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Wednesday’s top of the scroll: New federal action plan aims to ease California’s water crisis

Posted by: Maven on December 23, 2009 at 8:32 am

From the Silicon Valley Mercury News:

“Senior Obama administration officials released a new action plan Tuesday aimed at bolstering the federal government’s role in solving California’s water crisis and restoring the vast freshwater estuary that provides drinking water to millions of households.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said six federal agencies would make it a top priority to study the factors harming fish, boost water deliveries to cities and croplands, and supply drought aid to farmers.

The collapse of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta has caused the number native fish species to plummet, and a three-year drought coupled with restrictions on water deliveries have led to unemployment and economic distress in the state’s farm belt and fisheries.

“The California water crisis is a full-blown crisis that requires all hands on deck to help those who are suffering,” Salazar said. “We are moving aggressively to do our part.” … “

Read more from the Silicon Valley Mercury News by clicking here.

From the Stockton Record:

” … Among the strategies laid out in Tuesday’s plan:

» Speedy approval of a plan to tie together the California Aqueduct and Delta Mendota Canal south of Tracy, which would allow more flexibility to export water from the Delta. Construction is expected to be finished by October 2011.

» More flexibility for water transfers.

» Expedited study of the “Two Gates” project, the proposed installation of barriers in the south Delta to direct threatened fish away from the pumps.

» Assistance for the National Academy of Sciences, which announced last week that it has started its own review of new rules that protect Delta fish but restrict the state’s water supply.

» Study of the other factors that harm the Delta’s environment, such as pesticides, stormwater runoff, treated wastewater and mercury.

The state Department of Water Resources praised Tuesday’s report, as did the Environmental Defense Fund, one of several conservation groups working on the Bay Delta Conservation Plan.”

Read more from the Stockton Record by clicking here.

From the Contra Costa Times:

” … Several of the measures were suggested by the Contra Costa Water District three years ago, but most were never implemented, said Greg Gartrell, the district’s assistant general manager.

“The long-term (solution) is going to take a long time, so you have to do these immediate actions or you’re going to end up in a bad place,” he said. “That’s where we ended up.”

The fish hatchery for Delta smelt and possibly other imperiled fish is planned in Rio Vista, where the city owns former Army base property that might be used for the purpose.

The site would be used to produce fish for research and maintain stocks of species in case they go extinct or are further threatened. … “

Read more from the Contra Costa Times by clicking here.

From the O.C. Register:

” … The plan aims to show “on-the-ground impacts” in 2010.

In terms of national importance, the delta, the plan says, is on par with the Everglades, Chesapeake Bay and the Great Lakes — also examples of large, multi-agency restoration efforts, Barkoff said.

The plan is a “comprehensive federal approach to the crisis,” Jeffrey Kightlinger, general manager of the Metropolitan Water District in Los Angeles — the region’s water wholesaler — said in a prepared statement.

“Ultiimately, the real litmus test of this plan will be the specific actions that federal agencies take in the future and whether they result in more reliable supplies and improvements in the ecosystem,” the statement said.”

Read more from the O. C. Register by clicking here.

From the Sacramento Bee:

” … The federal government plays a pivotal role in the system. It operates some of California’s largest reservoirs, including Folsom Dam, and one of two pumping and canal systems that divert millions of acre-feet of Delta water annually. This thirst has contributed to water shortages, pollution and steep declines in numerous fish species, including Delta smelt and chinook salmon.

On Tuesday, though, some critics saw little new or significant in the federal plan.

Bill Jennings, executive director of the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance, said the plan is largely a summary of actions already under way or a restatement of existing federal authorities.

The problem, he said, is that existing law hasn’t been fully enforced over the past two decades to protect the Delta.

“It’s the same broad, hopeful language we’ve seen over last 15 years that shepherded the collapse of this estuary,” Jennings said. “This doesn’t do much for fish, but it does a lot for water exporters.”"

Read more from the Sacramento Bee by clicking here.

December 23, 2009 · Filed Under Delta Issues

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