From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

Delta tunnels would be a water grab by private interests

Coalition response…The project is designed to provide reliability to move water in the amount that is legally allowed by current contracts. The amount of water that flows through the Delta that would be moved through the project is based on what river conditions would allow; sometimes more and sometimes less. Visit  www.farmwater.org/exportthrottle.pdf to learn more about exports.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

Tunnels will not protect water supply

Coalition response…Department of Water Resources Director Mark Cowin stated (http://www.mercurynews.com/opinion/ci_21952433/mark-cowin-levees-alone-wont-secure-californias-water) that “California has invested to keep key sections of Delta levees strong — $300 million since 2005 — and will continue to do so. But to rely solely on levees to safeguard a water supply critical to the state’s nearly $2 trillion economy would be negligent.” Cowin’s column correctly explained that to solely rely on the Delta levees to safeguard the water supply for 25 million Californians and 3 million acres of farmland would be an unwise choice.

A single focus on the levees does not provide a reliable water supply as mandated by the State Legislature in 2009. Levees also do not restore the Delta ecosystem. The Bay Delta Conservation Plan, which includes the twin tunnels under the Delta, accomplishes the legislative goals and is California’s best choice for a secure water future.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

Congressman John Garamendi calls Delta plan ‘irrational, destructive and foolish’
Solano County leaders speak out on Delta plan

Coalition response…Rep. John Garamendi’s opinion on what the Bay Delta Conservation Plan is doesn’t seem to be rooted in the facts. Saying the Plan “…doesn’t create one gallon of water, but takes water from the Delta, destroying it in the process,” is contrary to the science that has been driving the BDCP for seven years. In simple terms, returning the Delta to a more natural “east-to-west” flow is better for fish and allows water in the system to be moved to water rights holders when plentiful supplies are available.

This year is a perfect example. When huge amounts of water were flowing in December and January, Endangered Species Act restrictions cut water deliveries by more than 800,000 acre-feet. If used to produce food, that quantity of water is worth more than $2 billion to California’s economy. But all that happened was the water flowed to the ocean without ANY measurable environmental benefit. Mismanagement of our resources hurt people from the Bay Area to San Diego.

I suspect Congressman Garamendi’s upcoming plan will have something to do with “fat levees” or “regional self reliance,” neither of which provide real protections against earthquakes, meet the water supply needs of California or the co-equal goals of ecosystem restoration and water supply reliability. If that’s the direction he’s going then his plan is a non-starter, both legally and from a water supply perspective. On the other hand, if Congressman Garamendi is willing to talk about why 93 percent of the baby salmon end up in the bellies of predatory fish lurking in the Delta or how he plans to clean up poor water quality that has altered the base of the Delta food chain, then there is hope for progress.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

Flawed water proposal will drain public dollars

Coalition response…The author’s insistence that the Bay Delta Conservation Plan and its twin tunnels will “drain billions of public dollars away from schools….” is false. Both urban and agricultural water users are responsible for paying their fair share of the costs associated with their water supply. Conclusions by urban water agencies show that the “ruinous rates” claimed by the author will be less than $5 per month for Southern California families, which will likely not drive anyone into bankruptcy.

BDCP is governed by a measure adopted by the California Legislature in 2009 that called for the establishment of a reliable water supply and a restored Delta ecosystem. The improved water supply will send water to users in Southern California and almost 4,000 family farms in the San Joaquin Valley where that water grows the fresh fruits and vegetables that consumers seek in their grocery stores. BDCP also proposes to create 140,000 acres of habitat in the Delta.

The twin tunnels are vastly different from the Peripheral Canal of years ago. The tunnels will include a capacity to move 9,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) while the Peripheral Canal’s capacity was 21,800 cfs. An analysis (www.farmwater.org/p-canalcomparison.pdf) of the two projects reveals more differences.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here. 

Viewpoints: Should state dedicate more flows for salmon? No

Coalition response…The water board has failed to demonstrate that its plan will benefit salmon. Now is not the time to embark on an unproven pathway that will take jobs away from people and cost millions of dollars to the economy.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

Viewpoints: Should state dedicate more flows for salmon? Yes

Coalition response…The uncertainty of whether the water board’s proposal will benefit salmon is startling, especially when one considers the board’s action would take jobs away from thousands of people and remove $187 million from the local economy each year. Science does not exist to support the plan as evident with board data that indicates it cannot guarantee benefits for salmon when water is taken away from farmers and cities.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

Merced River can be studied without endangering status

Coalition response…HR 934 seeks to provide flexibility for a water supply system that both protects environmental resources and delivers water to a significant food-producing region of the state. Approval of HR 934 would enable the raising of the spillway, not the dam, at New Exchequer Dam by 10 feet. During wet years, about every three years, Merced Irrigation District would store an additional 70,000 acre-feet of water that could be used by local farmers in dry years. This kind of compromise serves the river and the people who depend on it for their livelihoods. Even John Muir acknowledged the benefits of using Sierra waters to irrigate the rich farmland in the Valley.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

The tale of two tunnels: Gov. Brown’s tainted BDCP process versus honestly solving the problem

Coalition response…Elected by the people of California, the Legislature acted in 2009 to establish a reliable water supply through the Delta and to restore the Delta’s ecosystem. The Bay Delta Conservation Plan proposes to accomplish those two goals by implementing an improved conveyance system that considers optilons including one with twin tunnels and also to restore 140,000 acres of habitat in the region. Scientists and researchers have worked for seven years to develop the proposal offered through BDCP. The first four chapters of the plan are available at http://baydeltaconservationplan.com/BDCPPlanningProcess/KeyAnnouncements.aspx and the remaining chapters are scheduled for release.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

Delta tunnels will not protect California’s water supply from earthquakes

Coalition response…Department of Water Resources Director Mark Cowin wrote in the Nov. 7, 2012 Mercury News (http://www.mercurynews.com/opinion/ci_21952433/mark-cowin-levees-alone-wont-secure-californias-water) that “California has invested to keep key sections of Delta levees strong — $300 million since 2005 — and will continue to do so. But to rely solely on levees to safeguard a water supply critical to the state’s nearly $2 trillion economy would be negligent.” Cowin’s column correctly explained that to solely rely on the Delta levees to safeguard the water supply for 25 million Californians and 3 million acres of farmland would be an unwise choice.

A single focus on the levees does not provide a reliable water supply as mandated by the State Legislature in 2009. Levees also do not restore the Delta ecosystem. The Bay Delta Conservation Plan, which includes the twin tunnels under the Delta, accomplishes the legislative goals and is California’s best choice for a secure water future.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

River debate swiftly flowing

Coalition response…Too many regulations without scientific research supporting their ability to meet the intended goal are issued to control water in an attempt to benefit fish. Water board officials have been asked to provide the documentation that proves fish will benefit by increasing the natural flows in the Toulumne, Stanislaus and Merced rivers. Unfortunately, that documentation has not been forthcoming. Impacting the lives of thousands of people by eliminating their jobs and taking millions of dollars away from local economies for an exercise that might help fish is not an action that should be taken.