My Priorities
Keep our Water Resources Clean
Preserve high quality drinking water for people by using recycled water for public landscaping and industry
Embrace Sustainability
Improve paper, plastic and glass recycling and reuse for residents, businesses, schools and other public facilities
Educate and Learn
Teach children to preserve the environment for our and future generations
Pursue Innovation
Save money for our ratepayers by embracing innovation
Top 3 Immediate Focus Areas
#1) More funding is needed for projects that protect our water, air, and natural resources, including expanding recycled water for public landscaping and industry. I will pursue changes to state law allowing districts, cities, and other local governments to invest a limited portion of long-term reserves in diversified, higher-yield index funds, similar to investment strategies available to CalPERS and California’s public universities. Current law generally restricts local agencies to lower-yield investments. California has already authorized its public universities to use longer-term investment strategies that include diversified equities. With appropriate safeguards and limits on risk, similar authority for financially sound local agencies could generate additional revenue for needed infrastructure while reducing pressure to place additional financial burdens on working families.
#2) State law also restricts Oro Loma’s ability to distribute recycled water within portions of the district served by EBMUD, requiring EBMUD Board authorization or voter approval. I will pursue a more practical legal path, including potentially changing the voter-approval requirement to a simple majority. Alternatively, I support seeking voter approval under existing law so millions of gallons of treated wastewater can be put to beneficial use rather than discharged to San Francisco Bay. I will work with my Oro Loma colleagues and our state legislators to pursue these state-law changes.
#3) Modern treatment facilities recover valuable resources from sewage, including energy, recycled water, and nutrients. Referring to these valuable resources as “waste” fails to recognize their full value and potential. I will work with my Oro Loma colleagues to rename our Wastewater Treatment Plant a Water Resource Recovery Facility (WRRF), reflecting a shift from treating and disposing of waste to recovering valuable resources for our ratepayers, community, and environment.