By Don Zdeba As Arnold Schwarzenegger’s cyborg assassin character the Terminator said, “I’m back!” Retirement was short-lived as I have been retained as interim General Manager while the Board of Directors undertake another recruitment process. However, that is not the subject of this column. I want to focus on the recent change to the rate… Continue Reading “IWVWD New Rate Structure Explained”

By Don Zdeba These lyrics from the Grateful Dead’s song “Truckin’” seem appropriate to summarize my 45-year career as I prepare to embark upon that next phase of life called “Retirement”. In August 1977, a wide-eyed, excited new graduate from Michigan left the home he had known for 22 years and headed west to take… Continue Reading “What a Long, Strange Trip it’s Been”

By Don Zdeba If you are a customer of the Indian Wells Valley Water District (“District”) you no doubt have seen an increase in your bill over the last year and a half. Comments to our staff as well as comments posted on various social media indicate a possible lack of understanding of the various… Continue Reading “The Cost of Water Explained”

By Don Zdeba On March 28th, Governor Newsom signed Executive Order N-7-22 in response to a third consecutive year of drought conditions. The Executive Order directed the State Water Resources Control Board (“SWRCB”) to consider enacting emergency regulations to address anticipated extended water supply shortages no later than May 25th. The SWRCB delivered those regulations… Continue Reading “It’s Time to Get Serious”

By Don Zdeba The week of March 6-12 was National Groundwater Awareness Week, an annual observance established in 1999 to highlight the responsible development, management, and use of groundwater. Over 44% of our nation’s population depends on groundwater as a primary water source. In California, on average, groundwater provides nearly 40% of the water used… Continue Reading “From Record Snow to Extended Drought: Impact on Groundwater”

By Don Zdeba If I were to sum up 2021 with respect to the world of California water it would be two words, legislation and litigation. If the prolonged drought California experienced from 2011 through 2017 taught us anything it was that we needed to adapt to the reality that water is not a limitless… Continue Reading “Legislation and Litigation”

By Don Zdeba Accomplishing the objectives of the 2014 Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) presents significant and sometimes unique challenges. According to the State Department of Water Resources (DWR) Bulletin 118, the Indian Well Valley Basin is one of twenty-one basins characterized as being a “high priority basin in critical overdraft.” Indian Wells Valley presents… Continue Reading “Searching for Solutions”

By Don Zdeba Much like the title of the 2009 film starring Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin, and Steve Martin, the groundwater situation in the Indian Wells Valley can be summed up in two words…” it’s complicated.” As one of the 21 basins determined by the California Department of Water Resources (“DWR”) to be in critical… Continue Reading “It’s Complicated”