Pat Trieweiler: Took supervisors long enough to stop groundwater mining
The Merced County Board of Supervisors shouldn’t give themselves any “attaboys” or pats on the back for finally addressing mining of groundwater for a quick buck.
They finally acted on something that should have been addressed long ago. Unfortunately, water mining has continued into 2015, causing irreversible hardships to Merced County farmers. The geological and environmental damage caused by the board’s “case of the slows” shows the total disconnect and lack of urgency in trying to save Merced’s groundwater.
The Del Puerto Water District certainly appreciates Merced’s generosity. Unfortunately, Merced’s farmers were thrown down the river.
I’m sick of excuses. Something could have and should have been done legally to at least have tried to have stopped this water grab much sooner. It took individuals like Bob Weimer and other concerned farmers to give the board the necessary kick in the butt to finally get something done.
Pat Trieweiler, Atwater
Editor’s note: The Del Puerto Water District includes farmers in Merced, Stanislaus and San Joaquin counties.
This story was originally published March 9, 2015 at 1:26 PM with the headline "Pat Trieweiler: Took supervisors long enough to stop groundwater mining."