Where did our water go? Letters to the editor of The Fresno Bee, Aug. 29, 2021

Where did all the water go?

Where has all of the water gone? Our water year begins on Oct. 1, & runs through Sept. 30. On Oct. 2 of 2019, Orville was at 102%, Shasta was 126%, San Luis was 132%, and Castaic was was at 112%. Statewide reservoir water storage was at 128% average! In early June of 2019, the snowpack was at a whopping 201% average.

So where has all the water gone? Our reservoirs are designed to hold enough water for five years of usage, with little incoming snowmelt. Yet they are now at historically low levels, with some being so low that the hydroelectric generating units will soon be shut off. Water is being sent out to the ocean in the guise of saving fish, yet no smelt have found in years. The water being sent down river now is not expected to prevent a massive salmon die off. Yet non-elected water board members are still sending water to become too salty for consumption.

Has the water evaporated? Not hardly. In reality, it has been sent down through the Delta to flush the toilet. The amount of sewage spills from cities and towns in the Bay is troublesome. It's no wonder there has been zero fish found! Because of this, farmers are having to stop watering trees, they are letting land go fallow, putting so many people out of work. Fields of fresh vegetables are being disked under.

And it's not just the farmers who get hurt. Truckers that haul food, fertilizer, fuel, parts, etc., will be hurt. Tractor dealerships, independent mechanics, parts houses will get shuttered. The price of everything that we eat will get more expensive, and less safe, because we will end up importing from other countries. We need water to survive. All of us. And yes, all of our lives do depend on ag.

Too much peace, love for prison

The “governator” wants our prisons with gardens and flowers where inmates and guards can work and play together in a “gated community” with an end of the day hand-holding song of “Peace and Love.”

This should certainly make “going to prison” a more attractive option for criminals that have a fear of being caught and convicted.

Strengthen state’s energy systems

Folks across the San Joaquin Valley know the hardship of blackouts all too well. As I think back on the fires and blackouts of the past year, it’s clear to me that not only do we need to invest in clean energy, but we also need to improve the very infrastructure that delivers our electricty.

As extreme weather events become more common due to climate change, reliable electricity infrastructure is more important than ever. Unreliable infrastrucgture hurts our communtieis, our economy, and the most vulnerable among us. Blackouts disproportionately impact our state’s low-income families, for whom something like losing a fridge full of groceries may be felt for months after.

California’s clean energy sector generates enough electricity to power 6.9 milion homes, avoiding over 15 million metric tons of CO2 emisisons per year. This has huge implications for all of us, but especially for poor communities of color in the San Joaquin Valley that often face higher exposure to air pollution.

California has done an excellent job of establishing visionary climate goals, but we still have more work to do to shore up our energy infrastructure.

Pediatrician asks for help with COVID

In accordance to the CDC, the reproductivity of the Delta variant is six, and that the Alpha variant is 2.5. That is, if nobody distanced, masked, or vaccinated themselves, one person will infect six people with the Delta variant of COVID, and so on and so forth.

Without any mitigation efforts, in one week, that one person will have infected 279,936 cases with Delta, compared to 610 with Alpha.

However, the reason why we don't have millions of people infected right now is because of the efforts of the general public to protect themselves through distancing, masking, and now with vaccinating. Masking the children when they go back to school only helps decrease that reproductivity so that we can control any outbreak that may occur.

Until vaccines are approved for children under 12, masking during in-person instruction gives us the best chance to decrease the transmission of the virus, and prevents any more surges that will overwhelm our health-care workers. I am doing my part to help through vaccinating the public, but I cannot do this alone. I am asking for the community for help so that next year, we don't have to do this all over again.

Conservatives lead us to extinction

I thank The Bee Editorial Board for rejecting the Gov. Gavin Newsom recall. The most important Newson accomplishment is his setting the stage for renewable energy production and the removal of petroleum-powered vehicles. If any of my conservative friends could see into the future, they would appreciate the value of a stable atmosphere for their grandchildren.

But many conservatives have a loose relationship with facts and maintain false beliefs about science. Instead of paying attention during five days of school science, it was easier to dream through Sunday school mythology. Faulty reasoning and judgment shared by conservatives leads them to accept misinformation and lies. Thus, all the more important the urgency of having progressive thinkers in every political office.

I imagine a future email about the warm water coming out of my cold water faucet. Oh, wait, that is happening now. Bouncing off a satellite somewhere, that email will someday reach an intelligent life form, which will piece together the story of the extinction of nearly all life forms caused by intelligent life forms on a planet called Earth. If conservatives remain in charge, that extinction will happen. I hope not.

Questioning The Bee and recent op-ed

So, to Elvin C. Bell, African Americans are responsible for today’s gun violence (though he provides no data other than his personal, rather myopic, experience), ignoring that the mostly white L.A. Police Dept. had an “uneasy” (a euphemism) relationship with minority communities throughout its existence.

And, according to Elvin C. Bell (June 29 column), flying the Rainbow Flag demeans Old Glory instead of glorifying what it represents – freedom of speech, as well as life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

So, minorities and those who support diversity are at the center of our ills.

Do you see a pattern in Mr. Bell’s thinking? And The Bee’s, especially when it does not print any objections to Mr. Bell’s views.

They are views in need of discussion.

As a former executive editor at three newspapers, I’d always had a wide range of responsible views on my opinion pages, both liberal and conservative. We also encouraged responsible opposing views. It’s the essence of Thomas Jefferson’s opinion that, through debate, truth will triumph.

The issues Mr. Bell raises are in need of discussion, but The Bee, by limiting or ignoring the debate of issues raised by Mr. Bell, simply endorses them when left unchallenged.

This story was originally published August 29, 2021 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Where did our water go? Letters to the editor of The Fresno Bee, Aug. 29, 2021."