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Hydrant Meter Program Comments <br />Public Utilities Board <br />March 1.4, 2022 <br />Chair and Members: <br />We're organic citrus and avocado farmers in the Greenbelt. For many years we <br />have relied on City hydrant water for tree planting and fertilizer and insect pest <br />control spraying. <br />But now RPU is tying us up with red tape, requiring long and unnecessary monthly <br />inspections, interfering with our work, threatening us with "minimum" $500 fines, <br />and including us in a program meant for temporary grading and building <br />contractors. <br />So we're here tonight to ask you to stop these useless inspections and design an <br />program appropriate for farmers. <br />City voters have strongly backed protecting and promoting agriculture here in no <br />less than five initiatives. Measure C specifically calls on the City to "develop and <br />implement public service and infrastructure standards ... appropriate for <br />agricultural lands". <br />But RPU ignores this and doesn't recognize the needs of farmers who may want <br />the efficiency of having their own meter. We don't want to rent meters under <br />conditions that could block us from watering new trees before hot spells hit and <br />pay thousands of dollars for theft of rented meters on hydrants we can't protect <br />at night. <br />Take a look at the three recent confusing and contradictory RPU letters and flyer <br />we've received. <br />The first calls on us to return the meter we own and go into the construction <br />program. <br />