Last week, the State Water Resources Control Board held a public hearing on the latest documents released for the update to the Bay Delta Plan and the Healthy Rivers and Landscapes Program. Here’s what Restore the Delta and the Delta Tribal Environmental Coalition, Save California Salmon, and C-WIN had to say.
Record-breaking public opposition dominates Bay-Delta Plan hearings
From Restore the Delta and the Delta Tribal Environmental Coalition:
Today, the Delta Tribal Environmental Coalition (DTEC), consisting of the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians, Winnemem Wintu Tribe, Little Manila Rising, and Restore the Delta, formally filed public comments in response to the State Water Resources Control Board’s proposed update to the Bay-Delta Plan, following an unprecedented level of public participation opposing the draft update.
“Delta communities and Californians more broadly do not support the flawed voluntary agreements proposal,” said Cintia Cortez, Policy Program Manager at Restore the Delta. “Deteriorating conditions are threatening the safety, health, and economic prosperity of Delta communities, cultural wellness of Delta tribes, and water supply for all Californians. We urge the Board to side with the community, who were the vast majority of respondents in recent hearings, and science in opposing the fatally flawed proposal.”
Over the course of three days of State Water Board hearings, more than 180 members of the public provided oral comments, the largest public turnout the Board has ever seen. Testimony was overwhelmingly opposed to the State’s proposed Voluntary Agreements (VAs) – privately negotiated deals allowing powerful water districts to offer limited flow commitments and funding in exchange for exemptions from stronger, enforceable regulatory requirements.
Of the 185 total speakers, a vast majority (83%) spoke in opposition to the proposed VAs. All speakers in support of the VAs identified themselves as representatives of a business association, water wholesaler, water retailer, or water utility; not a single unaffiliated member of the public spoke in favor of the VAs.
This historic turnout reflects extensive community organizing led by a broad coalition of Tribes, conservation advocates, fishing groups, and environmental justice organizations, including:
- Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians
- Winnemum Wintu
- California Indian Environmental Alliance
- Sierra Club California
- Yosemite River Alliance
- San Francisco Bay-Keeper
- Friends of the River
- Defenders of Wildlife
- California Sportfishing Protection Alliance
- Restore the Delta
- Save California Salmon
The comments submitted by DTEC reflect the clear and overwhelming opposition of everyday Californians and urge the State Water Board to reject the Voluntary Agreements approach. Instead, DTEC calls on the Board to enforce strong, science-based protections for Delta water quality and ecosystems, uphold democratic participation in water planning, and respect Tribal sovereignty and Traditional Ecological Knowledge.
Read the Coalition’s comments in full here.
California Tribes and Communities Condemn Voluntary Water Agreements, Citing Risks to Rivers, Salmon, and Communities
From Save California Salmon:
Yesterday Tribes, youth, fisheries and environmental organizations submitted written comments condemning the latest version of the Bay Delta Water Quality Control plan and Voluntary agreements. This came after Tribal members, fishing families, youth, and community allies delivered strong opposition to the Bay Delta Plan’s Voluntary Agreements at a three day hearing last week. They rallied, hosted panels, and submitted public testimony to the California State Water Board in Sacramento.
Opposition to the Voluntary Agreements has grown as new federal actions threaten more water exports. Gary Mulcahy, Government Liaison of the Winnemem Wintu Tribe, warned, “The clueless SWRCB continues to advocate for an 8-year experiment that fails to meet water, environmental, and aquatic species needs on so many levels as the VAs currently stand.” He added, “Now with the Trump administration’s ROD on Action 5 promising additional water deliveries of 130,000 to 180,000 acre feet out of the Delta, the VAs can no longer be considered even partially viable.”
If adopted, the Bay-Delta Plan and VAs would overhaul water management, risking drinking water, recreating, and river health across nearly every watershed feeding the Bay-Delta, including the Sacramento, Feather, American, Yuba, Trinity, and Klamath Rivers. Advocates warn that the plan elevates large agricultural interests at the cost of Tribal Sovereignty, fishing communities, and river ecosystems.
“Replacing water quality protections with Voluntary Agreements puts the needs of corporations and agriculture above drinking water protections, communities, and rivers,” said Regina Chichizola, Executive Director of Save California Salmon. “The VA pathway ignores years of Tribal, scientific, and public input. It sets a dangerous precedent that voluntary compliance can replace California’s pollution laws. We have no idea why Newsom continues to push them.”
Last Thursday and Friday, Delta Tribes testified they were shut out of the process, despite being seriously impacted. Vince LaPena from the Wilton Rancheria testified, “For Wilton Rancheria, Delta conditions directly affect cultural practices, subsistence activities, and stewardship responsibilities. Salmon and other aquatic species are not merely ecological indicators; they are integral to the Tribe’s cultural identity, traditional knowledge systems, food sovereignty, and responsibilities to future generations.” Other Tribes testified they were not consulted or included in the VA process, despite having critical connections with, and rights to, the waters impacted.
Frankie Myers, a Yurok Tribal member and Principal of Fix the World Consulting, reflected, “For generations, California built its water system by excluding Tribal Nations—treating our rights as invisible while benefiting from our rivers, our lands, and our stewardship. The Bay-Delta Plan cannot move forward honestly without confronting that legacy. Reconciliation is not symbolic; it requires the State to acknowledge its history of injustice and take meaningful action to correct a system that has long denied Tribes a rightful seat at the table.”
Myers continued, “Now is the time to reconcile that history and build a water governance framework that recognizes Tribal water rights as fundamental to California’s future, not optional!”
Fishing communities are also urging the board to choose regulation instead of Voluntary Agreements. Vance Staplin, Executive Director of the Golden State Salmon Association, emphasized, “Water diversions are devastating California’s largest salmon runs. Commercial fishing has been shut down for three years, causing serious hardship for fishing families, businesses, and communities.” He called on the State Water Board to act. “The State Board has the sole authority to restore these salmon runs,” he said, “ and must reject Governor Newsom’s backroom water deal. Listen to the facts, and require the river flows salmon need to survive.”
Morning Star Gali, Pit River Tribal member and Executive Director of Indigenous Justice, warned that the VAs deepen harm to Tribal communities. “After decades of fighting for clean rivers, salmon restoration, and the remediation of toxic mercury contamination, Tribal peoples are again forced to carry the burden of protecting our waterways for current and future generations,” Gali said. “The VA’s role in privatizing water and prioritizing corporate profit over people must be addressed. We are at a critical moment. We must act now to stop this harm.”
Youth and Tribal community members say this is a defining moment. Onjalee Harrison, a Karuk Tribal youth and 8th-grade student traveling to Sacramento, said, “Without enough water, our fishing traditions and ceremonies like Boat Dances are at risk. As Native people, it is our responsibility to protect the fish, the river, and our future. This is why I oppose Voluntary Agreements that would dramatically impact my life and so many others.”
To watch Thursday’s powerful testimony to California from Tribal leaders, go to: https://www.youtube.com/
To watch Friday’s Youth and Tribal panels go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?
C-WIN Lambastes “Voluntary Agreements” in proposed Water Quality Control Plan
The California Water Impact Network (C-WIN) has submitted comments on the State Water Resources Control Board’s proposed updates to the Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan (WQCP). The verdict: the plan protects the wealthy and powerful and sacrifices the ecosystem.
