Reliable-water ruse a ploy to siphon water south

I ventured into a January 19 public meeting of the Association of California Water Agencies at its Sacramento headquarters to see what was going on. I expected to hear its views on the financing of the coming water bill. Instead, I listened in awe as ACWA’s executive director Tim Quinn unveiled a detailed political PR campaign designed to convince California voters that “since they are the public, it is in the public interest to invest money in upgrading the Delta infrastructure in order to maintain a reliable water supply for California.”

Of course, the phrase “reliable water supply for California” is really code for sending more water south. In Northern California, we already have a reliable water supply, so it’s just another water grab from Southern California.

The ACWA’s propaganda campaign will originate from a sham organization called Clean Water and Jobs for California. It claims it’s a “broad based public-private partnership.” ACWA’s Quinn himself is listed as president. Some of the “private” partners are the California Chamber of Commerce, the California Building Industry Association, the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation, the Western Growers Association, the State Building & Construction Trades Council of California and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. No “public” partners were listed.

Quinn also talked about the necessity of the campaign appearing to be all “grassroots and low cost.” This is the biggest deception of all. It is an admission by the ACWA that the public can be duped by a disingenuously concocted propaganda campaign designed to do just that.

Finally, the ACWA’s purported main message—that it’s in the public interest to support the 2012 Water Bond measure—is a half-truth. A half-truth is the most devious form of lie, because it can be supported in part by fact. Yes, the public might benefit a little, but all the water agencies, corporations, construction industries, developers, etc. stand to profit immeasurably from it—beyond their wildest dreams!

There’s an old political phrase that describes the ACWA’s fallacious campaign best: “enlightened self-interest.”