As the water shortage grows worse, the County Water Authority (CWA) is working to increase the capacity of local reservoirs, including San Vicente. The existing height of San Vicente dam is 220 feet. CWA already has the necessary permits to increase that height by 54 feet. Now the CWA wants permits to raise the height by 117 feet for a total of 337 feet. In their EIR, as an alternative to the extra height, the CWA proposes building a second, new dam in Moosa Canyon (in north county). Building a new dam would have more severe impacts than raising the height of the San Vicente dam. However, local residents downstream from San Vicente have concerns about safety of the new dam during earthquakes, etc. Questions: Is the proposed new dam in Moosa Canyon simply a "straw man" so that San Vicente appears better? Or is a new dam in Moosa Canyon also in our future?
