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—Barbara Szemenyei, San Juan Capistrano
My question to you gentlemen (on the Planning Commission) is: as you all live in South Orange County, and San Juan Capistrano, are you OK with the already traffic glut we are all enduring?
My next question is: are you gentlemen OK with our state running out of water? And, lastly, are you OK with adding more people to an already strained city water supply?
This past Sunday, Capetown, South Africa, with a 4 million population, was going to turn off their taps of water due to their drought. They are now going into winter, so they decided to postpone the shutoff hoping they will get rain before winter’s end. They have begun training their law enforcement to manage the chaos when they have to turn off the taps. Los Angeles is on the list for big cities waiting in the wings for their turn.
My husband, Steve, and I worked in Durban, South Africa on a Habitat for Humanity job and their climate is identical to California’s.
Southern California has been functioning on only 48 hours of drenching rain for almost seven years. Before rain, our lower water basin was taking on salt water, and to avoid damage to a pump on one of our wells with low water levels, it had to be turned off.
We are now into another phase of this drought, the worst in California history. Capetown people that can afford to, are moving out. We may have to leave. I would like to hold off as long as we can, and that means I cannot accept any more development at this time in San Juan Capistrano, my home and yours.
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