From the Delta Counties Coalition:
The Delta Counties Coalition (DCC) Chair Supervisor Pat Hume issued the following statement in response to the Administration’s announcement regarding the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) receiving Biological Opinions from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) for Delta Conveyance Project construction and construction-related maintenance activities:
“The Administration is once again declaring victory on a milestone that does not authorize a single shovel of dirt in the Delta. These Biological Opinions address construction impacts only. They do not resolve how this tunnel would be operated for decades to come, and they do not, on their own, permit any in-water work. For the communities that live, work, and depend on the Delta, the announcement changes nothing about the unresolved harms this project would inflict on our homes, our farms, our water quality, and one of the most important estuaries in the country.
What the announcement conveniently leaves out is just as important as what it includes. Key federal permits are still outstanding, including approvals under the Clean Water Act and the Rivers and Harbors Act. These are not minor checkboxes—they are essential safeguards for water quality, navigation, and Delta communities. The State Water Board has also not yet acted on required water rights changes and water quality certifications. There are also serious concerns that the current approvals underestimate impacts to fish species like salmon and Delta smelt, leaving them vulnerable to further decline.
Beyond permitting, the project still faces a fundamental hurdle: how to pay for it. Recent court decisions have confirmed that the state does not currently have a pathway to finance the project through revenue bonds.
In other words, this project cannot lawfully begin construction today, no matter how it is being marketed. The Administration’s pattern of celebrating partial milestones, whether a divided Delta Stewardship Council decision that left issues unresolved or an Endangered Species Act step that covers construction alone, does not bring the Delta Tunnel any closer to being a good idea, an affordable idea, or a lawful one.
Californians deserve an honest assessment of where this project stands. Declaring victory now overlooks the substantial legal, environmental, and financial challenges that remain. Local governments, residents, California tribes, and environmental experts have consistently identified this project’s unacceptable impacts on our communities, water quality, ecosystems, and the regional economy. Those concerns remain unresolved. We will continue to hold this Administration accountable at every step of the permitting process, and we urge ratepayers and taxpayers across the state, who would ultimately foot the bill for this project, to ask why they are being told it is nearly finished when the permitting record shows otherwise.
The Delta Counties Coalition continues to support practical, cost-effective alternatives such as strengthening levees, upgrading existing infrastructure, expanding water recycling, and building resilient storage above and below ground. Solutions that will improve water reliability without risking the Delta’s communities, economy, and ecosystem.”
