- One landowner reported receiving four different proposals from DWR, each less invasive than the one before.
- Some people were waiting for funding from the state for an independent appraisal, which is required by law.
- One landowner said that DWR had scheduled a visit to the property then not shown up.
- Landowners suggested there was often adjacent publicly-owned property that could be used for test borings instead.
- One current drilling location is on two water feed lines.
- There is confusion about what happens if DWR finds hazardous materials on the property. One land agent said DWR wouldn’t have to report it. But another document says they are required to report it, which means the landowner will be responsible for clean-up, even if the waste was caused by earlier owners.
- Drilling at toes of levees could cause leakage later.
DWR emerged from the session looking high-handed, erratic, clumsy, and unreliable in their pursuit of geotechnical data to support the plan for the Delta being pushed by the State Water Contractors. Of course, that is where the money for the investigations is coming from.