State lawmakers on Thursday heard from water experts about deteriorating conditions in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta -- a source for much of California's drinking water. Legislators are facing a deadline in a matter of days to put a water bond on the February ballot. From Sacramento, Jenny O'Mara reports.
UC Davis Professor Jay Lund warned amidst the Delta's other problems -- such as crumbling levees -- its water quality is a looming issue that adds to a potential crisis.
Lund : Over the long haul as drinking water standards get tighter and tighter there'll be more and more demands for them to spend billions of dollars on increasing the drinking water treatment or to move to a water source that has a better water quality.
Lund told lawmakers the Bay Area has become the most dependent urban center on Delta water supplies. Assembly lawmakers focused on the Delta water supply in its first hearing on the special legislative session on water but say several other issues will get attention next week. They include groundwater storage, conservation and the controversial subject of dams.
Lawmakers are trying to figure out what should be covered in a potential bond package to put before voters. They face a deadline mid-month to get something on the February ballot.
