Newhall Ranch Water Supply
* You published an article Jan. 17 describing the concerns of opponents of Newhall Ranch, a massive, 25,000-unit project proposed along the Santa Clarita River in the Santa Clarita Valley (“Opponents Lash Out at Newhall Ranch Plan”). I was extremely surprised to read the assertion of a representative of the developer, Newhall Land & Farming Co., that the development would have a sufficient water supply.
The draft environmental impact report prepared by the developer states quite clearly that “since the supplies of water which would be needed from CLWA and the Valencia Water Company are not currently available, the Newhall Ranch Specific Plan would potentially result in a significant impact on water availability,” and that “because the demand for CLWA at Santa Clarita Valley buildout, including the Newhall Ranch Specific Plan, would exceed CLWA’s projected supplies, Scenario 2 would result in a significant cumulative impact to water availability.”
There might be enough water for Newhall Ranch if projects that have already been approved by Los Angeles County are not built--a highly unlikely scenario in this growing area. Instead, the developer is throwing dice, betting that they will somehow secure new water sources in the future. This is highly risky when existing water supplies to Southern California are facing cutbacks.
The developer also suggests that an adequate mitigation is to ignore water availability until the time when the projects are going to be built. This is neither legal nor practical. The developer needs to admit that Newhall Ranch will create a water shortage and present real solutions.
Although this project is not in the Newhall County Water District (it will be served by a water company owned by the developer), the impacts to my district and its customers will most probably be substantial. It can affect water quality, cost and reliability to our customers, which concerns me greatly.
MICHAEL A. KOTCH
Castaic
Kotch is a member of the board of directors of Newhall County Water District
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