Water System

The City Council on Tuesday approved a new contract with the Glendale Firefighter's Assn., which includes no pay raises through 2013, higher employee contributions to pension plans and a two-tier retirement system with a higher retirement age for all new hires. Firefighters last year voted to postpone a scheduled pay increase for two years. Under the proposed agreement, the raise would be pushed out two more years, meaning firefighters would remain at current salary levels until July 2013.

Tim Willert CITY HALL -- Torn between protecting the city's drinking water supply and avoiding further legal action, the City Council approved a plan that will increase chromium 6 levels from 3 to 6 parts per billion. After more than two hours of deliberation Tuesday night, the council voted to begin operating one of the city's two wells with high levels of chromium. It's a move that must still be approved by the California Environmental Protection Agency.

Water managers and environmental experts recognize that California’s statewide water system is in crisis. But despite intense media coverage and focus by the governor and legislators, the public remains unaware of the state’s water problems. California’s aging water supply and delivery system is facing multiple dire threats. Any one of these factors would be enough to jeopardize the state’s water supply. But now, they have combined to place California’s water supply and infrastructure, as well as critical environmental resources, in a state of crisis.

Last year, I was critical of the Crescenta Valley Water District when we were faced with a water shortage. The water supply to Southern California was adequate, but CVWD's facilities did not have capacity to transfer enough water from the Foothill Municipal Water District. Fortunately, we had a cool summer without any major fires in this area, and we had no water shortage. It appears that CVWD is taking the right steps to improve its water supply.

I want to acknowledge the superb effort put forth by the employees of Crescenta Valley Water District during the Station fire. Quick action at the beginning of this event put the water district ahead and the continued focus on keeping our water system fully supplied served the community well. When this fire flared up, and turned toward La Crescenta, the water district personnel responded to management call-in, and the district was fully staffed in a very short time. When water district officials realized the event would last several days, personnel responded to the deployment of a 24-hour operation without hesitation.

Buck Wargo CITY HALL -- Council members will have to get off the fence Tuesday and make a decision. After two years of study, the council will decide for the second time in seven years whether any changes need to be made to Glendale's 77-year-old ordinance banning walls and fences in front- and sideyards next to streets. No changes were made in 1993 following a lengthy study. A public hearing could attract several homeowner groups thathave taken positions and dozens of residents on both sides of the heated issue.

Tim Willert CITY HALL -- Chromium 6 levels in Glendale's drinking water supply could creep even higher if the city bows to Environmental Protection Agency pressure and starts pumping treated water from one of two high chromium ground water wells. The EPA has denied a request by the city to turn off both of its high chromium wells, which contain chromium levels measured at 50 parts per billion. "We did talk to them about shutting down two of the high-chrome wells and they rejected that idea because it doesn't comply with the cleanup remedy," Don Froelich, water and services administrator for Glendale Water and Power, said Friday.

Tim Willert GLENDALE CITY HALL -- After clearing one legal hurdle when it stopped dumping water containing chromium 6 into the L.A. River, the city of Glendale appears close to clearing another. The California office of the federal Environmental Protection Agency, which threatened to fine the city $300,000 per month for not operating both high-chromium ground water wells, has tentatively agreed to a compromise, officials said Monday. Also, the San Fernando Valley water master has dropped his court challenge against the city.