The Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust is a proud endorser of Measure W, the Safe Clean Water Parcel Tax.
Measure W will modernize Los Angeles County’s 100-year-old water system in order to better protect public health and our environment, and to maximize a cleaner, locally controlled water supply.
The Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust supports Measure W for the following reasons.
Measure W reduces harmful pollution that regularly flows into our local wetlands.
Each year, many marine mammals, seabirds, and fish die, either from mistakenly eating plastic garbage and other toxins, or ensnaring themselves. Annually, over 4000 tons of trash and plastic gets cleaned from our beaches. Stormwater picks up chemicals from pesticides, fertilizers, plastics, metals from our cars, pet waste, and other contaminants as it flows over the streets and other developed areas into our rivers, streams, and the ocean, threatening public health and marine life. That’s why beach closures follow nearly every heavy rain.
Measure W will enhance and redesign existing green spaces (and create new ones), so that we can recharge our groundwater and capture runoff through diversion structures, infiltration chambers, and pre-treatment systems. Developing new projects and updating our current infrastructure system, specifically for stormwater, will improve our ability to cope with the changing climate, increasing demand, and other pressures.
Measure W helps make our community more resilient against the impacts of extreme weather. Droughts, followed by historic rain, are here to stay. Therefore, a smarter water system will prepare our region for the effects of a changing climate. As extreme weather becomes the new normal, we need to decrease our reliance on imported water that we pay to bring into L.A. County.
Measure W will capture valuable rainwater before it runs into our rivers and ocean.
Every year, L.A. County loses over 100 billion gallons of water, enough to meet the annual needs of more than 2 million people. Because so much of our region is paved over, too much precious rainfall is lost to the ocean before we can capture it for use. When we experience heavy rains, our system captures only a fraction of rainfall.
For the reasons above and more, the Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust endorses Measure W, and we hope you agree. I urget you to learn more about Measure W and read the ballot language. Then please share with your friends and neighbors the importance of voting for Measure W to support clean water– for our local wetlands, for our community and for our future.