Keeping up the Momentum - Reporting out on and looking forward

By Brian A. Schmidt

Brian entered office emphasizing environmental improvements in general, action on mercury in particular, and increased public openness and transparency. The results described below speak for themselves, and they create opportunities to do even more.

Passage with 74% public approval (a possible County record) of the Safe Clean Water property tax measure, which included significant increases in environmental funding and $24 million for Shoreline protection and wetland restoration. Brian's leadership significantly increased environmental funding levels from those originally recommended by staff and changed the measurement of success to more objective standards favored by environmentalists. Brian rallied environmental group support that contributed to the measure's record victory. The District made major strides on climate change, enacting a policy to achieve carbon neutrality by 2020 and becoming the first water district in the country to begin divestment of its financial reserves from fossil-fuel companies.

What's next for the environment

Making Shoreline restoration happen - San Francisco Bay was the Everglades of the West, and with strong leadership we can make it the Everglades again:

• Tap into strong interest and potential funding in Mountain View.
• Explore a potential community financing district in Palo Alto and possibly Mountain View to establish tidal protection and tidal wetland restoration.
• Removal of barriers to steelhead trout in our watersheds can move forward, as can protecting sensitive habitats near streams. Implementing Safe Clean Water grant program

The District completed the removal and remediation of mercury contamination at Jacques Gulch below the old mercury mines, eliminating a large source of mercury contaminating our watershed and the Bay. Brian also supported new mercury remediation efforts in our reservoirs through oxygen "bubblers" extending deep into the water, preventing the low-oxygen conditions that make mercury much more poisonous. Brian together with Director Linda Lezotte has been closely involved with facilitating the separation of Alamitos Creek from Almaden Lake, fixing what had recently been listed as the most mercury-contaminated water body in California. Brian has helped navigate the delicate planning process for changing this much-loved recreational park in Almaden Valley.

​What's next for mercury

• Complete the current planning for separating Alamitos Creek from Almaden Lake, and make it happen. ​
• Continue oxygenation of District reservoirs to reduce mercury risk.
• Explore options with private landowners to reduce contamination coming from private land without inappropriately subsidizing private lands with public money.
• ​Support polluter-pays types of legislation called Extended Producer Responsibility to make sure the original producers of hazardous materials like mercury will reduce contamination and pay into cleanups.

Brian is the only Director to serve on both of the committees that lead to extensive changes in the District's public advisory committee structure, consolidating duplicative committees and giving new authority to existing committees. Brian has been actively involved in many joint programs for public participation including environmental organizations and business entities like the Mountain View Chamber of Commerce.

Brian made the successful motion (4-3 vote among the 7 Directors) to switch Water District Board meeting times from daytime to evening, a step that makes it much easier for the public to attend meetings and for more people to serve on the Board. ​ The 2011 Redistricting Commission to establish electoral boundaries with subsequent Board approval completely avoided the fiasco of electioneering charges placed against the prior Board. To answer complaints of bias by the directors, Brian nominated his opponent in the 2010 election to serve on the Commission and the Commission recommendations were adopted unanimously by the Board.

What's next for public transparency Continue the recent changes with the advisory committees to make them succeed. Explore methods for clean campaigns such as contribution limits. contribution limits.