EDITORIAL: Why no rose? Seems clear

Oceanside City Councilwoman Esther Sanchez's vote Wednesday on the California Coastal Commission was a good example of why we weren't exactly thrilled when she was named to the commission late last year.

The California Coastal Commission was in town with an agenda that included a request by the Coast Law Group to revoke the Poseidon Resources Corp.'s previously granted permit to build the Carlsbad water desalination project.

The environmental group accused the company of hiding some relevant data on the operation's greenhouse gas emissions ---- a charge the company disputed.

We happen to think it is worth pursuing the desal plant, which when fully operational will produce 50 million gallons of water each day for our thirsty region.

And the company's sin, if there was one, didn't change most people's opinion of the project, including the California Air Resources Board.

Desalination is an important piece of solving Southern California's water problem.

Apparently, Sanchez doesn't agree, as she declared Poseidon guilty of "an intentional lack of disclosure on a material issue" and voted on the losing side of the issue.

Her vote didn't change the outcome ---- a majority of the commission followed the staff recommendation and dismissed the complaint.

Sanchez's position was no surprise. She was the lone "no" vote on the council in 2007 when that body agreed to buy 4 1/2 million gallons a day of desalinated water from the plant when it opens.

At the time, she declared that such a water purchase would be a departure from the city's practice of buying water from a public entity that has no notion of profit.

The logic, we suppose, is that "profit" is bad and should be avoided wherever possible.

Sanchez deserves much praise for being a "local kid makes good" role model for the Eastside community of Oceanside. We are appreciative of her prior service as a public defender.

But it's too bad her politics don't square up with what's good for Oceanside and the rest of water-starved North County.

During a KOCT program last fall, Sanchez asked why this newspaper had not given her an editorial page "rose" for her then-recent appointment to the California Coastal Commission.

The answer should be obvious: It is the way she looks at the world and, often, the way she votes.