Community News

All of these changes have been approved by the CEC without proper environmental impact reports, public comments, or meaningful notice to City of San Jose or concerned neighbors. In fact, the CEC has approved all requests by Calpine to change the project post-approval.

Also, there is some uncertainty within the City of San Jose as to whether it is appropriate for $26 million taxpayer dollars to be spent on a recycled water pipeline to serve the Metcalf Energy Center. The current pipeline deal calls for the City to pay $26M up front, with Calpine to pay back 1/3 of the total, or about $8M, over a 30-year period.

Calpine's recent stock fall, from $58/share last March, to a low of $11/share in December, and their recent downgrade to junk bond status, have called into question Calpine's ability to repay this debt. KLIV radio reported on 1/7/02 that City of San Jose will not continue planning work on the pipeline unless they receive assurance from Calpine as to the planned Metcalf Energy Center's viability.

Additionally, Great Oaks Water Company and STCAG have filed a lawsuit against the construction of the recycled water pipeline to serve the power plant, questioning the public health impact of the recycled water on local residents. The Metcalf Energy Center, if built, proposes to use over 3 million gallons per day of recycled water from its cooling towers; some of which will enter the adjacent Metcalf percolation ponds, which supply the drinking water aquifer relied on by Great Oaks' 80,000 customers.

Although we have received assurances that the recycled water is clean and safe, in fact it is not approved for drinking water. Independent testing of the recycled water has revealed unhealthy concentrations of a contaminant of concern.

A letter from the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, which was founded to address groundwater contamination from the former Fairchild property on Bernal Road, outlines some of the concerns with endocrine disrupters and pharmaceuticals that could be present in recycled water, and the potential to effect human health.

Great Oaks Water has had its drinking water wells contaminated in the past by local industry (the tragic Fairchild contamination and the MTBE plume under the gas station at Cottle and Santa Teresa, to name a few), and takes its mandate to protect their wells and provide clean, safe drinking water to their customers seriously.

You can read the text of the recycled water pipeline lawsuit on our website at:

http://www.santateresacitizen.org/docs/water.pdf

and the associated 12/13/01 Mercury News article at:

http://www0.mercurycenter.com/front/docs1/020684.htm

CommunityFest

Mark your new calendar now and plan to attend our Third Annual neighborhood CommunityFest, scheduled for 9/21/02. We are looking for enthusiastic people to help us organize this great event, please reply if you are interested in serving your community in this way.

We have openings in publicity, donor recruitment, kids games committee, vendors and exhibitors coordination, entertainment coordinator, volunteer recruitment, and more. Although most of our Festival Committee from last year will be returning, our event has grown in attendance (from 2,500 in 2000 to 10,000 in 2001) and we will need more people on each committee. Warning: You will have lots of fun if you help out with CommunityFest!

Winter Outings

Take some time to enjoy our beautiful hillsides, now in winter green, soon to be washed in the bright yellow of wild mustards' late winter bloom. We really live in a very special place.

The Greenbelt Alliance has organized the following winter outings for our area:

Sunday, January 27 Quicksilver Quest

Hike over beautiful oak-studded hills to old mining sites, hunt for Cinnabar (red ore of mercury), and visit the museum to excavate the South Bay's fascinating mercury mining past at Almaden Quicksilver park near San Jose. 10 AM to 4 PM. (Moderate difficulty level, 7 miles, little elevation change.)

Sunday, March 10 Ultra Uvas Canyon Falls

Follow creeks through second growth redwoods to three fantastic waterfalls on the east side of the Santa Cruz Mountains. These wonders of nature are tucked away in a seldom-visited park near Morgan Hill. 10 AM to 3 PM. (Easy/Moderate, 4 miles, little elevation gain.) RESERVATIONS REQUIRED

For more information on Winter Outings 2002, to place a reservation, or to learn about other outings throughout the Bay Area, go to www.greenbelt.org.

Coyote and Canoas Creeks

Much of South San Jose is in a flood plain. We are entering the rainiest time of the year, and local residents should watch local creeks for rising water levels. Flooding in Santa Clara Valley can occur with little warning. Filled sandbags, if you should need them, are available 24/7 (free) at:

For more information, go to www.heynoah.com or 1-888-HEY-NOAH

Finally, the Santa Teresa Citizen Action Group has the role, coordinating with the Santa Clara Valley Water District, of maintaining and monitoring segments of Coyote and Canoas Creeks. We are planning a Creek Day, date to be scheduled, for early Spring. If you are interested in restoring and maintaining the riparian habitat, helping our creeks be flood-safe and welcoming to wildlife, please reply and we will notify of the date.

Committee Positions Open

The Santa Teresa Citizen Action Group is seeking dedicated individuals who would like to serve their community. Sadly, a computer crash has resulted in a loss of records; if you have contacted us before, please forgive our lack of reply, and respond again. We have openings in the following areas: