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More restrictions on Delta water pumping adopted as Department of Fish & Game passes regulations to protect longfin smelt

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on November 16, 2008 at 6:47 am

From Mike Taugher of the Contra Costa Times:

The reliability of California’s water supply took another huge hit Friday when state regulators adopted more restrictions on Delta water pumping to protect yet another fish species whose population is sinking fast. Water agencies portrayed Friday’s decision by the California Fish and Game Commission to protect longfin smelt from Delta pumps this winter as potentially crippling to water supplies on San Joaquin Valley farms and elsewhere.

Regulators acknowledged that the new regulations, which could go into effect as early as Dec. 1, could lead to major water supply cuts but said the rules probably would not be activated at all.

Perry Hergesell, a water policy analyst for the Fish and Game Department, told commissioners that if the new rules had been in place they would have been needed in just two of the past 17 years.

Still, Department of Water Resources Director Lester Snow, the state’s top water official, said that if additional cutbacks were ordered, it “could create a water supply and delivery crisis the likes of which Californians have not seen in decades.”

Read more from the Contra Costa Times by clicking here.

From the Central Valley Business Times:

The commission, meeting in Huntington Beach, approved a six-month emergency regulation to protect the longfin smelt. A cousin of that fish, the Delta smelt, is already protected by federal court order lowering the amount of water that can be pumped from the Delta to the Central Valley, Bay Area and Southern California. The Delta is California’s main source of fresh water.

DWR estimates the emergency regulations have the potential to reduce state and federal water project deliveries up to 1.1 million acre feet, or an additional 17 percent in an average water year. This is in addition to the existing export restrictions already in place as a result of a federal court decision to protect Delta smelt.

DWR had asked the commission to extend incidental take authority of the longfin smelt adopted under the California Endangered Species Act and include proposed revisions to help assure that DWR would only be required to mitigate impacts caused by the State Water Project.

The commission instead adopted the regulation that authorizes take but includes additional measures for the protection of adult, larval, and juvenile longfin smelt.

Click here to read the rest of this article in The Central Valley Business Times, which includes an audio clip of an interview with DWR spokesperson Don Strickland about the decision, as well as a link to the action passed on Friday.

November 16, 2008 · Filed Under Longfin Smelt

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Water supplies may drop for California cities & farms as state extends protections for longfin smelt

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on November 15, 2008 at 7:51 am

From the San Diego Union-Tribune:

California fish and wildlife managers on Friday approved new rules that could severely restrict pumping from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to protect a native fish, triggering protests from farmers and cities reeling already from water shortages.

The Fish and Game Commission voted 3-0 to enact emergency regulations that may scale back water pumping from December through February to safeguard the longfin smelt, considered a bellwether species for the estuary.

“Clearly as a society we haven’t erred on the side of the fish in the past; we’ve erred on the side of the water supply,” said Commissioner Michael Sutton. “We have to come down on the side of the fish. If we don’t take care of these ecosystems, they’re not going to yield us the services for much longer.”

Read more from the San Diego Union-Tribune by clicking here.

The Stockton Record puts it into perspective:

This is how severe California’s water and fish crises have become: If surveyors find as few as six longfin smelt near the Delta export pumps this winter, water deliveries to farms and cities throughout the state could be cut by 1.1 million acre-feet - enough water to serve more than 1 million families for a year.

That was said to be the worst-case scenario Friday after the California Fish and Game Commission voted to extend protections for the longfin smelt. Combined with drought and court-imposed water restrictions, the action could lead to “a water supply and delivery crisis the likes of which Californians have not seen in decades,” said Lester Snow, director of the state Department of Water Resources.

But Fish and Game officials said the 1.1 million acre-foot cut cited by Water Resources is unlikely. “Nothing is automatic,” said Fish and Game attorney Ann Malcolm. The plan “requires the exercise an informed judgment after dealing with both science and policymakers.”

The debate illustrates how close some fish species are to extinction - every single longfin smelt is significant, one Fish and Game expert said Friday - and how close the state’s water system is to buckling under the weight of the finger-length longfin smelt and its close cousin, the Delta smelt.

Read more from Stockton’s Record by clicking here.

November 15, 2008 · Filed Under Longfin Smelt

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DWR Director Lester Snow responds to longfin smelt decision

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on November 14, 2008 at 2:15 pm

dwr-logobig_thumb.gifFrom the Department of Water Resources:

SACRAMENTO – Department of Water Resources (DWR) Director Lester A. Snow released the following statement after the California Fish and Game Commission implemented take regulations to protect longfin smelt:

“Following two years of extreme drought, additional pumping cutbacks are possible as a result of today’s Fish and Game Commission’s action and could create a water supply and delivery crisis the likes of which Californians have not seen in decades. This situation further underscores the state’s urgent need to invest in our water systems, including more storage, improved conveyance, conservation and a long term strategy for the Delta. The time for action is now.”

DWR estimates the emergency regulations have the potential to reduce state and federal water project deliveries up to 1.1 million acre feet, or an additional 17 percent in an average water year. This is in addition to the existing export restrictions already in place as a result of a federal court decision to protect Delta smelt.

DWR had asked the commission to extend incidental take authority of the longfin smelt adopted under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA) and include proposed revisions to help assure that DWR would only be required to mitigate impacts caused by the State Water Project. The commission rejected this proposal and instead adopted the regulation that authorizes take but includes additional measures for the protection of adult, larval, and juvenile longfin smelt.

Longfin Smelt
Longfin smelt are pelagic, estuarine fish that range from Monterey Bay northward to Alaska. In California, they have been commonly collected from San Francisco Bay, the Eel River, Humboldt Bay and the Klamath River. Presently, the only California collections made in the 1990s have been from the Klamath River and San Francisco Bay. Longfin smelt reach a maximum size of about 150 mm and comprise a small portion of the “whitebait” fishery in San Francisco Bay. They have no sport fishery value.

Maturity is reached toward the end of their second year. As they mature in the fall, adults found throughout San Francisco Bay migrate to brackish or freshwater in Suisun Bay, Montezuma Slough, and the lower reaches of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers. Spawning probably takes place in freshwater.

In April and May, juveniles are believed to migrate downstream to San Pablo Bay. Juvenile longfin smelt are collected throughout the Bay during the late spring, summer and fall.

Longfin smelt have been listed as a candidate species under the CESA by the Fish and Game Commission. Candidate species receive take protection until a decision is made by the commission to list them as endangered or threatened or to not list them. The commission is expected to make a final listing decision in March 2009.

Longfin smelt are not a protected species under the federal Endangered Species Act.

The Department of Water Resources operates and maintains the State Water Project, provides dam safety and flood control and inspection services, assists local water districts in water management and water conservation planning, and plans for future statewide water needs.

November 14, 2008 · Filed Under Longfin Smelt

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California water supply problems worsen: State commission issues new regulations likely to further restrict Delta pumping

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on November 14, 2008 at 2:13 pm

From the Long Beach Water Department, this press release:

The Long Beach Board of Water Commissioners is again urging increased attention to extraordinary water conservation measures after the California Fish and Game Commission today, issued new, emergency regulations for protecting the longfin smelt, a candidate species for listing under the California Endangered Species Act, from operations related to moving water through the State Water Project. The new regulations, expected to take effect next month, are likely to further reduce the supplies of imported water southern California receives from the Bay Delta.

“As with the Delta Smelt decision last year, it is not possible to specifically state what this means for our water supply, as the week-to-week decisions are somewhat arbitrary and unpredictable,” according to Kevin Wattier, General Manager of the Long Beach Water Department. “However, it is certain that this decision has a significant, negative impact on the water supply of the State Water Project, and the areas of the state that depend on it.”

Existing delivery restrictions to protect the Delta smelt, as ordered by a Fresno federal district court in September 2007, reduced imported water deliveries from the Bay Delta nearly 30 percent. Upon the federal district court ruling in September 2007, the Long Beach Board of Water Commissioners issued a declaration of imminent water supply shortage and implemented mandatory prohibitions on certain outdoor uses of water in the City of Long Beach. Long Beach has set historical, 10-year record lows for water consumption in 10 of the last 13 months.

The Long Beach Water Department is an urban, southern California retail water supply agency and the standard in water conservation and environmental stewardship.

Ryan J. Alsop
Director of Government & Public Affairs
Long Beach Water
Brennan S. Thomas Administration Building

November 14, 2008 · Filed Under Longfin Smelt

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Jason Peltier of the Westlands Water District addresses CA Fish &Game Commission meeting today regarding proposed 1 Million Acre feet cut to California water supplies

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on November 14, 2008 at 2:10 pm

From the Westlands Water District:

Jason Peltier of the Westlands Water District is addressing the CA Fish & Game Commission today in opposition to a proposed regulation that would cut one million acre feet to California water supplies. He will be speaking on behalf of the Westlands Water District and other public water agencies that serve more than 25 million Californians.

Today, the California Fish and Game Commission will consider adopting a proposed regulation for longfin smelt that could cut as much as one million acre feet additional water supplies that two-thirds of California’s population depends on.Those cutbacks would comeon top of the 760,000 acre feet of water that California lost in 2008 under court-ordered reductions intended to protect another species the smelt.

This on top of one of the worst droughts in the state’s history, the implementation of these new restrictions could mean water rationing for communities throughout Southern California and the Bay Area plus billions of dollars in losses to the state’s economy due to lost jobs, ruined crops and failed agricultural businesses throughout California.

November 14, 2008 · Filed Under Longfin Smelt

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Public agencies oppose new threat to statewide water supply; California Fish & Game Commission’s proposed restrictions to address fish decline called “major threat” and “without merit”

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on November 14, 2008 at 7:36 am

From the State Water Contractors, this press release:

Sacramento, CA – The State Water Contractors, a statewide organization of 27 public water agencies, voiced serious concern today regarding California Fish & Game Commission proposed regulations that could impose drastic new restrictions on pumping out of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta (Delta) to protect longfin smelt, a small fish species that is found in several estuaries along the northern Pacific Coast. The Commission will consider these proposed regulations, which public water agencies consider a major potential threat to statewide water supply, in a hearing this Friday.

The California Department of Water Resources estimates these restrictions could reduce water supplies by approximately one (1) million acre-feet in wet and average year conditions and by 600,000 acre-feet in dry conditions from both the State Water Project (SWP) and federal Central Valley Project (CVP). In average year conditions, these constraints represent approximately 17% of anticipated supply for the two projects, which serve as California’s primary water delivery systems.

These proposed restrictions are in addition to severe cutbacks already imposed to address the decline of another similar fish species, the Delta smelt. Last year, a federal judge cut 660,000 acre-feet from the water system, a 31% reduction that could have served 5.3 million Californians for one year. In a worst case scenario, restrictions to protect both Delta smelt and longfin smelt in 2009 could amount to nearly a 50% slash in water deliveries from the state’s primary water delivery systems.

“If the Fish and Game Commission adopts these draconian proposals, we’ll be looking at a scary situation,” said Laura King Moon, assistant general manager of the State Water Contractors.  “The significant drawbacks of this proposal are way out of proportion to its benefits — there’s no guarantee that these restrictions will even protect the fish. We are in the midst of a governor-declared drought and the worst economic downturn in recent memory. This is the wrong time to propose regulations that could have severe impacts on California’s economy while offering little, if any, help to the longfin smelt.”

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November 14, 2008 · Filed Under Longfin Smelt

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Jean P. Sagouspe commentary: New water proposal for longfin smelt makes no sense at all

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on November 12, 2008 at 6:27 am

From the Fresno Bee, this commentary by Jean P. Sagouspe, a farmer on the westside of the San Joaquin Valley and the president of Westlands Water District:

The state Department of Fish and Game is proposing a new set of regulations to protect the longfin smelt. If fully implemented, the Department of Water Resources estimates that the proposed regulations could cut off as much as 1 million acre-feet of water deliveries to the two-thirds of California that depends on water pumped through the Delta.

That’s on top of the 760,000 acre feet we have already lost because of court-ordered restrictions on pumping intended to benefit another species of smelt. And it comes in the middle of one of the worst droughts in history.

The restrictions probably won’t do any good, because the longfin rarely go anywhere near the pumps. But the department proposes no action at all to protect the longfin from ammonia pollution and the extensive list of other stressors that are impacting the fish.

The good news is that even if the new regulations are adopted by the Fish and Game Commission at its meeting Nov. 14, they may never trigger any cutbacks in actual water deliveries, because they address a problem that will probably never arise. So long as the longfin don’t move close to the pumps, presumably no additional reductions in pumping will be ordered.

The bad news is that this proposal is being raised at all. It points up some serious deficiencies in the way the state is approaching our water crisis.

Read more of this commentary in the Fresno Bee by clicking here.

November 12, 2008 · Filed Under Longfin Smelt

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DFG seeks public input on petition to list longfin smelt

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on June 28, 2008 at 6:50 am

From Dan Bacher:

The California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) announced on June 20 that it is seeking public input regarding a petition to list longfin smelt (Spirinchus thaleichthys), another victim of years of abysmal water management by the state and federal governments, under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA).

The California Fish and Game Commission is currently considering the petition to list the fish as “threatened” or “endangered” under CESA. The Bay Institute, the Center for Biological Diversity and the Natural Resources Defense Council filled the petition on Aug. 14, 2007 after the longfin smelt, along with its cousin, the delta smelt, declined to record levels after record levels of water were exported out of the California Delta by the state and federal governments.

By operation of law, longfin smelt became a “candidate species” under the CESA when the Commission found that the petition contained sufficient information to warrant further consideration, according to a news release from the DFG.

“Pursuant to the provisions of Section 2074.6 of the Fish and Game Code, DFG must complete a status review of the species and provide a written report to the commission that recommends - based upon the best scientific information available - whether listing the longfin smelt as threatened or endangered under CESA is warranted,” the DFG stated. “DFG plans to submit its report to the commission in January 2009 and seeks information from the public to help formulate its recommendation.”

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June 28, 2008 · Filed Under Longfin Smelt

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Another delta fish, the Longfin smelt, to be considered for endangered status

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on May 7, 2008 at 6:27 am

From the Sacramento Bee:

Another Delta fish will be considered for protection under the federal Endangered Species Act, following a sharp population decline last year.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Tuesday it will conduct a status review of the longfin smelt to determine whether it warrants protection as a threatened or endangered species. The longfin, a 4-inch fish native to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, last year registered its lowest population count in four decades of monitoring.

The decision to conduct the review came in response to a petition filed in August by environmental groups.

The longfin is a cousin of the Delta smelt, a threatened species since 1993 whose population also has declined steeply in recent years. The longfin is slightly bigger, normally lives for two years instead of one and travels through a wider range of salinity conditions.

Biologists have struggled to understand the declines, but as with the Delta smelt, they believe a combination of poor water quality, invasive species and water pumping is hurting longfins. “This is another species that lives in the estuary in a slightly different way, and it’s in equally bad trouble. It’s telling us there are problems in the ecosystem, and we need to address them,” said Tina Swanson, a senior scientist at the Bay Institute, one of three petitioners.

Read the full text of the article from the Sacramento Bee by clicking here.

The California Farmer adds this:

The Service’s determination today, commonly known as a 90-day finding, is the first step toward possible protection for the species under the ESA. The action is based on the information provided in a petition to list the longfin smelt (Spirinchus thaleichthys) population that lives in San Francisco Bay/Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and on information readily available to the Service. The petition asked that the Service list longfin smelt within that area as a distinct population segment (DPS). The finding is available at http://www.fws.gov/sacramento/.

Today’s action by the Service opens a 60-day public comment period, closing July 7, 2008, during which experts and the public are encouraged to submit all relevant information about the species. The Service then will complete its next stage of review, commonly known as a 12- month review.

A similar petition to list the longfin smelt was considered in 1992, but in 1994, officials decided against listing the species at that time:

“The Service has not made a decision on whether to propose listing the longfin smelt,” says Steve Thompson, regional manager of the Service’s region 8 (California/Nevada). “The 90-day finding is our recognition that new information has developed.”

Thompson continued, “Over the next few months, the Service will evaluate this new information, and all the additional information we obtain, then make a decision on whether there is sufficient risk to the species to proceed with a listing proposal.”

Comments may be submitted until July 7, 2008. Comments may be submitted by one of the following methods:
1) Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov and follow the instructions for submitting comments;
2) U.S. mail or hand-delivery to: Public Comments Processing, Attn: FWS-R8-ES-2008-0034, Division of Policy and Directives Management; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite 222; Arlington, VA 22203.

All comments will be posted on http://www.regulations.gov .

Read the full text of the article from the California Farmer by clicking here.

May 7, 2008 · Filed Under Longfin Smelt

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U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service to consider Delta’s long fin smelt for protection under the Endangered Species Act

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on May 6, 2008 at 4:58 pm

From the Sacramento Bee:

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Tuesday that it will consider the Delta’s longfin smelt population for protection under the Endangered Species Act.

The longfin in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta last year hit a historic population low, mirroring the decline of other species, including the Delta smelt, which is already protected. The native longfin has a similar life cycle, but generally lives for two to three years, unlike the Delta smelt, which lives for only one year. The longfin also transits a larger range of fresh and salt water conditions.

A petition to list the species was filed with the service in August by the Bay Institute, the Center for Biological Diversity, and the Natural Resources Defense Council. In February, in response to another petition, the state Fish and Game Commission listed the longfin as a candidate for protection under the state Endangered Species Act.

Read the rest of this story from the Sacramento Bee by clicking here.

The Center for Biological Diversity issued this press release:

“Unfortunately, longfin smelt is just the latest victim of federal and state mismanagement of California’s largest and most important estuary,” said Dr. Tina Swanson, senior scientist with the Bay Institute. “But maybe this decision, following close on the heels of the collapse of the state’s salmon fishery and court-ordered changes in water export operations to protect Delta smelt, will serve as a reality check for those who still think our rivers and the Delta can supply ever-increasing amounts of water without devastating environmental and economic consequences.”

The Bay Institute, Center for Biological Diversity, and Natural Resources Defense Council petitioned for federal protection of the San Francisco Bay-Delta longfin smelt population in August of 2007. The Fish and Wildlife Service must now conduct a status review of this population and make a final listing determination, which is legally due in August of 2008.

“Unsustainable water diversions have crippled Central Valley salmon runs and driven the Delta smelt, and now the longfin smelt — once an extremely abundant species and a critical link in the food chain — to the brink of extinction,” said Jeff Miller, conservation advocate with the Center for Biological Diversity. “Sea changes are needed in the management of the Delta to prevent further unraveling of the estuarine food web and the loss of commercially important species.”

“Longfin smelt and many other fish in the Bay-Delta are suffering from a lack of sufficient fresh water to keep them alive,” said Kate Poole, an attorney with NRDC. “Yet, water managers’ response to these environmental alarm bells is to propose a massive new peripheral canal that would take even more water out of the Delta, worsening the crash of our fishing industry and making Delta water more toxic. It’s time for the agencies to take a serious look at fixing the hub of California’s water system.”

Read the full text of the press release from the Center for Biological Diversity by clicking here.

May 6, 2008 · Filed Under Delta Issues, Longfin Smelt

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