Monday, 04/23/2007 Print Version |
Governor Joins California Latino Water Coalition Press Conference
MR. RODRIGUEZ: You're a tough act to follow. Hello, everyone. On this beautiful California day we're here along with Mayor Lopez and Mayor Lopez -- there are a lot of Mayor Lopezes here -- I'm reminded how fortunate we are here in the state of California to have just a gorgeous day. And next time you complain about the price of your home, just call somebody in Minnesota, Duluth, Michigan, any one of those places.
Now, of course we're here because we believe that you couldn't have anything like this without water, which is the most important resource. Water has nothing to do with our ethnicity, although we like to believe that it truly does affect the campesino, the migrant farm worker. I myself am the son of a migrant farm worker who came here to America to make sure that Caucasians had salad, and we've done a good job. I've been fortunate enough -- we're from the Central Valley, the very heart, Dinuba, Parlier -- and it's because of that reason that we believe that we should not only conserve, not only save, we should also realize how precious water truly is. Now, here in northern California, basically it's not an arid part. But southern California is totally different, it's desert, so we in southern California really need this, and I hope that SB 59 passes. I'm here to lend my support.
It's a great privilege to introduce the Governor of the great state, the eureka state of California, Mr. Arnold Schwarzenegger. (Applause)
GOVERNOR: Thank you very much, Paul, for the nice introduction, and it's wonderful to have you here. You look really studly and cool. Look at this. Look at this man here with the hat. Hollywood has come to Sacramento, I can't believe it. It's really great to have you here and to be interested -- I always love it when celebrities are interested in issues. And this is really great, because it's powerful, because they have the power of communicating to the mass. And I think it's really terrific for you to be here and to take the time, so a big hand again to Paul Rodriguez. (Applause)
And I of course want to thank Senator Cogdill for being the author of this very important bill, SB 59. I want to thank you for being here today and showing such great leadership. I want to thank Mayor Lopez for being here today with that nifty pink tie, and also looking really cool. It's great, it's fantastic, to have everyone here today when we talk about the importance of water.
The interesting thing about it is, you should know that we just met with a whole bunch of Latino mayors just recently, and we sat down and talked about what is important for the future of California. And I learned a lot of things from them, and one of the things that we brought up was the importance of water, that we have to really do everything that we can to think in the future. And here we were, talking about it just a few weeks ago, and today he has put together this whole coalition, this Latino coalition, and brought all of these people here. So we want to say thank you very much for this quick action on this very important issue of water in California.
Now, the Latino community, we all know, contributes so much to our state. And as Paul has said, they have a big stake in our water future, because it doesn't matter if you are Latino or if you are not, or if you are African American, whatever, everyone needs water, and water is the lifeblood of our growing population and also of our growing economy. But our water supply is very vulnerable to threats from disasters, droughts, and global warming, and this is why we are here today to talk about the importance of water and how we have to put the spotlight on this issue. All Californians deserve clean drinking water. Then, our 37 billion dollar agriculture industry needs water to prosper, and of course to feed the world, and our businesses need water to sustain our economic growth and to provide jobs for our people.
So we have worked to create a comprehensive water solution for California that includes surface storage, a long-term Delta sustainability plan, restoration, and of course conservation incentives. All of this is included in Senator Cogdill's bill, SB 59. Now, the hearing for this bill is tomorrow, and this is why we are all here today. The hearing for this bill is tomorrow, and I commend all of you for being here today and forming this very powerful coalition to show your support, so I want to commend everyone for being here and taking the time out, with the people here with the signs that are behind me, and everyone is interested in having more water and to sustain our power here, economic power in California. You all deserve a big hand. Let's give them a big hand for being here today. (Applause)
Now, as leaders, it is our responsibility not to just think about what is to happen, and what's going on in a year from now, or to plan 2 years, or 3 years, or 5 years. We have to plan 20, 30, 50 years ahead. We want to make sure that by the year 2050 that we have enough drinking water here and that we have clean water. So it is very important that our leaders take action on this, to increase and to protect our water supply once and for all. It is very important to the state of California. I'm telling you that we have a chance this year to get above the ground water storage, and this is why it is so important that we all let the legislators know to go and to move forward on this.
And this is a part of the infrastructure that we have tried to get last year. There were two things we didn't get last year in our infrastructure. They did a great job, the legislators last year, with the 42 billion dollar infrastructure package that we passed. But there were two things we didn't pass, and this was water and also prison reform, and those are the two things that we are trying to get this year.
So again, I want to thank all of you for your support on water storage, above the ground water storage, and to fix our water problem that we have here. And now I would like to bring out the Senator that is really responsible for this bill, Senator David Cogdill. Please welcome him. (Applause)
SENATOR COGDILL: Thank you all very much, again, for coming out today and showing your support for this important piece of legislation. We truly appreciate it. It's been a great honor to work with Governor Schwarzenegger and his administration, and to share just a little bit of the vision that this governor has for this state, something that's been lacking for a long, long time. It's been decades, quite frankly, since we took a good hard look at our needs relating to our water system in this state, and to provide what's necessary so that we'll have that resource available for our children in the future.
We have challenges that are coming to us, we know, from a population that's growing by over 600,000 people a year, and we know also that the climate is in fact changing, we are going through changes in our hydrology. That means we have to come up with different ways to manage this resource to make sure there's plenty available when we need it, when we have a few dry years in a row, to be able to maintain this economy that we all rely upon and enjoy to such a great extent. So it's just been a real pleasure to work with the Governor, and again, with his staff, the folks at DWR and with everybody that's really pulled together to try to come up with this very comprehensive plan.
And to point out again that it's not only about surface water storage. There's more money dedicated in this piece of legislation to ground water storage than the state has done ever in history, so we think that's a great step in the right direction. The billion dollars for Delta sustainability is extremely important. As we all know, our Delta is extremely fragile, it needs to be addressed, those problems, and this will provide the resources to start to do that. There's also additional money there to deal with enhanced conservation efforts and a number of other ways that we can work to make sure that we're properly managing this vital resource. So I just again thank everyone for coming out, look forward to your questions, and please call your legislators and tell them to support SB 59. Thank you. (Applause)
It's my honor now at this point to introduce someone that can tell you exactly what this resource means to their community. It's a good friend of mine, Mayor Victor Lopez from the community of Orange Cove. Victor? (Applause)
MAYOR LOPEZ: Good afternoon. As the Mayor of the City of Orange Cove I am honored to be here with our Governor of the state of California, with Senator Cogdill, with the famous Paul Rodriguez that owns part of Orange Cove. And I love the guy. I want to be a comedian too, all right? But I'm here to tell you that Orange Cove produces 20 percent of California oranges, come out of my little community. 20 percent of all the oranges in California. Thousands and thousands of farm workers. We have 8 major Sunkist packing houses in my community that employ thousands of farm workers and packing house workers.
So I have to be worried about the future of the farm workers. I have to be worried about the future of my children, of your children, of your grandchildren and my grandchildren, but most important, we must protect the food basket of the world, Fresno County, Tulare County, Kern County, Madera County, are the food basket of the world. We feed the world, and as people we ought to be concerned. This is not about Republican or Democrat. This is about human beings. This is about the economy of the state of California. When the Valley prospers the whole state of California prospers. The ports in Los Angeles, the ports in San Francisco, you name it, we all benefit. Thousands and thousands of jobs are at stake, and you ought to be telling your legislators, "You need to support Senate Bill 59, the Cogdill Bill." Why? For the protection of California. We are proud to be Californians, and we are proud to stand with our Governor, and we are proud to stand together as human beings.
I am telling you, it is very sad. I don't know if you've eaten a grape from Chile. I did, and I spit it out. Now, you go taste one of my grapes, and you're going to say, "Delicious, delicious. I want more of that." Well, you can only have it if you provide the water for us. Temperance Flats and the other infrastructure projects are necessary to keep California in the forefront. And you can do it by calling your legislator and tell him, "We need to support Senate Bill 59 for the wellbeing of every human being on the face of California and the nation and the world." Please support us, support us, support us, and support your governor, and support Senator Cogdill, and support Paul Rodriguez. God bless you. Thank you. (Applause)
GOVERNOR: Well, as you can tell, the Mayor, Mayor Lopez is very passionate about this issue, and that's why we're all out here. That's why we're all out here. But he's absolutely right, there's a reason to be passionate about it, because water is so important, and we are short of water now and imagine what it's going to be like in the future with global warming and the problems that we face.
So anyway, if you have any questions about this, please feel free to ask. Yes? We have a microphone.
Q: What do you say to those who are opposed to the construction of dams in these hills, and they prefer you give more money to conservation?
GOVERNOR: I think it is very important that we recognize that we have to look to the future, and that we have to think about providing water for the people in the future. It is my job to not only think 1 or 2 years ahead, but to think to the year 2050. We know that with global warming we have more runoffs now, we have floods in the winter, we have less drinking water in the summer. I think we have to capture that water before it goes out in the ocean so we have drinking water for the future. I think this is absolutely essential, and I think it is also important because farming is our big industry. As I said, it's a 32 billion dollar industry. We are feeding the people in California, in America, and we are feeding people all over the world, so I think we want to continue that kind of an industry.
Any other questions, please? Peter, you make me laugh with that hat. I can not believe you. But anyway -- yes, please.
Q: Governor, if the bill goes down tomorrow -- I'm sorry, Jake Henshaw, Gannet News Services.
GOVERNOR: Yes?
Q: If the bill fails tomorrow, are you going to continue to insist that it be part of a kind of water bond package that might go to the ballot next year?
GOVERNOR: Well, we will continue fighting. I mean, I feel good about it. I hope that they will let the bill go through and not strip it. I think it is very important for the people of California. I mean, it's very clear that everyone is concerned about water here, and we have to do everything that we can to provide more water storage and to really have water for the future. This is what it is about. And that we also preserve and really rework the Delta. I think that's all part of this whole package. And I think Senator Cogdill has looked at that in a very comprehensive way, the bill, and has done an extraordinary job, so I think we want to support that. And really, this is our obligation as leaders to provide water for the state. And that does not mean that we should just think about more water, but we should also think, as I said earlier in my speech, about conservation. That is clearly a big part of this whole thing. But I think that Californians are very good in conservation, if it is with power or if it is with water and with other things, so I think they have been doing a great job and have been great partners in that.
Thank you very much. Thank you, I appreciate it. (Applause)
