Amador County – David Evitt asked the Amador Water Agency board Thursday to send water “surges” down New York Ranch Reservoir Gulch to water his “alder forest.” Drought and dewatering the Amador Canal have killed 22 trees in a year. He cited a settlement agreement between “Protect the Historic Amador Waterways” in which AWA committed to water the alder forest on his father, Russell’s property, about 1,000 feet from the canal, down New York Ranch Gulch. An option included building a well. The water surges, he said, entailed opening a gate a fraction of an inch for 48 hours, once a week, to soak the earth under the trees. On board questioning, he said he did not know how much water the trees needed, but was “trying to fast-pace the well agreement.” AWA General Manager Jim Abercrombie said the $25,000-dollar agreement paid for studies, and building the well; and the agency spent $29,739 dollars on studies, “and we have not gotten to the well.” Jim Robbins managed the well and study funds, and AWA Chairman Terence Moore said it seemed Robbins “didn’t manage his money very well.” Per the agreement, AWA doesn’t have to give water for the white alders from the canal or Amador Pipeline unless paid a meter rate. Moore asked if Evitt was willing to pay for water. Evitt said there was nothing in the agreement preventing AWA from acting in the spirit of cooperation. And he said Protect Historic Amador Waterways “no longer exists,” having disbanded a year ago. Abercrombie said a 2-inch raw water service connection made by AWA staff at Evitt ranch had a 12-gallon-a-minute flow adequate to fulfill the agreement to water the alders. Evitt said it was inadequate to water the house, and “takes about 20 minutes before the sprinkler system cuts out.” Abercrombie said not the flow but the old, cast-iron delivery system was at fault. A new raw-water connection would cost $2,000 dollars; and Evitt estimated a well would cost $8,000 to $10,000. Moore suggested Evitt seek part of the $100,000 dollar settlement managed by Amador Community Foundation, “for watershed management practices in the Jackson Creek Watershed.” AWA attorney Steve Kronick said Evitt should “try to get a handle on the amount of water necessary to sustain this forest,” and he should check with Robbins to see if the 2-inch connection would provide that amount. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Amador County – David Evitt asked the Amador Water Agency board Thursday to send water “surges” down New York Ranch Reservoir Gulch to water his “alder forest.” Drought and dewatering the Amador Canal have killed 22 trees in a year. He cited a settlement agreement between “Protect the Historic Amador Waterways” in which AWA committed to water the alder forest on his father, Russell’s property, about 1,000 feet from the canal, down New York Ranch Gulch. An option included building a well. The water surges, he said, entailed opening a gate a fraction of an inch for 48 hours, once a week, to soak the earth under the trees. On board questioning, he said he did not know how much water the trees needed, but was “trying to fast-pace the well agreement.” AWA General Manager Jim Abercrombie said the $25,000-dollar agreement paid for studies, and building the well; and the agency spent $29,739 dollars on studies, “and we have not gotten to the well.” Jim Robbins managed the well and study funds, and AWA Chairman Terence Moore said it seemed Robbins “didn’t manage his money very well.” Per the agreement, AWA doesn’t have to give water for the white alders from the canal or Amador Pipeline unless paid a meter rate. Moore asked if Evitt was willing to pay for water. Evitt said there was nothing in the agreement preventing AWA from acting in the spirit of cooperation. And he said Protect Historic Amador Waterways “no longer exists,” having disbanded a year ago. Abercrombie said a 2-inch raw water service connection made by AWA staff at Evitt ranch had a 12-gallon-a-minute flow adequate to fulfill the agreement to water the alders. Evitt said it was inadequate to water the house, and “takes about 20 minutes before the sprinkler system cuts out.” Abercrombie said not the flow but the old, cast-iron delivery system was at fault. A new raw-water connection would cost $2,000 dollars; and Evitt estimated a well would cost $8,000 to $10,000. Moore suggested Evitt seek part of the $100,000 dollar settlement managed by Amador Community Foundation, “for watershed management practices in the Jackson Creek Watershed.” AWA attorney Steve Kronick said Evitt should “try to get a handle on the amount of water necessary to sustain this forest,” and he should check with Robbins to see if the 2-inch connection would provide that amount. Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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