Proposed changes hinge on managing releases and diversions from Shasta Reservoir
From the Bureau of Reclamation:
The Bureau of Reclamation seeks public input on the Long-Term Operation of the Central Valley Project and State Water Project Draft Environmental Impact Statement. The draft document considers revised operations of dams, powerplants, and related facilities of the Central Valley Project and Delta facilities of the State Water Project.
“An unprecedented display of openness has gone into the process to work through technical analyses and develop options for new operating rules with monthly interested party meetings, quarterly public meetings, and numerous direct outreach efforts,” said California-Great Basin Regional Director Karl Stock. “We are pleased to present the comprehensive results of this effort to the public for comment.”
The proposed plan includes five alternatives reflecting a reasonable range of alternatives for the long-term operation of the Central Valley Project and Delta facilities of the State Water Project. The draft EIS was prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act and is available for a 45-day public comment period. Six public meetings are scheduled to provide an overview and take verbal comments:
- Wed., Aug. 7, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. – Los Banos Community Center (645 Seventh Street, Los Banos, CA)
- Thur., Aug. 8, 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. – virtual meeting via Zoom
- Tues., Aug. 13, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. – Redding Veteran’s Memorial Building (1605 Yuba Street, Redding, CA)
- Thurs., Aug. 15, 12:00 – 3:00 p.m. – virtual meeting via Zoom
- Tues., Aug. 20, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. – Sacramento Capital Event Center at M.A.Y. Building (1020 11th Street, Sacramento, CA)
- Thurs., Aug. 22, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. – virtual meeting via Zoom
The draft EIS is available here. Submit written comments to sha-mpr-bdo@usbr.gov by close of business Sept. 9, 2024. For more information about the public meetings or the draft EIS, visit www.usbr.gov/mp/bdo/lto/index.
What is this document? Here is some background …
By Maven
As is usually the case in California water, it’s a long and litigious history that brings us to these documents. I will try to piece it together as simply as I can.
In August 2016, during the Obama Administration, the Bureau of Reclamation and DWR began to develop a new operations plan and jointly requested reinitiation of consultation under the Endangered Species Act. Reclamation and DWR began working with NMFS and USFWS to develop new biological opinions.
In 2018, President Trump issued an executive order that did many things, including new requirements for the biological opinions and setting short timelines for completing them. In October 2019, those biological opinions were issued, which determined that proposed coordinated operations would not jeopardize threatened or endangered species or adversely modify their designated critical habitat.
Shortly after, the state of California and others filed a lawsuit against those biological opinions, saying they lacked safeguards for protected species and their habitat in the Delta. At the same time, the state sought its own Incidental Take Permit for SWP operations under the California Endangered Species Act rather than seeking consistency through the biological opinions. That permit was issued in March of 2020. However, the lack of consistency with the federal biological opinions created operational challenges.
In January 2021, President Biden issued an Executive Order, Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis, which reviewed regulatory actions taken during the Trump Administration and specifically listed the biological opinions to be reviewed.
So in September 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation requested to reinitiate the Endangered Species Act consultation with the stated goals being to support species viability, protect life history diversity, support operational flexibility, provide regulatory certainty, support science and monitoring, and create a single, adaptable, coordinated operation for the CVP and SWP.
New biological opinions are expected later this year once Reclamation has selected the alternative. The upcoming biological opinions have been developed with more agency and public involvement than in the past, including quarterly public meetings.
