| Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, in an announcement from Restore the Delta on June 21, asked the question: "What would you do with $800 million per year?"
That's the amount it will cost Californians every year to pay the principal and interest on the $11.14 billion water bond. The bond, known as the Safe, Clean, and Reliable Drinking Water Supply Act of 2010 by its proponents, was part of the controversial water package that emerged from the special Legislative Session called by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger last fall.
"With $800 million, California could rehire 12,000 teachers that were laid off this spring," Barrigan-Parrilla stated. "We could pay for four years of the Healthy Families program, which insures 900,000 children in California."
Do you remember those state parks that Schwarzenegger threatened to close last year? "We could run them for 57 years," she said.
"Or we could pay for one year of principal and interest on the Water Bond to set the stage for building a peripheral canal through the Delta and to give corporate agribusiness, private water companies and developers more control of our water. All at the expense of Delta family farmers and Delta fisheries," Barrigan-Parrilla explained.
Restore the Delta is part of a statewide campaign that includes the Sierra Club, Friends of the River, Food and Water Watch, Clean Water Action, the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations and many other groups. The No on the Water Bond coalition is "working against big money and big power" to defeat the Water Bond in November, said Barrigan-Parrilla.
The Water Commission of the Inter-Tribal Council of California (ITCC) is also urging people to vote "no" on the water bond on November 2. The Commission pinpoints three reasons for voting no on the water bond: "1. The water bond was written without Tribal inclusion; 2. Language excludes 'Tribes' from eligibility criteria; and 3. Tribes Water Rights will be excluded again through this conveyance."
Arturo Rodriguez, president of the United Farmworkers Union (UFW), also strongly opposes the water bond, contending that it further subsidizes corporate agribusiness.
"The water bond that was recently approved by our lawmakers will give agricultural companies billions more in subsidized water," said Rodiguez in an op-ed in the San Francisco Chronicle on February 23 (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/02/22/ED7U1BUUH3.DTL). "The state treasurer has asked the right question: Why aren't these giant ag industry operators paying for their water like everyone else?"
Water bond supporters try to portray it as a "vital measure" that will restore the Delta while providing water to California's increasing population.
"It's time to act now to begin fixing our water system before it's too late," said Jim Earp, executive director of the California Alliance for Jobs and chair of the Alliance for Clean Water and Jobs, the committee in support of the water bond. "The water bond will invest in the repairs we need to safeguard water supplies, to upgrade water infrastructure, to clean up contamination, and to restore the Delta so we can protect this vital resource for wildlife, people and businesses."
However, Barrigan-Parrilla and other water bond opponents say the pro-bond campaign is a "con" job.
"Bond supporters are trying to make the water bond sound like a good idea, but don't be deceived: It's a con," said Barrigan-Parrilla, Restore the Delta's campaign director. "Backed by the Governor, developers, and wealthy agribusinesses, the bond would build more dams and allow private interests to control more of our water."
She added, "Projects in the bond that we support, like conservation, will not be funded for years if ever. We must oppose this bond and work for better water policies that truly benefit the public."
I agree. There are a lot of good things that California could do with $800 million a year, such as restoring salmon and other fish populations. In fact, I can't think of much worse things to do with $800 million per year than building more dams and bailing out corporate agribusiness.
Don't be fooled by the water bond's backers, who include Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Senator Dianne Feinstein, San Joaquin Valley agribusiness, southern California water agencies.
Don't be conned by support of the bond by the Nature Conservancy and Audubon California, who provide the "environmental" cover for this water grab by agribusiness and southern California developers.
By signing up for the coalition's action alert list, you'll learn about ways to get involved, see the new social media tools and viral videos the campaign is producing, and learn more about this disastrous bond.
Join the campaign and tell your friends. Join the coalition's people-powered campaign to defeat the bond! Go to: http://www.nowaterbond.com. |
