CCSD Director Farmer Water Cost Update, March 2021
Ever since being elected to the Cambria CSD Board of Directors in November of 2016, I’ve endeavored to keep the rate payers of our community informed as to the ongoing costs of the Facility off of San Simeon Creek Road known initially as the EWS (Emergency Water Supply Project), then briefly as the AWTP (Advanced Water Treatment Plant), and as of January 2016 as the SWF (Sustainable Water Facility).*
According to the figures in the CCSD Expenditure Report posted in the Board of Directors monthly meeting Agenda packet, at the end of 2019, the District had spent a little over $17,200,000 toward the Facility, including the annual bank loan of roughly $660,000, as well as other assorted costs, from legal fees, to annual permits, expected and unexpected maintenance, biological studies, and much more.
This past year, 2020, is the first year the cost for the plant was less than $1,000,000, with the total being $970,958.13. In addition, 3 months of expenses were less than $10,000, the first time this has happened. So as of December, 2020, the amount of debt accumulated by the EWS/AWTP/SWF* is a bit over $18,200,000. (This amount does not include costs from July 2015, when no Expenditure Report was available.)
For years the California Coastal Commission has requested the District submit the Coastal Development Permit application for the Facility that was built in 2014, including providing the results of a required In Stream Flow Study to determine the impact upon the habitat in the watershed of San Simeon Creek when the Facility is operating, as it is located in a 92 acre Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Area. This past summer the District finally submitted the application to the San Luis Obispo County Planning Department. Soon after, County Planning required more additional information be provided. As a result, the District has so far requested two time extensions totaling 270 days, and will likely need to make another request to extend the application period to the end of 2021. In addition, further outside consultant costs are being incurred to fulfill requirements to complete the CDP application process.
As most residents of Cambria are aware, this Facility has been a cause of controversy ever since it was constructed. Was it built for use only during a drought emergency as initially permitted by the County, or to allow for further growth in our town? No matter what the intention and ongoing reason(s) for the Facility, or whether it actually ever operates, a yearly cost will continue to be incurred until at least 2034, when the bank loan will finally be paid in full. It’s likely the Coastal Development Permit, which needs to first be approved by the County Planning Department, then the Planning Commission, followed by the County Board of Supervisors, will not be forwarded to the California Coastal Commission for a final decision until the end of 2022, eight years after construction of the plant was completed.
*Named changed for third time to Water Reclamation Facility (WRF) in late March, 2021.
