| MMWD Board of Directors |
Cynthia Koehler
President
Larry Russell
Vice President
David Behar
Jack Gibson
Armando Quintero Regular meetings of the MMWD Board of Directors are held at 7:30 pm the first and third Wednesday of each month in the District Board Room, 220 Nellen Avenue, Corte Madera. Additional meetings are scheduled as needed. All board meetings are open to the public. (415) 945-1450
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September Public Meetings
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Wed., September 5, 7:30 pm
BOARD MEETING
Tues., September 11, 6:30-9:00 pm
2012 DRAFT VMP
INFORMATIONAL MEETING
Kreps Room
Redwood High School
395 Doherty Drive
Larkspur
Thurs., September 20, 7:30 pm
BOARD MEETING
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RESERVOIRS STILL ABOVE AVERAGE AS SUMMER COMES TO END
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While August 2012 was a typically dry month, reservoir levels continue to stay above average. Here are the current water statistics:
- Reservoir Levels - As of August 26, reservoir levels are 83 percent of capacity, or 66,140 acre-feet.* The average for this date is 73 percent, or 58,391 acre-feet. Total capacity is 79,566 acre-feet.
- Rainfall - A new rainfall year began July 1, 2012. Year-to-date rainfall (as of August 26) is 0.04 inches, slightly lower than the average of 0.13 inches.
- Water Use - Water use for the seven-day period ending August 26 averaged 31.9 million gallons per day, somewhat higher than last year's average of 30.4 million gallons per day for the same time period.
- Creek Releases - During the month of July 2012 MMWD released 265 million gallons, or a total of 814 acre-feet, into Lagunitas and Walker creeks in west Marin. We release water throughout the year to maintain adequate flows for the fishery per our agreement with the State of California.
Current water use and reservoir figures can be found on the homepage of our website.
*One acre-foot is 325,851 gallons.
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WATERSHED VMP INFORMATIONAL MEETING SET FOR TUESDAY, SEPT. 11
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MMWD is holding an informational meeting on the Draft 2012 Vegetation Management Plan (Draft 2012 VMP) for Watershed Lands on Tuesday, September 11, 6:30-9:00 pm, at Redwood High School.
The workshop will include:
* Comments on the development of the Draft 2012 VMP and other background information;
* An overview and highlights of the Draft 2012 VMP by author and lead consultant Leonard Charles;
* Information on the upcoming environmental review process leading to the release of an environmental impact report (EIR) in 2013.
MMWD released the Draft 2012 VMP in early August and plans to start the environmental review process in October. The Draft 2012 VMP explains the district's goals for managing its 22,000 acres of watershed land and describes actions to achieve those goals.
The main goals are:
* To protect Marin's communities, water supply and natural resources from catastrophic wildfire.
* To preserve habitats, plants and animals into the future.
* To prepare for and adapt to future changes.
Only after completion of the EIR process will the MMWD Board of Directors consider review and adoption of the Draft 2012 VMP to replace the district's original VMP, completed in 1995. Click here to read the Draft 2012 VMP.
The Sept. 11 meeting will be held in the Kreps Conference Room at Redwood High School, 365 Doherty Drive, Larkspur. A section of Doherty Drive traveling east from Magnolia Avenue to the high school will be closed for roadway improvements. Attendees will need to access Redwood High School via Lucky Drive. Click here for more information about the roadway improvements.
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SPECIAL HISTORY BOOK EVENT AT THE MARIN HISTORY MUSEUM ON THURSDAY, SEPT. 13
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With the founding of MMWD in 1912, the citizens of Marin not only created a public water system but also laid the groundwork for the perpetual protection of the 18,500-acre Mt. Tamalpais Watershed. Mount Tamalpais and the Marin Municipal Water District, a new pictorial history book by Director Jack Gibson, documents the district's role in the preservation of this beloved central landmark and the district's work to ensure a reliable supply of high-quality water for Marin.
The book, from Arcadia Publishing, is available in local bookstores, at MMWD or may be ordered online. Proceeds benefit a fund to protect the Mt. Tamalpais Watershed.
DIrector Gibson, a member of MMWD's board of directors since 1995, is a practicing Marin County attorney as well as an avid historian and a former history teacher. In working on the book, he spent countless hours sifting through photos and documents in MMWD's extensive archives.
To meet the author and hear more about the history of MMWD, mark your calendar for a special book-signing event on Thursday, September 13, 6:30-8:00 pm, at the Marin History Museum, 1125 B Street, San Rafael. Click here for more information.
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FIRE ROAD IN BALTIMORE CANYON OPEN SPACE CLOSING THIS FALL FOR SLIDE REPAIR WORK
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MMWD will be closing a portion of Southern Marin Line Fire Road in the Baltimore Canyon Open Space Preserve near Crown Road in Kentfield for slide repair work September 14 through October 29. (Click here for a map.) For public safety, the fire road will be closed at the work site weekdays 8:00 am - 4:30 pm. Every effort will be made to open the construction zone for hikers, bikers and equestrians after work hours and on weekends. The fire road closure also will impact access to and from the entrance on Crown Road to Hoo-Koo-e-Koo Trail, Dawn Falls Trail and H-Line Fire Road.
The work involves construction of a 168-foot-long retaining wall to repair a slide on Southern Marin Line Fire Road triggered by late spring rains. Southern Marin Line Fire Road is the location of a 24-inch transmission pipeline (the Southern Marin Line) that serves as the main supply of potable water from the Bon Tempe Treatment Plant to southern Marin. The road needs to be stabilized before the next rainy season to prevent additional earth movement that could undermine support for the pipeline, potentially leading to pipe failure.
Although the road is located on Marin County Open Space land, MMWD owns an easement to maintain the pipeline. The slide repair will restore the roadway to its original width.
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MMWD OFFERS FREE WATER EDUCATION PROGRAMS FOR SCHOOLS
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MMWD offers free, fun-filled and informative environmental education programs for schools in our service area. Programs for the 2012-13 school year include field trips to the Mt. Tamalpais Watershed, musical assemblies, classroom presentations, Water Quality Lab tours, and service learning opportunities. In addition, a "Trout in the Classroom" program is offered in partnership with North Bay Trout Unlimited, California Department of Fish and Game, and AmeriCorps Watershed Stewards Project.
Bilingual (Spanish-English) assemblies and classroom presentations are available. MMWD also offers school bus reimbursement grants to qualifying schools that might not otherwise be able to visit the Mt. Tamalpais Watershed.
MMWD's education programs provide opportunities for students to discover where their water comes from and to gain hands-on experience in watershed ecology and habitat restoration. All programs are designed to support California education standards while fostering water conservation and environmental stewardship.
Programs are offered on a first-come, first-served basis and fill up quickly. Click here for more information.
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SPECIAL SCREENING OF 1914 SILENT MOVIE FILMED AT LAKE LAGUNITAS
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The Marin County Free Library is sponsoring a special screening of the 1914 silent film Salomy Jane on Sunday, Sept. 30, 7:00 - 9:30 pm, at the Smith Rafael Film Center in San Rafael. The film is based on a Bret Harte story and is the first production of the California Motion Picture Corporation, whose studios were located in San Rafael. Parts of the movie were filmed at Lake Lagunitas on the Mt. Tamalpais Watershed.
The screening includes an introductory talk by film historian David Kiehn and librarian Laurie Thompson. Piano accompaniment by Bruce Loeb.
Admission is $15 and advance tickets may be purchased online. Proceeds benefit the California Film Institute, the Anne T. Kent California Room and the Marin History Museum. Click here for more information.
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GOVERNOR BROWN LAUNCHES CLIMATE CHANGE WEBSITE
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In August California Governor Jerry Brown launched a new website, Climate Change: Just the Facts, which documents the dangerous effects of global warming.
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| NEW FROM THE BLOG | Check out these recent posts from MMWD's blog, Think Blue Marin:
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WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU
| We welcome your comments and need your help raising awareness about water in Marin. Please share this information with your colleagues and constituents. Thank you!
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