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As the year starts to wind down, we would like to take a moment and thank you for your ongoing support of our work to ensure all Californians have access to safe and affordable water. Achieving this goal can only be done if we all come together, with community residents most impacted by this crisis leading the way for long-term solutions in our communities.
Adelante!
Susana and Laurel
Visalia Times Delta: Toxic taps abound in rural Tulare County, failed water bond brings no relief. Community leader and activist Lucy Hernandez is highlighted in a story that looks at the state of the drinking water crisis in Tulare County.
ABC30 Fresno: East Orosi families discuss plans to connect to clean water for the first time in a decade. The community of East Orosi may have a solution to their drinking water contamination -- connecting to nearby community of Orosi’s water supply. Residents discuss what this could mean for them.
To see the latest from CWC and our community partners, check out our news coverage here.
cesar garcia lopez joins the watsonville team
Cesar joins the CWC team as a Program Associate in our NEW Watsonville office! He will be providing program support for our work in the Central Coast region. Alongside our organizing team, he will be traveling to communities in the area to learn more about the water struggles they face and working with these community partners to organize and advocate for long-term drinking water solutions. Having recently graduated from Yale University, he is excited to get back to work in the region he calls home and use his education to benefit his community. Join us in welcoming him to the team!
Cesar, along with our team, led our first day of outreach in the Northern Monterey County area. We’ve already heard from community members, many of which are mothers, that are concerned about the water quality in their homes and ready to get involved. We are excited to continue this work in the years to come to act as a catalyst for community-drive long-term drinking water solutions! If you live in the Bluff/Jensen/Springfield region and are looking to get involved in advocating for safe water for your community, join us Monday, December 3rd at 6 pm for our first community platica to learn more about the water in your region and what resources are available. Please contact Cesar with any questions at (831) 500-1255.
update on california proposition 3
We are disappointed that Proposition 3 did not pass. With more than 1 million Californians are impacted by unsafe drinking water each year, Proposition 3 would have provided desperately needed funding for safe drinking water, and would have benefited many low-income communities.
In light of the failure of Proposition 3, it is now even more urgent that California leaders come together to address California’s drinking water crisis. At a minimum, we urge the passage of the bipartisan Safe and Affordable Drinking Water Fund, which was jointly put forward by Governor Brown’s Administration, Senate Majority Leader Monning, a historic coalition of more than 140 organizations including environmental justice and agricultural stakeholders, as well as impacted communities residents. California leaders must prioritize securing funding for safe and affordable drinking water next year -- because our communities remain thirsty for justice, and they deserve a fair and equal right to the California promise of safe, clean, and affordable drinking water for all.
ways to give to cwc this holiday season
1. Become a monthly sustaining donor! Working to ensure all Californians have access to safe, clean and affordable water is a long-term commitment. By supporting CWC monthly with $10, $25, or $50 you allow us to work strategically, knowing we have the support to be responsive to the most pressing community needs.
2. If you're shopping online this holiday season, you can support CWC by using AmazonSmile. AmazonSmile offers the same products and prices as Amazon; you can tell you’re on AmazonSmile if you see the “Smile” logo in the upper left and the orange square on your Internet browser tab. When you visit AmazonSmile, just be sure to select CWC as your nonprofit of choice.
3. Do your holiday shopping at home using Giving Assistant, which is a shopping portal that allows you to earn cash back by shopping online with affiliated stores. This cashback can then be donated to the nonprofit of your choice, like CWC, by signing up for free here!
Complete job descriptions and more information on how to apply, please visit: https://www.communitywatercenter.org/careers.
Current openings:
Central Coast Community Organizer - The Community Organizer position is a regular, full-time, exempt employee position that will be primarily responsible for conducting CWC’s organizing and base-building work in communities in the Northern Central Coast Region. If you have any questions, please contact Susana De Anda at [email protected].
Legal Fellow - With support from California ChangeLawyers, CWC is looking for a full-time, year-long Legal Fellow to provide legal assistance to communities without safe water and local water board members; create and update resources for community members and legal practitioners regarding drinking water governance and advocacy; and provide legal and advocacy support for other CWC programs as needed. This position will be based in CWC’s headquarters in Visalia, California. The Legal Fellow will also work with the UC Davis School of Law Aoki Water Justice Clinic to create materials that can be used by water board members and service providers that train and assist local water boards. If you have any questions, please contact Debi Ores at [email protected].
Part-Time Water Education and Outreach Specialist - The Water Education & Outreach Specialist is a temporary, part-time, non-exempt, hourly position that is responsible for providing community education and outreach on drinking water issues with residents of low-income communities and communities of color. Specific areas of responsibility include bilingual community outreach and education, engagement of residents in relevant project work, community meeting coordination, and conducting sampling of private wells. It is expected that the position will require driving to and from sites and work approximately 20 hours per week over a three month period (with the possibility of extension at the end of three months), but the exact duration will differ depending on need.
Program Associate (Visalia Office) - The Program Associate is primarily responsible for providing clerical and program support from the Visalia office. This position reports to the Director of Operations and will also work closely with other CWC personnel, independent contractors, allies and vendors. The Program Associate opportunity can be a part-time or full-time position.
UPCOMING EVENTS
DEC 3, 6 PM. Community platica in Northern Monterey County region. Ohlone Elementary School Cafeteria, 21 Bay Farms Road Watsonville, CA 95076. If you are a resident from Bluff/Jensen/Springfield and surrounding areas, join us to learn more about the drinking water quality in your communities, how it impacts your health, and resources available for accessing safe and affordable drinking water. Please contact Cesar Garcia Lopez at (831) 500-1255 or [email protected] for more information.
DEC 17, 5-7 PM. AGUA Coalition Meeting. CWC Visalia Office, 900 W. Oak Ave., Visalia, CA 93291. Join the AGUA Coalition for their final meeting this year which will focus on planning for 2019. Please contact Karina Gallardo at (559) 733-0219 or [email protected] for more information.
RESOURCES AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
- $9.5 Million Available for Drinking Water in Schools which may be used to install water bottle filling stations or drinking water fountains, and for interim water supplies and treatment devices for schools where contamination is an issue. If your school or district is interested in learning more about this exciting new opportunity to improve student access to safe drinking water you can access the guidelines and application here or contact Kim Hanagan, State Water Resources Control Board at (916) 323-0624. Rural Community Assistance Corporation was selected by the State Water Resources Control Board to provide technical assistant during the grant application and implementation period. Contact them at [email protected] for more information.
- Funding available for water systems impacted by 1,2,3-TCP. On December 14, 2017, the State Water Board approved an early effective date for the maximum contaminant level (MCL) of contaminant 1,2,3-Trichloropropane (1,2,3-TCP). In order to obtain cost recovery for your impacted system, you need to obtain legal representation in order to sue the responsible parties, Shell and Dow Chemicals, for 1-2-3 TCP contamination. Litigation can take anywhere from a year to 3 or more years, so if you are impacted by 1-2-3 TCP and are in need of financial assistance to come into compliance with the new MCL, there are funding sources at the state available for eligible entities. The primary funding source is the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF), and the Prop 1 Groundwater Grant Fund is also a secondary option to cover instances where the DWSRF doesn’t cover. In order to qualify for state funding sources you will likely be required to show you are initiating efforts to recover costs from the responsible parties. For any questions, contact the State Water Resources Control Board.
- Do you know if your water is safe to drink? Check out our bilingual Water FAQ page to see what steps you can take to find out what is in the water coming out of your tap.
- Funding for Water and Energy Audits: Application and Instructions. More details on the CWSRF.
THANK YOU TO OUR GENEROUS SUPPORTERS!
Huge thank you to our monthly donors, whose continual contributions help to sustain our long-term work toward achieving safe, clean and affordable drinking water for all Californians!
Amy Helfant, Anavel Valdez-Lupercio, Benigna Hernandez, Bill Walker, Brandon Hill, Bryan Barnhart, Carly Yoshida, Cassie Morgan, Edward Bergtholdt, Jill Ratner, Kavita Vora, Kat Wuelfing, Kelsey Hinton, Leonard Sklar, Nancy Bruce, Natalie Garcia-Grazier, Nimmi Damodaran, Paul Pierce, Renata Brillinger, Sandra Hocker, Vicki Woods
And thank you to our generous donors for the month of November!
Alex Porteshawver, Becky Quintana, Bertha Anderson, Enrique Gerardo, Esteban Morales, Fernando Serrano, Grace Munoz Rios, Jacqueline Martinez Garcel, Tutuy Montes, Juana Martinez, Karen Yohannes, Kelsey Sharp, Kristin Dobbin, Maria Magana, Maria Rivera-Alvarado, Marie Carmen Shingne, Martha Curiel, Mary Creasman, Michelle Rivera, Raquel Sanchez, Robert J. Porter, Sarah Marquez, Somphane Hunter, Steven Stieg, Veronica Rodriguez-Marin
If you would like to donate to CWC, please click here!