Native fish populations are declining at an alarming rate while state regulators have failed to act
From the San Francisco Baykeeper:
On March 2, 2026, San Francisco Baykeeper, represented by Earthjustice, filed its opening brief in the California Court of Appeal seeking to overturn the Sacramento Superior Court’s 2024 ruling on Phase 1 of the State Water Resources Control Board’s update to the Bay-Delta Plan. The Board has failed to uphold its mandate to protect native fish that rely on river flows into the Delta, in the face of catastrophic losses.
When river flows are too low, water temperatures rise, toxic algae proliferate, and the amount of oxygen in the water decreases—among other habitat disruptions—causing fish populations to plummet. Fall-run Chinook salmon populations, for example, have declined by over 85 percent since the 1980s. These precipitous drops have devastating effects, not only on the ecosystem, but on Native American communities and commercial and recreational fisheries. Toxic algal blooms facilitated by low river flows also harm people who try to recreate in or near the San Joaquin River.
By law, the Board must adopt and regularly review its water quality control plan to ensure reasonable protection of fish and wildlife populations, along with other human uses of water. However, the updated requirements the Board adopted in 2018 are deeply flawed, falling far short of the Board’s legal obligations. If enacted, the new plan requirements would not meaningfully lower the very real risk of extinction of multiple California fish species, including Chinook Salmon, Central Valley Steelhead, White Sturgeon, and Green Sturgeon.
Even more alarmingly, the Board is considering bypassing its 8-year-old updates entirely, without ever having implemented them. Instead, the Board is now considering adopting Governor Newsom’s “voluntary agreements” with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission and its industrial agriculture allies, which would continue the dysfunctional status quo or worsen conditions.
“As iconic California species, fishing businesses, and river-dependent communities teeter on the brink, the Board has failed to meet the moment,” Baykeeper’s managing attorney Eric Buescher said. “But the science is clear: native fish require more water in their rivers to survive. And the Board cannot lawfully allow the destruction of fish and wildlife populations, fisheries, and clean water. Destruction is not ‘reasonable protection.’”
Baykeeper is represented by Katrina Tomas and Anna Stimmel of Earthjustice.
San Francisco Baykeeper defends the Bay and its watershed from the biggest threats. Its team of lawyers, scientists, and advocates holds polluters and government agencies accountable and has achieved a winning record for over 36 years.
