Water District Budget Passed at 'Worst Public Meeting Ever'

OCWD directors are out of control

This article was first posted May 23, 2018 in the Surf City Voice

By John Earl

Surf City Voice

The Orange County Water District Board of Directors (OCWD BOD) is out of control and the consequences could be costly for the District’s 2.4 million customers.

That’s my conclusion after attending hundreds of OCWD board meetings and examining thousands of documents over the past five years, including hundreds that I received recently from a Public Records Act inquiry.

Those recent documents show collusion between the OCWD BOD and Poseidon Resources Inc. to build and run a $1 billion ocean desalination plant off the coast of Huntington Beach.

The root of OCWD’s accountability crisis is in its carefully guarded traditions, including how it conducts its meetings.

OCWD formed in 1933. Until 2013, when it announced its intention to team up with Poseidon, its public meetings were held in obscurity and few non-industry spectators attended.

OCWD refuses to livestream public meetings like most local governm…