification process provides to continue our partnership with you and numerous other local and state leaders. Together, we will ensure that the plan to deploy zero-carbon energy technologies at the former fossil-fuel site will be done in a manner that is good for the environment.

While we intend to take a different permitting review path, Vistra’s commitment to transparency won’t change. To set expectations correctly, we do not currently envision this new permitting process formally beginning before the end of this year. The company will retain our project website and provide updates and information to the community as appropriate.

It is our experience that reusing a power plant site for renewable and zero-carbon energy is the most sustainable and environmentally conscious decision to be made to meet the growing electricity demand. Building a new greenfield facility requires disturbing land and building transmission lines and substations, which are expensive and resource-intensive, including time, land, labor, and more.

The Morro Bay Power Plant provides a unique opportunity to use a small portion of a retired fossil fuel power plant site and for Vistra to invest $900 million to construct a new state-of-the-art energy storage facility to capture and better utilize excess renewable solar electricity.

Vistra looks forward to working with you through the Opt-in Certification process toward a solution that is good for the community and the state of California’s reliability and clean energy needs.

Sincerely,

Claudia J. Morrow
Senior Vice President, Development
Vistra Corp.

October 23, 2024
Federal officials weigh ESA listing for monarch butterfly
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is considering whether to list the monarch butterfly as threatened or endangered, which could have land-use implications for farmers.
Photo/Xerces Society/Stephanie McKnight

The iconic monarch butterfly—famed for its vibrant orange and black wings—makes its annual stop along California’s Central Coast this month to overwinter. This journey is part of a multigeneration migration that spans North America, with monarchs traveling as far as Mexico and Canada.

But their numbers have dwindled.

Chip Taylor, founding director of Monarch Watch, said monarch butterflies are affected by hot weather.

“The modest climates that they have been relying on are going to be disappearing,” he said. “Their habitat is going to be narrowed, and their population is probably going to decline significantly over the next couple of decades.”

Taylor discussed the plight of the monarch butterfly during an Oct. 8 webinar, which included a discussion on how a potential action to list the monarch as threatened or endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act would affect California farmers and ranchers. The session was led by Western Growers, the California Farm Bureau and the California Association of Pest Control Advisers.

A January count by the Xerces Society revealed that 233,394 western monarchs overwintered in California this year, down from 330,000 monarchs observed in 2023. Today’s population is 5% of what it was in the 1980s, the Xerces Society reported.

Monarch populations have declined due to loss of habitat such as areas with native milkweed, which the species depend on for food and reproduction.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has until Dec. 4 to submit a proposed rule on whether to list the monarch.

Brigit Rollins, staff attorney for the National Agricultural Law Center, said the agency is required to act as part of a settlement agreement stemming from litigation between the agency and environmental groups.

“Once a species is listed under the ESA as endangered, it automatically gets granted all the protections the ESA has to offer,” Rollins said. That means it will be an ESA violation to “take,” or kill, the species.

A federal monarch listing could affect farmers by limiting use of crop protection materials to protect the butterflies from pesticide exposure and use of property, should it be designated as critical habitat for the species.

“Should the species get listed, especially if it’s listed as endangered, this prohibition on ‘take’ is going to kick in immediately,” Rollins said, adding that a listing would impact potential harm of species through regular, routine use of herbicides or insecticides.

A designation of critical habitat, she said, would affect farmers in cases in which there is a federal nexus, such as working with a federal agency to acquire a permit, receiving grant funding or working on a project.

“This is where the critical habitat rubber is going to meet the road because that agency must ensure that whatever action it is they are doing in participation with you will not cause destruction of critical habitat,” Rollins said.

Kari Fisher, senior counsel for the California Farm Bureau, said many farmers have voluntarily created monarch habitat on their farms.

“There is a concern for those growers that already have put in milkweed, hedgerows or other plants that if the monarch is listed and there is an accidental ‘take,’ that they would be held liable for a violation of the ESA,” Fisher said. In addition, she said, landowners who do certain practices on their property to help a species may also receive “take” protection through a conservation benefit agreement.

To reduce pesticide exposure to listed species, the EPA released an updated work plan that discusses how it will pursue protections for listed species, such as during review of pesticide registrations. The plan also incorporates an action plan for vulnerable species, or species with the greatest risk of pesticide exposure.

Representing farmers and ranchers on the Central Coast, Norm Groot, executive director of the Monterey County Farm Bureau, said with the monarch’s overwintering habitat in Pacific Grove, farmers are concerned.

“What we need to watch out for is how extensive a critical habitat designation is going to be and whether or not that’s going to include rangeland and what that means for grazing cattle and maintenance of milkweed species on that rangeland,” Groot said. “The other concern is if hedgerows would be required around ag fields to support milkweed, which is a food safety issue, as it becomes habitat for insects and rodents.”

Groot said farmers and landowners affected by a potential listing of the monarch butterfly are looking for a balanced solution that protects the species and their right to farm. He cited the greater sage-grouse as an effective example of farm landowners working with agencies and nonprofits to protect a listed species.

If the Fish and Wildlife Service issues a decision to list the monarch butterfly under the ESA by Dec. 4, a public comment period will be announced, and a final decision will be issued. Once the decision is finalized, the prohibition on “take” goes into effect.

With no wet weather yet in sight this October, meteorological winter is just around the corner, officially beginning in less than two months Dec. 1. The season will have some meteorological twists and turns that may end with a surge of snow and blasts of bitterly cold air.
That’s what private forecast group AccuWeather is predicting this season – mild for most of the United States, similar to last winter, which was the warmest on record. However, that is only part of the story, as waves of frigid air will periodically send freezing air across the country, along with more chances for snow.

AccuWeather’s 2024-2025 U.S. winter forecast- just released – suggests California could see another wet winter punctuated by more atmospheric  rivers. The forecast comes as California carryover of reservoir water is plentiful- about 120% of the 15-year average.
3 key factors in the winter forecast

One of the major elements considered by AccuWeather when crafting the winter forecast was La Niña. This phenomenon occurs when water temperatures near the equator in the eastern Pacific Ocean remain below the historical average for an extended period, which can significantly influence weather patterns across North America, including the trajectory of snowstorms.

“La Niña will be weak for most of the winter,” AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist and Long-Range Expert Paul Pastelok explained. “A weaker La Niña can allow other signals to drive the pattern, more variability throughout the winter.” A weak La Niña also makes it more likely that not just northern California will get wet this winter, but Central and Southern California as well.

Another player in the winter forecast is the polar vortex.

Based on data from previous winters with a similar setup to the upcoming season, Pastelok said that February is the most probable time frame for the polar vortex to usher a blast of bitterly cold air across the eastern U.S., but added that it is not a certainty.

A third factor is the temperature of the water in the Gulf of Mexico and the northern and northeastern Pacific. Water temperatures in the Gulf are expected to be higher than historical averages, which can translate to mild air masses for the central and eastern U.S. The warmer-than-average water temperatures in the northern Pacific could alter the storm track at times during the winter for the West Coast, impacting the entire U.S.

Wet Christmas in California?

It felt more like summer across part of the West as October kicked off with record-breaking temperatures, but Pastelok says the heat will soon fade and the wet season will shift into gear before the official arrival of winter.

The frequency of rain will gradually trend upward in November and December, along with snow in the mountains. “I think skiing in the West is looking really good,” Pastelok said. “I think it’s going to get kick-started right for the holiday season,” he added, saying Thanksgiving and Christmas look very good for skiers.

Atmospheric rivers and storms from the Pacific Ocean will focus on the Northwest and Northern California before traversing over the Rocky Mountains as winter gets underway in December. Forecasters are warning, though, that big changes will arrive around the time that 2025 begins.

“Look for a potential shift in the storm track midwinter,” Pastelok said. This new pattern will open the door for storms to track farther south over Central and Southern California and push inland.

January wettest?

January could be the wettest month of the winter for Los Angeles and San Diego, as well as areas farther inland across the Southwest, Accuweather predicts.

In February, the storms’ focus will shift north, once again focusing on the Pacific Northwest and northern and central Rockies. As a result, the ski season could come to an early end at the ski resorts in the mountains of Southern California, northern Arizona and New Mexico.

La Niña winters typically do not result in frequent atmospheric rivers in California, but with a weaker La Niña predicted this winter, it could allow for other factors to dictate the West Coast weather pattern. This is what happened in the La Niña winter of 2022-23 when nearly 40 atmospheric rivers hit the western U.S., many of which impacted California.

Of course that was the year Tulare Lake returned with a big bang.

More extreme weather?

The weather recently has been one of extremes driven by warming temps globally.According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, August 2024 was the Earth’s hottest August in the agency’s 175-year climate record, and the Central Valley of California felt this.
UCLA climate scientist Daniel Swain has predicted extreme weather events across the US and California will be more frequent.Just look at what happened in the Appalachian Mountains experiencing “the worst regional flood catastrophe the United States has seen in some years (and likely the worst this region has experienced in recorded history). 20-35 inches of rain fell in less than three days in steep and mountainous terrain, causing rivers, creeks, and streams to not only spill their banks but literally carve new paths through mountain valleys — regardless of what was in the path.”“California faces a real risk of similarly catastrophic flooding.”

Other views
The Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes, or CW3E, based at Scripps at UC San Diego in La Jolla is modeling much of California with a very high chance (>90%) of the 2024-2025 water year being at least 75% of normal. For Sacramento, that would mean roughly 14 inches of rain. However, the chances of most of the state getting an average water year is not nearly as high, only about 20-50%. And the chances of an above average season? At least according to the CW3E data, less than 10-20% for most of the state.

Carol Connare, editor of the Old Farmer’s Almanac, forecasts a “calmer, gentler winter” for 2024-2025. “Temperatures are expected to be higher and snowfall lower throughout much of the United States,” Connare said. “While there will still be winter chill and plenty of powder to enjoy, the overall impact on costs and daily life should be less severe. This winter is anticipated to be relatively uneventful compared to the extremes of recent years.”

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Figures from the California Strawberry Commission show that farmers in California are producing more berries in 2024 compared to the same time last year. That improved trendline is also true for the Santa Maria district. California has produced over 146 million flats of strawberries this season compared to 122 million flats the same time the last season. Strawberries continue to be the number one crop along the Central California coast, including in Ventura County, Santa Barbara County, San Luis Obispo County and Monterey County.
The 2023 crop year was one of its wettest years ever reducing the volume of the early season strawberry crop.California is home to nearly 90% of America’s strawberries and to generations of immigrants who have grown with the planted acreage.

No Party Preference shrinks

Every four years the California Secretary of State publishes voter registration statistics for every county in California. Statistics for the upcoming November election were published in July prior.

This year comparing the number of Democrats registered versus Republicans over the past 4 years in San Luis Obispo County shows growth among the Democrats, but almost no growth for the GOP.

In July 2020 registration numbers show 66,247 Democrats versus 61,883 Republicans. That breaks down to 37.3% Democrats and 34.8% Republicans.

Fast forward to July of this year. Now Democrats number 68,434 versus the Republicans in SLO County at 62,198.

That addition shows that the Democrats have gained 2187 voters in the past four years while Republicans have gained just 315.

The Dems advantage in SLO County has improved from plus 4364 in 2020 to plus 6236 in July 2024. The two parties were about even in 2018 but a blue wave has been the rule since.The two parties have traded places since 2008 when the GOP had a 7000 vote edge.

Percent wise Dems are 38.44% of the electorate in 2024 while the GOP share is 34.94% – slightly higher than 4 years ago.

The category of No Party Preference in 2020 numered 37,633 or 21.20%. But in 2024 this segment has shrunk here – now 18.15% of all voters with 32,310, a decline of more than 5000 .

Statewide the trends are similar to San Luis Obispo County.

The total voter registration in the state increased from 20,921,513 to 22,171,899 over the four year period.

• The percentage of eligible Californians who are registered to vote decreased from 83.49% to 82.43%.
• The percentage of voters who have no party preference decreased from 24.04% to 21.88%.
• The percentage of voters registered with a qualified political party increased from 74.86% to 76.93%.
• The percentage of voters registered with the Democratic Party decreased from 46.32% to 46.19%.
• The percentage of voters registered with the Republican Party increased from 23.99% to 24.73

The total voter registration in the state increased from 20,921,513 to 22,171,899 over the four year period.

The numbers show Dems have gained more than 2 million voters statewide since 2016 while the GOP gained around 600,000 as did No Party.

Santa Barbara numbers 

How about Santa Barbara County? Dems have grown their numbers by almost 5000 while the GOP has grown by about 2000. As of the latest count, Dems have 111,116 voters compared to 59,688 for the GOP, approaching a 2 to 1 advantage.

Fresno County Dems lose voters.

In Fresno County in the San Joaquin Valley Democrats have 193,551 voters registered compared to 165,457 for the GOP. But since 2020 the GOP has gained about 10,000 new voters compared to 6000 new Dems. Still the blue team enjoys an advantage of more than 28,000.But they were up 32,000 in 2020 climbing from plus 21,000 in 2018.Lately the GOP appears to be fighting back.

In conservative Fresno County the GOP held a voter advantage as recently as 2008.

In red Tulare County the GOP has increased its advantage slightly with better than a plus 11,000.

As the election gets closer this year and parties register new voters, the state will do a new survey and we’ll see if the trend is the same or not.

Wisconsin edu photo

Water company to merge with CSD

Board directors of the small S&T Mutual Water company have asked Los Osos Community Service District if they could merge their operations-a move that would reduce the number of water suppliers in town from 3 to 2.

On August 1 the board of Los Osos CSD said they would entertain the idea. S&T serves the Monarch Grove/Sunset Terrace area but has recently faced challenges with high nitrate levels at their only well.

A representative of Golden State Water suggested they could offer benefits for working with them instead of the CSD.

But the CSD this past month approved the idea requested by S&T.

 Now that the consolidation is conceptually approved, there are multiple steps that need to be taken before finalizing the merger.
The S&T letter to the CSD says “S&T exists on the far western side of the Los Osos Groundwater Basin and is therefore inherently limited by both seawater intrusion and nitrate contamination of the upper and lower aquifers. The LOCSD has proactively and wisely pursued a pipeline to connect to the State Water Project (SWP) and we believe this signifies the most robust management of the water resources within our constrained basin.

Furthermore, we have observed that the LOCSD has taken on critical and costly projects while also minding a budget that ensures your ratepayers are not overly burdened by such improvements. With only 179 connections each of our customers must pay a higher share for infrastructure upgrades. In the past several years, it has become apparent that our rates will continue to increase rapidly as we work to address much-needed repairs and upgrades to the aging S&T water system.”

The state’s SAFER program, the program that encourages small water system consolidation, is designed to
pay for the costs of design and connection between the two water systems and other incidental costs associated with the consolidation. 

Rite Aid bankruptcy taking more time

The Rite Aid drugstore chain bankruptcy is taking more time than originally thought, and the Los Osos location continues to have empty shelves because the company is limited on shipping product here.
One representative says it could take another month to sort out the issues in the bankruptcy. Still there is optimism the issues will be resolved and the shelves of the largest local drugstore will be replenished.