I
“We can’t solve the water crisis by using the same water management methods that caused the crisis in the first place. ”
PRESERVATION AND PROTECTION
We must protect existing habitats and the natural canopy to preserve our limited water supplies and protect vulnerable communities. Water is a limited resource that we are quickly depleting. We must begin by protecting what we have.
NO PACHECO DAM.
We must stop environmentally destructive and unaffordable water projects that ultimately will deliver little value to communities and ratepayers. My opponent and his allies champion expensive projects that will cause irreparable harm to vulnerable ecosystems and destroy miles of habitat of endangered species. I will work to stop the new Pacheco Dam and similar destructive initiatives, replacing them with sustainable alternative approaches to water management, including water recycling and recapture.
NO MORE TUNNELS
We must stop diverting and conveying water from the Delta at the expense of other communities. The Delta Tunnel would deprive less wealthy, more vulnerable, and BIPOC communities of needed fresh water and irreparably harm the Delta ecosystem.
The costs to our ratepayers are also unknown and likely unaffordable as there is not even a current cost estimate. I will work to lessen our use of Delta water rather than expand it, and will work to stop further efforts to increase tunnels and conveyances.
Rebecca’s Sustainable
Water Plan
CLEAN WATER
Environmental damage is harming water quality. Through remedial measures, including creek cleanup and other pollution eradication, we will not only improve the quality of life for residents, but also we will help to protect our clean water from toxic contaminants.
BUILD GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE
We must transition outdated infrastructure to modern infrastructure that maximizes water recapture, recycling, and reuse. While desert countries like Israel recycle 95% of their wastewater, and the national water recycling rate is 10%, Santa Clara County recycles only 5% of its wastewater, relying instead on conveying ever-increasing amounts of water from other communities. Utilizing federal and state funds available for this very purpose, I will work to ensure that infrastructure is upgraded with available District funds, not by raising water rates.
GREEN NEW JOBS
Instead of waiting for funding for a dam that is unlikely to materialize in the near future, I will put existing grants to work on the local level, creating hundreds of new local, well-paying, skilled jobs in transitioning water infrastructure to modern standards that enable water recapture, recycling, and reuse.
WATER ACCESS FOR ALL
According to the latest official count, there are 10,000 unhoused people in Santa Clara County, and many of them–especially those living in vehicles or on the street–lack affordable and reliable access to clean water. At the same time, a growing number of Santa Clara residents cannot afford the steep increases in their water bills. I will work to ensure that all people have reliable access to clean water, regardless of their financial and housing circumstances.
RE-GENERATION AND REGROWTH
We must take positive and impactful measures to invest in regeneration of native plants, reforestation, and other proven means of carbon sequestering and recapture, to ensure that future generations have access not only to water specifically, but also to a planet teeming with life.
Rebecca’s Sustainable
Water Plan
“We can’t solve the water crisis by using the same water management methods that caused the crisis in the first place. ”
PRESERVATION AND PROTECTION
We must protect existing habitats and the natural canopy to preserve our limited water supplies and protect vulnerable communities. Water is a limited resource that we are quickly depleting. We must begin by protecting what we have.
NO PACHECO DAM.
We must stop environmentally destructive and unaffordable water projects that ultimately will deliver little value to communities and ratepayers. My opponent and his allies champion expensive projects that will cause irreparable harm to vulnerable ecosystems and destroy miles of habitat of endangered species. I will work to stop the new Pacheco Dam and similar destructive initiatives, replacing them with sustainable alternative approaches to water management, including water recycling and recapture.
NO MORE TUNNELS
We must stop diverting and conveying water from the Delta at the expense of other communities. The Delta Tunnel would deprive less wealthy, more vulnerable, and BIPOC communities of needed fresh water and irreparably harm the Delta ecosystem.
The costs to our ratepayers are also unknown and likely unaffordable as there is not even a current cost estimate. I will work to lessen our use of Delta water rather than expand it, and will work to stop further efforts to increase tunnels and conveyances.
CLEAN WATER
Environmental damage is harming water quality. Through remedial measures, including creek cleanup and other pollution eradication, we will not only improve the quality of life for residents, but also we will help to protect our clean water from toxic contaminants.
BUILD GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE
We must transition outdated infrastructure to modern infrastructure that maximizes water recapture, recycling, and reuse. While desert countries like Israel recycle 95% of their wastewater, and the national water recycling rate is 10%, Santa Clara County recycles only 5% of its wastewater, relying instead on conveying ever-increasing amounts of water from other communities. Utilizing federal and state funds available for this very purpose, I will work to ensure that infrastructure is upgraded with available District funds, not by raising water rates.
GREEN NEW JOBS
Instead of waiting for funding for a dam that is unlikely to materialize in the near future, I will put existing grants to work on the local level, creating hundreds of new local, well-paying, skilled jobs in transitioning water infrastructure to modern standards that enable water recapture, recycling, and reuse.
WATER ACCESS FOR ALL
According to the latest official count, there are 10,000 unhoused people in Santa Clara County, and many of them–especially those living in vehicles or on the street–lack affordable and reliable access to clean water. At the same time, a growing number of Santa Clara residents cannot afford the steep increases in their water bills. I will work to ensure that all people have reliable access to clean water, regardless of their financial and housing circumstances.
RE-GENERATION AND REGROWTH
We must take positive and impactful measures to invest in regeneration of native plants, reforestation, and other proven means of carbon sequestering and recapture, to ensure that future generations have access not only to water specifically, but also to a planet teeming with life.