Amador County – The Amador Joint Water Committee discussed a few items Monday, including kicking around the idea of suggesting adding a Water Element to Amador County’s new General Plan. The months-long process of the General Plan update by Amador County Supervisors and planning commissioners is on hiatus for staff repairs to the document, and is due to meet in February. Joint Water Committee member and Amador Water Agency board member Bill Condrashoff asked if the water element was still a part of the general plan, or if it had been thrown out. Supervisors John Plasse and Chairman Ted Novelli both said water was still part of the plan. Plasse said water was referenced under two areas, the Economic Element and also the Governance Element, though a full-fledged Water Element was not part of the General Plan. Plasse said “it hasn’t been thrown out but it hasn’t been thrown in.” Pete Bell of the Foothill Conservancy said from the audience that there were ways to put water into the General Plan besides having it as an element and he and Condrashoff both alluded to the Calaveras County Water District working on a Water Element in its General Plan. AWA Chairman and committee member Terence Moore said he would like to see the CCWD’s plan, “just to see what it’s all about.” Bell said the document was out in draft form and he had a copy. He offered to e-mail it to Moore along with the Conservancy’s comments on it. Moore asked Bell to e-mail it to AWA Genral Manager Jim Abercrombie, who could then see that the AWA board gets the documents. The committee discussed the agenda item of talking about housing developments of 300 or more units, of which there were none. Condrashoff asked why there were no discussions of smaller numbered developments. Abercrombie said it was based on Senate Bill 610, which requires certain things for projects that size. Condrashoff asked for discussions of 100-unit sizes, due to the recession. Moore said “let’s knock it down to 100,” or, “right about now, any inquiry.” Story by Jim Reece (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).