From the California Water Impact Network:
The California Water Impact Network (C-WIN) has submitted comments to the State Water Resources Control Board on the Final Draft Bay-Delta Plan, emphasizing that approval of the plan’s Voluntary Agreements without evidence for their effectiveness would be arbitrary, capricious, catastrophic to the Bay-Delta ecosystem, and unfair to ratepayers.
C-WIN also noted that the Board must follow the law and reject Trump administration claims that the US Bureau of Reclamation is not subject to state rules for operating the Central Valley Project, which supplies massive quantities of water to Central Valley agriculture.
Max Gomberg, C-WIN’s Senior Policy Advisor and Board Secretary, said the Board pursued voluntary agreements for a decade without ever presenting evidence for why they would be more effective than regulation for restoring California’s salmon populations.
The plan’s voluntary agreements allow large contractors to provide limited additional river flows and habitat restoration rather than submit to standard regulation that requires more flows to maintain healthy fish populations.
“Saying that voluntary agreements lead to durable solutions does not make it true,” said Gomberg. “The only durable solution is providing more water for the rivers and reducing the amount of water used for nut trees and other water intensive crops.”
Gomberg also said that Californians will not receive water affordability benefits until the state prioritizes water for urban uses over agricultural commodities.
“State law prioritizes water for domestic use,” Gomberg said. “But we are constantly subjected to the narrative that the only way to ensure reliable urban water supply is to take more water from the environment. If the Board were willing to do its job, we could have a healthy environment and reliable urban water supply.”
Gomberg also noted that the Board’s legal duties include regulating the Central Valley Project, and that it must reject Trump administration demands to abdicate its authority.
“The state must vigorously defend itself from federal bullying.” said Gomberg.
Note: The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Maven’s Notebook.
C-WIN: Voluntary agreements are unjustified and do not satisfy the board’s duty to protect the Bay-Delta ecosystem
From the California Water Impact Network:
C-WIN also noted that the Board must follow the law and reject Trump administration claims that the US Bureau of Reclamation is not subject to state rules for operating the Central Valley Project, which supplies massive quantities of water to Central Valley agriculture.
Max Gomberg, C-WIN’s Senior Policy Advisor and Board Secretary, said the Board pursued voluntary agreements for a decade without ever presenting evidence for why they would be more effective than regulation for restoring California’s salmon populations.
The plan’s voluntary agreements allow large contractors to provide limited additional river flows and habitat restoration rather than submit to standard regulation that requires more flows to maintain healthy fish populations.
“Saying that voluntary agreements lead to durable solutions does not make it true,” said Gomberg. “The only durable solution is providing more water for the rivers and reducing the amount of water used for nut trees and other water intensive crops.”
Gomberg also said that Californians will not receive water affordability benefits until the state prioritizes water for urban uses over agricultural commodities.
“State law prioritizes water for domestic use,” Gomberg said. “But we are constantly subjected to the narrative that the only way to ensure reliable urban water supply is to take more water from the environment. If the Board were willing to do its job, we could have a healthy environment and reliable urban water supply.”
Gomberg also noted that the Board’s legal duties include regulating the Central Valley Project, and that it must reject Trump administration demands to abdicate its authority.
“The state must vigorously defend itself from federal bullying.” said Gomberg.