The San Diego County Water Authority wants to massively expand production at its seawater desalination plant in Carlsbad. The reason? It’s not because we need more water. It’s because the Water Authority wants to be a bigger player in the water selling game.
San Diego bulked up on water sources years ago when it seemed that demand would forever outpace supply. Now, people are using much less water and San Diego has a surplus. The proposed plant expansion, then, on its face, wouldn’t seem to make sense.
The Water Authority’s general manager Dan Denham, however, thinks the expansion would be a baller move. He wants to position the Water Authority as an entrepreneur throughout the West, which does indeed have potentially catastrophic water woes.
Expanding the plant could accomplish multiple goals, according to Denham.
First, it would reduce dependence on the Colorado River, which has had some rough years of late. A state like Arizona, for instance, has significantly less rights to Colorado River water than Imperial, Los Angeles or San Diego Counties. If the Carlsbad plant ramps up production it could — through complicated trades — essentially sell some of its Colorado River rights to Arizona.
That would also be good, Denham argues, because it would help San Diego recoup at least part of its massive investment in the desal plant. The desal plant was expensive and making water there racks up significant energy costs. With San Diego experiencing some of the highest water rates in the country, this in theory might have the potential to lower costs for local customers.
Being a water dealer is the future of water in the West, Denham believes.
Critics argue, however, there are multiple downsides to expanding the plant — including the environmental kind — as our MacKenzie Elmer reports.
The Learning Curve: Still No Fix for Teacher Misconduct
For many years now, Voice of San Diego has reported harrowing stories of sexual misconduct by teachers. The examples of misconduct we’ve uncovered are mind bending. Even more so is the frequency with which some of these problem teachers stay in the classroom, even after allegations against them have been substantiated.
There are many reasons for this, as our Jakob McWhinney writes in his newest Learning Curve.
“The big picture is that the deck is stacked against true accountability,” McWhinney writes. “Whether it’s union contracts that give educators generous protections and make getting rid of problem teachers a potentially costly and drawn-out process or districts simply ignoring allegations, teachers are often more likely to be shuffled to a new school or position than face any significant reckoning for their actions.”
It would obviously be incumbent on governing agencies and unions to reform the system.
Read the full Learning Curve here.
Also check out our newest education feature The Progress Report. In it, McWhinney examines what techniques in education are, you know, making progress. His first one was about a school in City Heights that is (still) doing the nearly impossible.
In Other News
- San Diego State’s basketball coach will now be the highest paid employee in the CSU System, the Union-Tribune reports.
- KPBS profiled families who participated in a guaranteed income pilot program. The families paid rent, started businesses and paid off debts.
- San Diego’s drivers aren’t the only ones upset about potholes. A 9-year-old is fired up about why San Diego has crappy roads. (CBS 8)
- San Diego has a new museum. The Navy SEAL Museum San Diego has secured a location and is set to open later this year. (Times of San Diego)
Correction: In the Morning Report, Wednesday, we wrote that the Municipal Employees Association had spent on behalf of Heather Ferbert, a candidate for San Diego city attorney. The union endorsed her but had not spent money to support her.
Correction: The Morning Report, Wednesday, incorrectly described Racquel Vasquez. She is the mayor of Lemon Grove.
The Morning Report was written by Will Huntsberry and Andrea Lopez-Villafaña. It was edited by Scott Lewis.
Nobody cares about this. Deport the homeless today