I. Action Items Coming Out of 3/1/06 Planning Committee Meeting

Responsible Task
Staff Identify at least 2 Planning Committee members willing to participate in the technical consultant interviews.
Staff w/ Planning Committee Reps Hold technical consultant interviews

Work Group Leaders Work Groups schedule meetings in mid-March. Work Groups to incorporate Planning Committee suggestion in V and VI below into their work.
Staff Send letters to Board of Supervisors requesting Planning Department designee.
Liz Mansfield Watershed coordinators meet with Liz on establishing their role and contribution.
Staff and Coordinating Committee Provide Planning Committee with existing list of contiguous watershed groups and other planning efforts.
Staff Set up Coordinating Committee meeting before April meeting.
CCP Write up final version of Planning Committee charter, including revised decision-making rules, clarification of approval and adoption of CABY IRWMP, and vision statement.
Planning Committee Members Planning Committee members send in names of interested parties and related efforts and studies. (Bill Templin has list to contribute via email.)
Coordinating Committee Coordinating Committee to discuss potential new members for Planning Committee (see list, Part IV below) and make recommendations back to Planning Committee.
Coordinating
Committee Draft proposal for “active participant” as eligibility to participate in decision making










II. Announcement -- Current CABY Web Site: cabyregion.org

III. Hopes
Planning Committee members introduced themselves and shared hopes for the CABY plan and their work together:


 Establish a shared vision
 Accomplish what we want
 Create relationships
 Coming together is positive
 Avoid geographic division, promote regionalism
 Regional and integrated
 Integration to meet goals
 Balance interests: ecological and demands for use
 Balance ecological health and watershed management
 Stewardship
 Work together to be river stewards
 Efficient Process


IV. Planning Committee Membership
The Planning Committee discussed its composition and considered other organizations that might need to be included to ensure all interests are represented. The Coordinating Committee will discuss and make recommendations on those organizations identified below.

Coordinating Committee to make a recommendation to the Planning Committee on the following:
 South Sutter Water District
 Dry Creek Conservancy is a conservation group that is expanding its scope. Greg Bates is also the watershed coordinator.
 RCD. RCDs have allocated staff as watershed coordinator. Need to clarify decision making (boards or members) and the RCD JPAs.
 The Foothill Conservancy, represented by Peter Bell to represent the Cosumnes watershed groups. The Nature Conservancy (Mike Eaton) and the American River Conservancy (working on the Upper Cosumnes) provide good coverage of these interests.
 Send individual letters to each county’s Board of Supervisors requesting a designee from the Planning Department.
 Agricultural representatives from each county: ag commissioners, farm bureau chapters, and/ or other important agricultural business representatives.
 BLM, Reclamation, Fish & Game, RWQCB—will not be a voting member, but Planning Committee would like some type of representation.
 Business and tourism representatives such as Sierra Economic Development District or the Sierra Business Council.
 Caltrans.

Other Planning Committee Membership Notes
 Gary Estes of PARC will join the Planning Committee.
 The Sierra Nevada Conservancy, a new state agency, is interested in becoming a member but does not have the staff to be members at this time.
 Yuba County Water Agency is a very interested party, but will remain an “interested party” rather than a planning committee member.
 David Witter will represent El Dorado Irrigation District.
 Grizzly Flats Water District is represented by El Dorado County Water Agency.
 Forest Hill Water District is represented by Placer County Water Agency.


V. Comments on the CABY Integrated Regional Water Management Plan (IRWMP) Goals and Objectives
Upon reviewing the resource area goals and objectives, Planning Committee members and interested parties raised issues of concern. Work groups should consider the following as they revise and improve the goals and objectives:
 Recreation, such as quality of life issues, lifestyle, and aesthetic issues, in all of the areas.
 Canals in water supply, specifically, and other topics.
 Vulnerability from fire.
 Concern about 4 huge watersheds being addressed fully in each work group.
 Planning horizon and implementation plans (milestones).

VI. CABY Planning Process: How do we get from here to there?
Facilitator Susan Sherry presented an initial work plan to outline Planning Committee work this year. The following briefly summarizes Planning Committee feedback.

Phase 1 Discussion
 Data “mining” needs to be driven by the stakeholder and work group objectives.

Planning Horizon
 Work plan will need to include planning for a successor effort or institution building to support the plan in the long term.
 Horizons may vary by work group.

Living Plan
 Lots of work will have to happen beyond this first year because this is such an ambitious effort.
 Areas of disagreement may have to be addressed over the course of the next few years.
 Hope the plan can be timeless and address the big picture and not get caught up in implementation. Plan can provide a visionary component of where region wants to go and the process to make decisions about where region wants to go.

Phase 2 Discussion
 One criteria for inclusion of projects and actions could be those that are underway or in the planning phase.
 Agreement that projects not currently underway are still a possibility.
 Important to realize that DWR is envisioning that the IRWMP will be the “pipeline” for future projects—funding, criteria, etc.
 Consider projects that agencies/organizations are unable or afraid to take on.
 Goal is to integrate. Planning committee members do not frequently talk with one another.

VII. CABY Staffing
 Liz Mansfield, Project Director and Water Supply Work Group Manager
 Administrative Assistant—to be hired
 Elizabeth Holtz, Water Quality Work Group Manager
 Elizabeth Soderstrom, Environment and Habitat Protection Work Group Manager
 Technical Consultants—to be hired
 Susan Sherry and Gina Bartlett, Facilitators

Liz will meet with watershed coordinators to determine what role they will play in the CABY.

VIII. Planning Committee Charter and Ground Rules
The Planning Committee reviewed the draft charter developed by facilitator Susan Sherry. The charter outlines the purpose, structure, responsibilities, decision making, and communication of the Planning Committee, Coordinating Committee and its Work Groups. The Committee discussed and recommended the following:

 Recommend adding a condensed version of the project definition to the first paragraph on the purpose.
 The Coordinating Committee is to draft language defining “active participant” related to eligibility to participate in decision making. (Item 7 on page 2)
 Work Groups can recruit members from outside the Planning Committee. And, these participants will participate in discussions to develop proposals for the Planning Committee’s consideration. In this light, the last sentence of #3, under work groups, and #4, limiting participation, are to be removed from the draft charter.
 The Workgroups will meet a twice a month. One of the work group meetings will be on same day as the Planning Committee meeting.
 Meeting Dates: The Committee decided to add meetings on April 5, June 7, and Sept. 6 and to change the December 6 meeting because it is the same date as ACWA.

Decision Making for the Planning Committee
The Planning Committee agreed on consensus as its fundamental principle and also explored methods to address potential situations in which it might be unable to reach consensus. If less than 100% consensus can be reached (see Charter for more careful definition), the group will take a vote of active members. If fewer than 25% active members oppose (or at least 75% approve) the proposal, the proposal will pass to a test of the major interests. Four water agencies and four conservation groups will vote on the proposal. For the proposal to pass, three water agencies and three conservation groups must approve the proposal. Passing these two test, a proposal is approved.

Finally, the Committee had a lengthy discussion over the final adoption and/or approval of the plan. The group discussed legal issues, DWR requirements, and practical matters related to adoption and approval.

Susan Sherry will update the charter to reflect the changes in decision making and provide a statement clarifying adoption and approval for further Planning Committee discussion and review at its next meeting.

IX. Attendees
Planning Committee
Dave Breniger, Placer County Water Agency
Lynn Campbell, Yuba-Bear Watershed Council
Bill Center, American River Recreation
Jim Chatigny, Mountain Counties WRA
Joan Clayborgh, Sierra Nevada Alliance
Ane Deister, El Dorado Irrigation District
Allan Eberhart, Sierra Club
Mark Egbert, Georgetown Divide and El Dorado Resource Conservation Districts
Gary Estes, Protect American River Canyons
Bill Hetland, El Dorado County Water Agency
Carrie Monohan, Natural Heritage Institute
Ron Nelson, Nevada Irrigation District
Lena Osterholm, Bear River Watershed Group / Nevada County Resource Conservation District
Nate Rangel, California Outdoors
Frank Rinella, Northern California Council Federation of Fly Fishers
Steve Rothert, American Rivers
Edmund Sullivan, Placer County Planning
Jason Rainey, South Yuba River Citizen’s League
Bill Templin, North Fork American River Watershed Group
Mal Toy, Placer County Water Agency
Otis Wollan, American River Watershed Institute

Interested Parties
Steve Baker, Ground Water Watch
Tim Crough, Nevada Irrigation District
Kevin Goishi, PG&E
Ken Jones, Sierra Nevada Conservancy
Julie Leimbach, Sierra Nevada Alliance
Eric Miller, Yuba County Water Agency
Cathy Monaghan, El Dorado County Water Agency
Joyce Richter, Ophir Property Owners
Tom Simms, Northern California Council Federation of Fly Fishers
Norm Sauer, Yuba River Preservation Foundation
Elizabeth Soderstrom, Natural Heritage Institute
Rob Swartz, Regional Water Authority
David Witter, El Dorado Irrigation District