Directors from the Sunnyslope County Water District have
postponed a plan to build a LESSALT II treatment plant in part
because of high groundwater levels.
Directors from the Sunnyslope County Water District have postponed a plan to build a LESSALT II treatment plant in part because of high groundwater levels.
“The intention is to build the other plant, but we have to keep in mind that right now the current water table is a major issue,” Board Director Marchel Nelson said.
The area has seen an increase in the water table for a number of reasons, including farmers that are not pumping from their wells, he said.
“They are pumping the Blue Value Water, limiting the amount of groundwater being drawn,” Nelson said. “It’s causing a higher water table and we have to be cautious and take it into consideration. Eventually, we will get another plant out there because everybody benefits with the water that comes through that plant (LESSALT l).”
Sunnyslope Water District officials are also waiting to see the results from its LESSALT I facility that opened last month.
Nelson said groundwater levels are being worked out collectively among the agencies participating in the Water Resource Association’s update to the Urban Groundwater Management plan.
“We have to get rid of the salts in our groundwater and make it better before we put it back in, and at the same time eliminate the high water table. It is a complex problem,” he said.
San Benito County Water District officials also reviewed and accepted their annual audit, presented by Bianchi, Lorincz and Associates.
According to consultant Barbara Andres, the district financial health is strong.
“They have cash in the bank,” Andres said. “The district has adequate cash reserves.”
Instead of relying on the accountants to make district data entries, consultants have been working with the water district to do more in-house responsibilities. However, they cautioned the district to be aware of new mandates that will be in effect because of the Enron scandal that took place earlier this year.
“Every five years you would have to have a special audit done by another auditor,” she said.
The county water district witnessed an increase in expenditures after paying off a $5 million bond that went toward the LESSALT l plant, new wells, a new complex and other improvements.
The district has $17 million in assets, $11 million in equity and $5 million in liabilities, of which only $261,000 is required to be paid in one year. The remainder is in bond loans to be paid over a period of years.
“They certainly have enough assets to satisfy liability,” Andres said. “They have a million more than their liability. Some of their liabilities do not have to be paid for 30 years.”
