The Hub of California's Future

Here is a bit of background as to what has happened in the past. It is a Perspecitve by Matt Kondoll broadcast on KQED on October 19, 2005. The adio is archived. I urge you to listen. It tells the story of the California Reclamation Board and why the entire board was fired in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. If you want to read the text, you can do so.

Have you got that? Now what I would like you to do how is to think about the manner in which Governor Schwarzenegger has now proclaimed a state of emergency over the delta levees.

With Mardi Gras on everyone's minds, we still hear people putting the knock on FEMA and it's previous head, the departed Mr. Brown. Still, let me cite a joint FEMA / American Planning Association report entitled Subdivision Design in Flood Hazard Areas. Chapter 2 focus on Protecting the Natural Functions of the Floodplan. These are Flood Storage and Conveyance, Waterquality Maintenance, Groundwater Recharge, and cultural benefits. They warn that it is follow to ingore these natural functions in designing subdivisions. This would be especially true in the Delta where many of them are planned for land that is below sea level.

UC Berkley has announced a symposium entitled ReEnvisioning the Delta: the hub of California's future. It will be held in Berkley on March 16/17, 2005. It is time that we looked to the future.