Bob Conaway for Clean & Fair Government ID 1303969

http://www.desertdispatch.com/news/barstow_3057___article.html/review_compost.html

Judge: Compost facility needs further environmental review
More study needed on feasibility of containment of facility

April 11, 2008 - 4:24PM

By Jason Smith, staff writer
This is an updated version of a story posted Friday afternoon.

BARSTOW — A judge’s ruling issued Friday found portions of the environmental review of a contested composting facility to be built near Hinkley will have to be redone before development proceeds.
The ruling by Barstow Superior Court Judge John Vander Feer set aside the county’s certification of the Environmental Impact Report of the Hawes Composting facility to be built by Nursery Products LLC. The proposed facility would ferment waste, including human waste, to form compost.

Attorneys representing Hinkley residents that oppose the facility challenged the County of San Bernardino’s environmental review of the proposed composting site. They alleged the review failed to adequately address the facility’s potential impact on wildlife, water and air quality.
Additionally, the attorneys alleged that the size of the facility’s planned operation violated the California Environmental Quality Act and that the environmental review failed to evaluate determine whether enclosing the composting site was economically feasible.

Judge Vander Feer reviewed the 15,232 pages of documents the parties submitted. He ruled to set aside the county’s certification of the Environmental Impact Report because the review did not assess whether enclosure was feasible and because the review did not identify the water source to be used in the project. He found that the impacts to air quality and wildlife were adequately assessed in the review and that the size of the facility does not violate California’s environmental law.

The decision reads in part:

“The County failed to properly evaluate a technological feasible mitigation measure. Its finding that that an enclosed composting facility was not economically feasible was not supported by substantial evidence or the Administrative Record.”

Shortly after the project was approved in February 2007, members of HelpHinkley.org which opposes the facility, sued Nursery Products and the county to block its development.

Norm Diaz, an activist with HelpHinkley.org, said the group’s members are pleased with the decision.

“I think our concerns were validated,” he said. “I think (county supervisor Brad) Mitzelfelt and (former county supervisor Bill) Postmus and the county should have never approved this project and the judge sided with us.”

Diaz said he hopes that Vander Feer’s decision will prompt the Mojave Desert Air Quality Management District to approve a rule requiring that compost facilities within the county are enclosed.

Ingrid Brostrom, an attorney with the center for Race, Poverty and the Environment, which represents Hikley residents, applauded the decision.
“Of course we are happy about the decision and we are encouraged that the judge saw matters our way,” she said. “Clearly we hope that when the county does its further analysis they will realize that an enclosed facility is feasible and is the best route to take.”

David Wert, spokesman for the County of San Bernardino, said that county officials were pleased that the judge found the environmental review to be properly done in three out of the five issues raised.

“The county feels that except for a couple of minor issues the Board of Supervisors decision (to allow the composting facility) was upheld,” he said. “The county doesn’t believe it made a mistake in the EIR or did anything insufficient but we have the judge’s ruling and we’ll move forward from here.”

Nursery Products’ director of operations, Chris Seney, said Vander Feer’s ruling may delay the project but the company plans to proceed developing the compost site.

“Nursery Products will still push ahead; this will not change plans in any way,” he said. “We respect the court’s decision and we’ll do that additional work if necessary.”

He said the company has heard from several organizations and agencies that are looking for an closer outlet to dispose of their biosolids and are waiting for the Hawes facility to open.

I was shocked to hear this from a conservative website (yeah I read them, too). My question is why in heck didn’t the county seek out bonds with fixed interest? The yield would have been lower but not subject to the spike that may undermine the county’s fiscal infrastructure and force cuts to core public safety programs. This is big news and needs to be covered. I will be asking questions about the fact it has been buried by someone in my time slot on AM1230 on Wednesdays from 10 am to 11 am BOB CONAWAY PO Box 865, Barstow CA 92312 (760) 617-8305

 ”San Bernardino County Looks for Bond Fix”
Posted by: SB Veritas | 03/30/2008 12:59 PM [posted in www.RedCounty.com]

San Bernardino County is attempting to get relief from millions of dollars in additional interest payments it never expected, courtesy of the bond market meltdown.

Like many municipalities around the country, San Bernardino County has auction-rate bonds outstanding that have become a major problem. At issue, is the interest rates paid by the County on these securities can adjust up or down every 7,28, or 35 days depending on the the terms. It seems a lack of investor confidence brought on by the sub-prime lending debacle has dramatically reduced the liquidity of the marketplace in which the County sells its bonds. This event has caused the interest rates on some of the $150 million in outstanding bonds to rise as high as 15%, per a disclosure in a recent report.

This problem has the effect of costing county taxpayers millions of dollars more and puts pressure on the current and upcoming years budget.

San Bernardino County’s problem was recently highlighted in a Los Angeles Times article where a Deputy County Administrative Officer indicated the County was in the process of attempting to refinance itself out of the mess.

No matter what kind of spin you put on this matter, the bottom line is the County is unexpectedly spending money. How does it go, we are spending millions more to keep from spending even millions more!!!!

Hopefully, this problem for taxpayers is about to end.”[end of quoted text from www.redcounty.com]

As an attorney that has worked with California’s “Protect the Vote” program, helped uncover irregularities with voting machines in California and spent time trying to make sure a disfranchisement of the scale we saw in Florida in 2000 does not happen again, I am shocked that Obama does not support seating the Florida delegation.  In 2000,  votes were invalidated by a republican secretary of state and republican appointment-dominated Supreme Court. In 2008, the republicans turned to a legislative branch to accomplish disenfranchisement. Put another way, to oppose the seating of the Florida delegation, as Obama appears content to do, is joining de facto what appears to be a republican plan of again suppressing validly cast votes. Obama needs to emerge from the cloud that his primary wins, with the exception of Mississippi, have been in states where republicans could cross register and or vote–in effect, his successes have been in significant part based on republican help. To now reap the benefit of republican action calculated to unseat Florida’s delegates, makes it look like he has carefully worked a plan to use republican support and or efforts to undermine the democratic nomination process. I urge the Obama campaign to join Hillary Clinton in the call for the seating of the Florida delegation at the Democratic National Convention.  BOB CONAWAY 22562 Aquarius Road, Hinkley CA 92347 (760) 617-8305 or (760) 256-0603

As an attorney that has worked with California’s “Protect the Vote”, have helped uncover irregularities with voting machines in California and as a Regional Director of the California Democratic Party in a “red zone”, I have worked to make sure that every vote counts, no matter how few or where they are. When the Florida legislature moved the primary, they did so knowing the DNC would probably pull the elected delegate’s credentials. In 2000, our votes were invalidated by a republican secretary of state and republican appointment-dominated Supreme Court (or the executive and judicial branches of government). In 2008, the republicans turned to a legislative branch to accomplish disenfranchisement in another way. To oppose the seating of the Florida delegates, as Obama appears content to do, is joining de facto the republican plan of suppressing validly cast votes.  I urge the Obama campaign to join Hillary Clinton in the call for the seating of the Florida delegation, not because it will add more delegates to one or both candidates, but because Democrats should not accept another republican orchestrated vote suppression tactic.  BOB CONAWAY 22562 Aquarius Road, Hinkley CA 92347 (760) 617-8305 or (760) 256-0603

re: http://www.vvdailypress.com/onset?id=5690&template=article.html

When I see the County whining about the cost to incarcerate illegals, I can’t just sit back and let the people who create this mess, get off. The San Bernardino County’s culture of waste and doing the bidding of their political contributers has to stop. The biggest problem?? Prosecuting and incarcerating without regard to the obvious alternative–e.g. turning the illegal over to INS. Why isn’t that being done? Well the answer is, it will fill the prison the County just bought (which will be an income for the county), makes the county hire more sheriffs, public defenders and district attorneys (groups who contribute money through their political groups to none other than the County Supervisors on the ever of an election). Why change a money machine when you can beg for money through Congressman “Earmark” Lewis. ANOTHER ALTERNATIVE: Why not increase the fines and put the illegals who commit non-violent crimes on probation? We don’t always need to throw non-violent offenders in jail. Financial sanctions are a true punishment to people who come here for economic reasons, so let’s use that tool so we can get some money back into the County coffers. Leadership needs to be creative and not forever holding its hand out for federal welfare. I think some people in the County leadership need to find another job so solutions can be explored (and not ignored). BOB CONAWAY PO Box 865, Barstow CA 92312 (760) 617-8305

We will never end terrorism against the United States, until we dry up the terrorist’s funding. Our dependence on oil has been used to justify buying oil from the Saudis whose oil-created wealth funds terrorism. After 9/11, we even softened up on Libya’s Kadafi so American companies could buy oil from Libya. The potential for powering 100% of our nation’s electrical needs could be met with a comprehensive wind, solar and geothermal plant system–one major reason alternative fuels have not been able to make serious headway is the lack of transmission lines in green fuel areas. The reason the proposed wind farms in the Victor Valley area are located in the hills surrounding the Victor Valley, is their proximity to transmission lines. If the County wants to draft a memorandum of understanding, they had better consider (1) who is going to pay for the transmission lines if the wind farms are pushed further away (as the county might get stuck with the bill if the wind farm proponents permit applications are denied and they sue the county), (2)  who is going to pay for the increase in respiratory illnesses from increases in particulate matter (our area is already in non-compliance with EPA standards) from the stack emissions of fossil fuel burning power plants and (3) who is going to explain to a parent, silbling and or spouse that loses a soldier because we had to defend an oil field/pipeline in a foreign land because some of us did not like our view obstructed by a windmill on a hill (I have a windmill within 100 feet of my property line and its no big deal, folks). The County and its employees, appointed or hired, should be thinking about what best serves and defends our nation’s interests. Our nation deserves nothing less. Consider a windmill in the distance a modern day Victory Garden. BOB CONAWAY PO Box 865 Barstow CA 92312 (760) 617-8305

Online location: http://www.desertdispatch.com/opinion/properties_2754___article.html/laws_county.html 

March 6, 2008 - 9:55AM

New laws not needed for housing issues

This is in response to the March 2 Press-Dispatch article “Mitzelfelt to curb housing turndown.”

First, aside from the title of the article not only being a mischaracterization of what Mitzelfelt proposes doing (which is in reality a media event for his re-election campaign that the paper is giving free press for), its an example of his and his predecessor ineptness and or ignorance and or willful failure to enforce existing laws. When an incumbent drops the ball on something, its classic Postmus-era politics to “pass a new law” to deflect the attention away from policy failures. When the properties were owner occupied, why weren’t the laws on the books enforced?

What laws were and are already in place? San Bernardino County Code Section 63.063(h) prohibits unsafe buildings, 63.063(i) prohibits abandoned buildings and substandard properties which under 63.064(d)-(e) includes properties where overgrown vegetation causes a detriment to neighboring properties and property values. Under 63.064(g) the neglect of a premises causing detrimental effect upon nearby properties and or property values is currently illegal.

Second, we don’t need more laws. Why? All the County Codes under title 63 of the County Code are applicable to the banks and or mortgage companies that have taken back the property. The County regularly enforces the codes against new owners who pick up distressed/dilapidated properties through tax lien sales already.

Brad, please quit grandstanding and give code enforcement the direction and support they need to do their jobs.

Bob Conaway
Hinkley

Here’s yet another letter (and envelope) of Mitzelfelt using County stationary and postage on December 27th, 2007.

http://www.bobconawayforcleanandfairgovernment.com/blog/images/BRADletter2.jpg

http://www.bobconawayforcleanandfairgovernment.com/blog/images/BRADenv2.jpg

Below are links to two images of a recent Brad Mitzelfelt letter received by someone in the 1^st District.

 http://www.bobconawayforcleanandfairgovernment.com/blog/images/BRADletter-2282008.jpg

http://www.bobconawayforcleanandfairgovernment.com/blog/images/BRADenv2282008.jpg

The person to whom this letter was sent never made any inquiry on the subject of the letter. In fact the person who received the letter was not a woman but a man –the letter relates to pregnancy services for women. What’s clear is that Mitzelfelt is abusing it’s franking privilege and using campaign postage to camapign about his accomplishments. Doesn’t he already have a million dollar campaign war chest? How much is enough?

I would like this to be considered as a letter to the editor in response to what I considered a gift of public funds and poor policy decision-making: Windmills were here first, albeit to pump water from the aquifers. To see the County Supervisor taking on the cause of a few homeowners for something the law has long rejected (that homeowners have a right to have their view of nature unobstructed by permitted improvements) is reminiscent of what his boss, Postmus, did for ranchers trying to hold on to grazing rights in the Mojave that were expiring and using county money and time for the private benefit of a few. This newly appointed County Supervisor (Mitzelfelt) is again using county money (the cost of his and his staff’s time) for the private benefit of a few, ignoring (1) windmills and other alternative energy technologies are necessary for the energy independence of this nation (and reducing our reliance on foreign oil from regimes that use the money we pay them for oil to fund terrorists), (2) windmills will create jobs and a tax base, (3) how federal lands are used/burden is something the individual homeowner needs to take up with the BLM and not our county supervisor and (4) their presence is not a significant burden to public lands. The memorandum of understanding that the newly appointed supervisor should be doing is a memorandum to the voters that he is going to stop wasting our money for the private benefit of his. BOB CONAWAY PO Box 865 Barstow CA 92312