In a press release, Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) today announced the introduction of her Restoration of Essential Conveyance Act, a bill to authorize $800 million in federal funding “to repair critical canals in the San Joaquin Valley damaged by land sinking from overpumping of groundwater, known as subsidence, and for environmental restoration.” By Dan Bacher As I […]
In the latest lawsuit to contest Trump administration water policies, three environmental groups have sued the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation over the granting of permanent federal water contracts to water users supplied by the Central Valley Project (CVP). By Dan Bacher The lawsuit, brought by the Center for Biological Diversity, Restore the Delta and Planning and Conservation League, […]
On May 11, a federal judge ruled that a federal Bureau of Reclamation water diversion and pumping plan, lethal to Chinook salmon, Central Valley steelhead and other fish species in the Central Valley and Delta, must temporarily restrict water pumping from the Delta. The order blocks the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation until May 31 from increasing […]
The Yurok Tribe, the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations (PCFFA), and the Institute for Fisheries Resources (IFR), represented by the nonprofit environmental law firm Earthjustice, are seeking a temporary restraining order to reinstate water flows in the Klamath River to protect threatened salmon, according to a joint press release issued today. By Dan Bacher […]
On May 11, AquAlliance sued the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) and San Luis Delta Mendota Water Authority (SLDMWA) in federal District Court over their long term water transfer transfer program that threatens Northern California farms, fish and communities. An environmental group that exists to defend northern California waters and to challenge threats to the hydrologic health of […]
On April 30 during the midst of the COVID-19 Pandemic, the negotiators for the Department of Water Resources and the State Water Contractors finalized an Agreement In Principle (AIP) for the State Contract Amendment for Delta Conveyance, according to a notice sent out yesterday by the Kearns and West Facilitation Team. By Dan Bacher This is a significant […]
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California has granted a preliminary injunction in the State’s lawsuit challenging the Trump Administration’s unlawful expansion of water export operations in the Central Valley. By Dan Bacher “We applaud the court for hitting pause on the Trump Administration’s reckless attempt to expand water export operations at […]
Donald Trump’s recent rant about California water, based loosely on corporate agribusiness talking points, is one of the most strangest of his that I have listened to. I decided to transcribe the president’s musings from the below video, shared on Twitter by Aaron Rupar, an associate editor at Vox covering politics and policy, so people could see exactly what what Trump said. […]
It’s seems that nobody is happy with the California Department of Resources (DWR) over its water policies this week. Just after the state and federal water contractors sued DWR and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife over their incidental take permit for endangered species, four environmental groups on Wednesday, April 29, sued DWR in the San Francisco Superior […]
The California water wars amped up today when the State Water Contractors (SWC) today filed a lawsuit against the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) and California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) over the March 31 Incidental Take Permit (ITP) for the long-term operation of the State Water Project (SWP). By Dan Bacher The Incidental Take Permit allows the […]
In a move backed by fishing, environmental and tribal organizations, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, the California Natural Resources Agency, and the California Environmental Protection Agency today filed a motion for a preliminary injunction in a lawsuit challenging the Trump Administration’s “unlawful expansion of federal water export operations in the Central Valley.” By Dan […]
On April 15, U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein and Members of the House of Representatives, including Representatives Jim Costa, TJ Cox, John Garamendi, and Josh Harder, sent a letter to Governor Gavin Newsom imploring him to reach an agreement with federal agencies through negotiation, rather than judicial action, on increasing water pumping from the Delta to San Joaquin corporate […]
I tried to join yesterday’s on-line emergency teleconference of the California Fish and Game Commission, but this reporter, along with many others, wasn’t able to get on the call or webinar. By Dan Bacher The Commission was scheduled remotely to meet at 8:30 a.m. Thursday, April 9, to discuss delegating temporary authority to the California Department of […]
Corporate agribusiness interests and the Congressional allies are taking advantage of the current Coronavirus pandemic to promote the Trump administration plan to take more water from Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Six Congressional Representatives sent a letter to Governor Gavin Newsom on Tuesday, April 7 expressing their “disappointment and serious concerns with the new Incidental Take Permit (ITP) for the Long-Term […]
During the midst of the COVID-19 Pandemic, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) issued a controversial Incidental Take Permit (ITP) to the Department of Water Resources (DWR) for long-term operations of the State Water Project (SWP). The permit covers four species protected under the California Endangered Species Act: Delta smelt, longfin smelt, winter-run Chinook […]