[Water_news] 3. DWR'S CALIFORNIA WATER NEWS: WATERSHEDS - 3/19/07

Department of Water Resources

California Water News

A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment

 

March 19, 2007

 

3. Watersheds

 

DELTA ISSUES:

Environmental alternatives -- Delta habitat preserve search looks to Solano - Fairfield Republic

 

New parties come to table for delta talks; More residents, other private interests want their concerns voiced - Modesto Bee

 

Guest Column: 'A calamity' for the Delta; Development in Lathrop 'recipe for further destruction' - Stockton Record

 

Guest Column: Marsh provided fertile future; A century ago, the rich soil was boon to Solano - Woodland Daily Democrat

 

Column: Delta Vision Process Excludes Recreational Anglers, Indian Tribes - California Chronicle

 

HETCH HETCHY RESTORATION:

Bush budget encourages Restore Hetch Hetchy group - Sonora Union Democrat

 

Short Takes: Congressman's brain dammed upon Hetch Hetchy - Modesto Bee

 

BATTLE CREEK RESTORATION PROJECT:

DFG Announces Salmon, Steelhead Restoration Plans for Battle Creek - By Department of Fish and Game

 

 

DELTA ISSUES:

Environmental alternatives -- Delta habitat preserve search looks to Solano

Fairfield Republic – 3/19/07

By Barry Eberling, staff writer

 

FAIRFIELD - Solano County could play a key role in preserving habitat for the troubled Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, despite being only on the periphery of this major state water source and environmental haven.

But various county groups want emerging habitat restoration ideas to take into account local concerns. For example, new tidal wetlands could mean more decaying vegetation near pumps that bring delta water to local cities.

"In general, there are some water-quality concerns with those type of projects," Solano County Water Agency General Manager David Okita said.

Solano County is on the western edge of the delta, which peters out near Rio Vista amid vast tracts of rural farmland. Yet the county has such areas as Suisun Marsh, which technically isn't even the delta, the Yolo Bypass and Cache Slough.

With the heart of the delta facing flooding and other challenges, some researchers are looking to these Solano County areas to recreate the historic, natural delta habitats.

"It is also quite likely that money invested in these adjacent areas will produce a bigger return in ecological value on a per-dollar basis than money spent on interior delta projects," says a February report by the Public Policy Institute of California called "Envisioning Futures for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta."

 

Trouble in delta heartland

The delta is the chokepoint of massive state and federal water systems serving vast Central Valley farms and Southern California metropolises, as well as Solano County. It's also a farming center in its own right, a recreation hot spot and an environmental haven.

Farmers a century ago put up levees in the delta to create dry land. Peat soils in the central and southern delta subsided behind levees, in some areas more than 15 feet below sea level. Earthquakes, rising sea levels because of climate change and other factors could cause levee failure, flooding delta islands, the report said.

"From an ecological point of view, it is unclear what can or will be done to islands in these areas to benefit the species of concern, given the high likelihood of uncontrolled flooding," it said.

Much of the Solano County locations are behind levees, also. But the subsidence is less. Places such as Suisun Marsh have fewer non-native invasive species, perhaps because of its brackish waters. The Solano County locations are far from the huge pumps that take water to canals leading to the Central Valley and Southern California.

Cache Slough near Solano water pumps

One Solano County area targeted by the report for restoration is the Cache Slough region north of Rio Vista. This includes Liberty Island, an area that flooded when levees broke during the 1998 storms, and Barker Slough.

"Arguably, this region is most like the historical delta, although many of its channels have been leveed or otherwise altered," the report said.

But the North Bay Aqueduct begins in this area, with pumps that lift water out of Barker Slough. Okita and his agency want to make certain freshwater wetlands restoration projects there don't hinder shipping drinking water to Fairfield, Vacaville, Vallejo and Napa.

More wetlands could put more organic matter into the water, Okita said. That makes it harder to clean the water up at treatment plants.

Plus, more freshwater wetlands could attract the rare delta smelt. But then the North Bay Aqueduct pumps could get shut down at times to avoid sucking up and killing the fish, which are protected by the Endangered Species Act.

SCWA has talked to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service about some type of agreement, so increased numbers of smelt wouldn't stop North Bay Aqueduct water pumping, Okita said.

The Solano Land Trust is working on a habitat restoration project near Barker Slough, Okita said. The water agency will monitor the project to see how it affects water quality.

"We're watching restoration projects in that area very carefully and letting agencies like the Fish and Wildlife Service and Solano Land Trust know we have concerns," Okita said.

The message seems to be getting out. The Public Policy Institute report mentions the presence of the North Bay Aqueduct pumps.

Suisun Marsh owners want voice heard

Another area mentioned in the report is Suisun Marsh, which is 116,000 acres of wetlands, waterways and uplands south of Suisun City and Fairfield. Levees could be breached there to let in the tides, creating a more natural area.

But Steven Chappell, executive director of the Suisun Resource Conservation District, wants to make certain the 150 or so duck clubs that own much of Suisun Marsh have a say. The district represents the duck club owners.

He expressed concern about people looking to Suisun Marsh for delta environmental projects without realizing the duck clubs have preserved the marsh.

"You have very active stakeholders," Chappell said. "The landowners of the marsh have been good stewards of the resource. They can't be left out of the discussion about long-term solutions."

The duck clubs run managed wetlands, not the tidal wetlands the planners want created. Managed wetlands are behind levees.

 

The duck clubs flood and drain the land at certain times of the year using pumps and pipes, in effect farming the land to grow plants favored by ducks.

Van Sickle Island is mentioned in the report as a candidate for restoration. But Chappell is skeptical about breaching the levees there and changing the managed wetlands into tidal wetlands.

The island is owned by about 15 private duck clubs, Chappell said. It is one of the more subsided areas of Suisun Marsh.

"If it were restored to tidal action, it wouldn't be an emergent vegetative marsh," Chappell said. "It would be open water."

There are other areas in the marsh that are better candidates to be restored to tidal wetlands, Chappell said. Three areas already targeted for restoration total about 1,000 acres, he said.

Another area mentioned in the study for habitat restoration is the Yolo Bypass. This swathe of land in the east county is dry for much of the year, but carries vast amounts of excess Sacramento River water during large storms.

"The delta doubles in size when the Yolo Bypass is flooded," the report said. "The problem is the bypass floods only erratically and not always at times optimal for fish and birds."

The report sees room for manipulating the water there to help the environment. But various Solano County officials have long said that any changes to the Yolo Bypass must not impede its ability to convey flood waters which pour out of the bypass into the Sacramento River near Rio Vista.

Possible restoration areas in Solano

-- Cache Slough region in eastern Solano County north of Rio Vista. Includes Liberty Island and the Barker Slough area where North Bay Aqueduct pumps bring water to Fairfield, Vacaville and Vallejo.

-- Van Sickle Island/Southern Suisun Marsh south of Suisun City. Suisun Marsh is the largest contiguous estuarine marsh in the United States.

-- Yolo Bypass in eastern Solano County provides an alternate route for Sacramento River waters during period of intense storms, preventing flooding in the Sacramento area. It is usually dry. #

http://local.dailyrepublic.net/story_localnews.php?a=news01.txt

 

 

New parties come to table for delta talks; More residents, other private interests want their concerns voiced

Modesto Bee – 3/18/07

By Michael G. Mooney, staff writer

 

SUISUN CITY — That the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta faces multiple maladies should come as no surprise.

 

The delta's many woes have been pondered, analyzed and even legislated for more than 30 years.

 

Key issues include:

Water quality

Crumbling levees

Flooding

 

Now, growth and development are adding to the problem. Pressure is mounting to urbanize big chunks of the delta.

 

Because much of the delta is at or below sea level, the new subdivisions and shopping centers will have to rely upon an aging system of earthen levees to hold back the water.

 

Numerous federal and state officials are engaged in the quest, along with agribusiness and large water agencies such as Southern California's Metropolitan Water District.

 

But most of the estimated 200 people who gathered Friday for an all-day delta conference at Suisun City's Joseph A. Nelson Community Center were not the usual suspects.

 

"We're seeing (more) private citizens and interests here," said Rita Schmidt Sudman, executive director of the Water Education Foundation, "who haven't been at the table before."

 

The Suisun City session was the second such conference sponsored by the nonprofit, nonpartisan foundation. At least three more conferences are planned in coming months at other locations around the state.

 

Much is at stake.

 

Without a viable delta, the state's economy could find itself in real trouble.

 

Consider this:

 

The delta is one of the few estuaries in the world used as a major drinking water supply.

 

Two-thirds of Californians rely upon the delta for at least a portion of their drinking water.

 

About a half-million acres of agricultural land are irrigated in the delta-Suisun region, which encompasses parts of six counties.

 

An additional 2.5 million acres of agricultural land are irrigated with exported delta water.

 

An estimated 42,500 square miles of land drain into the delta.

 

While much of Stanislaus and Merced counties don't rely on the delta directly for water, Schmidt Sudman said everyone has a stake in what happens to the fragile estuary.

 

Heart of state's water system

 

The area's major rivers — Tuolumne, Stanislaus, Merced and San Joaquin — all send water into the delta.

 

"People in Modesto and Turlock and Merced need to be at the table, too," she said, "helping to find solutions for the problems there."

 

If the problems aren't fixed and the delta's role as the hub of the state's water system is diminished or destroyed, Schmidt Sudman said, water to slake the state's growing thirst will have to come from somewhere.

 

"They may come to your area looking for water trades or transfers that aren't necessarily advantageous to you," she said.

 

Control of the Tuolumne River, which provides irrigation and drinking water to much of Stanislaus County, rests largely with the Modesto and Turlock irrigation districts.

 

While Friday's conference produced no specific answers, it did give residents, as well as representatives of various hunting, fishing and boating groups, a chance to voice their concerns.

 

Their ideas and suggestions will be added to a growing body of testimony that will help shape a "vision" and identity for the delta.

 

But finding solutions to the delta's complex web of problems and competing interests likely will require compromise and some sacrifice.

 

"The delta is the heart of the California water system," Schmidt Sudman said. "We're all connected to the delta." #

http://www.modbee.com/local/story/13398880p-14016675c.html

 

 

Guest Column: 'A calamity' for the Delta; Development in Lathrop 'recipe for further destruction'

Stockton Record – 3/17/07

By Ralph E. Shaffer, History professor emeritus, California Polytechnic State University, Pomona, and R. William Robinson, Director, Upper San Gabriel Valley Water District

 

For a century, California has tried to maintain the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta as a freshwater lake, constructing 1,600 miles of levees and budgeting billions of dollars to maintain them.

 

Now a multidisciplinary committee sponsored by the Public Policy Institute of California has ignited debate over a menu of conflicting possibilities for the Delta's future.

 

We agree with its conclusion that maintaining a freshwater Delta appears unpromising.

 

So do alternatives that would reduce water exports from the Delta, putting the water supply for 22 million Californians at risk from a disaster-triggered State Water Project closure.

 

Only re-establishment of the Delta as a natural checkerboard of brackish tidal marshes with seasonal flood plains - creating island and channel habitat diversity - is desirable and technically viable in the real world of politics.

 

The report, titled "Envisioning Futures for the Delta," failed to advocate a specific solution to the Delta's problems.

 

The vision that remains unspoken is the nightmare scenario of the Delta's probable reversion to a salty inland sea as the result of several natural-disaster scenarios that could occur in the next 50 years.

 

That Delta disaster also envisions a simultaneous collapse of California's economy in a manner resembling post-Katrina Louisiana.

 

Moreover, the report failed to address in a serious, detailed way the final remaining 800-pound gorilla - the issue of land use.

 

 

The gravity of the matter is illustrated by one example. Developers apparently believe that to urbanize the Delta is to save it.

 

In June, the state Reclamation Board approved the first stage of British-owned Cambay group's proposed 11,000-home project in Lathrop. It sits on Stewart Island in the flood plain of the San Joaquin River. Three times in the past century, the island has been under water.

 

Despite objections from environmental groups, members of the Reclamation Board also approved an encroachment permit, allowing homes to be built on the levee.

 

Lathrop officials see the Stewart Island project, which also includes major commercial development, as an economic boon creating jobs, increasing the market for local businesses and producing needed revenue for city government.

 

Approval of the project foreshadows a calamity for the Delta's future.

 

It threatens the ecology of the tidal estuary. It also limits the state's options because the island no longer will be available as a flood overflow and bypass basin.

 

When great floods come again - and they will - water that would flow across Stewart Island instead would inundate areas already developed along the San Joaquin River.

 

The Stewart Island project is a recipe for further Delta destruction, sited at a location experts agree already is unsustainable.

 

Moreover, construction of 224 luxury homes upon levees overlooking the flood-prone San Joaquin River is outrageous and unconscionable.

 

Enter the state Legislature, until now frozen into a state of inaction by the complexity and highly political nature of the problem

 

 

The Legislature seems unable to proceed due to contradictory ecological and urbanization pressures.

 

Leadership requires courage. Despite the urge to do nothing, the Legislature must swiftly develop a physical and regulatory solution that protects the health and safety of California's economy and residents.

 

Such protection might require the state to apply Fifth Amendment eminent domain procedures and condemnation powers to mitigate a future regionwide disaster that could cripple the state's economy.

 

Or the Legislature might apply a state zoning and development plan that would erase the Stewart Island project.

 

Projects such as the one in Lathrop are injurious to the public - as residents whose water supply is threatened and as taxpayers.

 

The Legislature needs to force Reclamation Board and Lathrop officials to take another look. #

http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070317/A_OPINION02/703170315/-1/A_OPINION06

 

 

Guest Column: Marsh provided fertile future; A century ago, the rich soil was boon to Solano

Woodland Daily Democrat – 3/18/07

By Sabine Goerke-Shrode, local historian and freelance writer

 

Solano County is fortunate that the Suisun Marsh is within its bounds. The marsh is part of the San Francisco Bay-Delta estuary system and is the largest contiguous brackish water marsh on the West Coast.

 

The 116,000 acres of the marsh provide habitat for large numbers of birds, animals, reptiles and more than 40 fish species. Thousands of waterfowl annually rest here during their migration on the Pacific Flyway.

 

The marsh's more than 230 miles of levees in the Delta protect drinking water for 22 million people from being intruded upon by salt water.

 

Today we recognize how fragile both the Delta and Suisun Marsh are. Major studies focus on several models to protect this important ecosystem for future generations.

 

One hundred years ago, residents viewed this natural treasure differently.

 

An article on the potential of the Suisun Marsh for agricultural development appeared in the Solano Republican on Feb. 23, 1912. The writer of the article visited several landowners on Joyce Island and Grizzly Island, where a number of ranchers farmed successfully.

 

"That is a wonderful section of Solano County," he wrote (this likely was a male reporter). " Those people have a great, wide, level and marvelous world of their own down there, with soil as rich as mud.

 

"Solano County has long been justly famed for its rich and fertile soil, the finest fruit soil in the State of California, the finest alfalfa land in California, and last its millions of acres of almost useless and worthless marsh lands."

 

At that time, any open terrain was immediately valued for its agricultural use. Thus our writer continued: "But now the marsh lands are coming into their own and soon will be more valuable than any other in the county, even though many old settlers still scoff at the idea. But those who scoff are those who have not seen what the marsh land will do when handled by those have the proper 'know how.' "

 

Reclaiming marshland for agricultural use was a labor- and cost-intensive process. Tractors had to be brought in to turn over the sod, followed by dredgers that cut canals along the plowed tracts to help with drainage. These canals allowed water to run off into the surrounding sloughs. The soil from the canals in turn was used to erect levees around the reclaimed land.

 

The ranchers our writer visited were all in the process of reclaiming land. Among them was Mrs. Alexander.

 

"Mrs. Alexander, the lady rancher of the tule lands, was working numerous men and had a big C. L. Best tractor turning over furrows around a field containing hundreds of acres of this marsh land, while crops were sown and growing nicely in adjoining fields. A dredger was busily manufacturing canals and levees at one trip in fields not too far distant. This lady's experience on these marsh lands is of such a character that she wants more land reclaimed and is going right at the reclamation work."

 

The Chaplin ranch came next in his visit. Here, more than 40 men were at work.

 

"They were preparing to irrigate the crops because of the want of rain, and that brings up another immense advantage of these marsh lands. They can be irrigated at any and all times and the cost of the water is nothing, absolutely nix."

 

The sloughs were always filled with water, "Hence, to irrigate, raise the flood gates - and let 'er go. Ample water at all times served twice each twenty-four hours, absolutely without cost. Pretty nice, isn't it?"

 

With rainfall below average and a dry early spring, these farmers were glad to be able to flood their fields.

 

"Mr. Chaplin irrigated some 700 acres Friday or Saturday. Think of it! Watered 700 acres in one day with the help of five or six men "

 

Not only was the water free, but the soil was also ideally suited to flooding.

 

"In irrigation countries it requires much time to do such work," continued the writer, "because unless due care is used the crops are ruined, but here the soil is right to take large amounts of water, use what is needed and throw off or filter off the surplus "

He also marveled at the fertility of this soil.

 

"Seed sown into unplowed soil where salt grass stands eight inches high and thick as hair on a 'sheep,' if run over with a disc, proceeds to grow as fast and fill out as well as where plowed. This was shown us in numerous places."

 

With his article, the writer speculated that others would recognize the agricultural potential of the marsh, rather than look upon it "as almost worthless, to be used only as pasturage for cattle and hunting preserves for San Francisco sportsmen. Right now men of ample means are coming in and gobbling up these lands "

 

The years around 1912 were indeed years of land speculation in Solano County. Among the men coming in was Patrick Calhoun, who purchased large tracts east of today's Travis Air Force Base.

 

His company, Solano Irrigated Farms, tried to sell plots for "Solano City", a new town for 75,000 residents.

 

The elaborate development scheme collapsed in October 1913.

 

Agriculture in the Suisun Marsh continues into present days, concentrating on cattle and pasturage.

 

Sabine Goerke-Shrode is a local historian and freelance writer. She alternates the history column every other week with Jerry Bowen of the Vacaville Historical Society. For suggestions, or to submit historical photos or information, she can be reached via e-mail at sm.shrode@sbcglobal.net.

http://www.dailydemocrat.com/search//ci_5465966

 

 

Column: Delta Vision Process Excludes Recreational Anglers, Indian Tribes

California Chronicle – 3/17/07

By Dan Bacher

 

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “Delta Vision” apparently doesn’t include recreational anglers or Indian Tribes, based on the appointments by Secretary for Resources Mike Chrisman to a 41-member Delta Stakeholders Group to advise the “Blue Ribbon Task Force” in February.

 

“This panel will represent Delta interests, provide assistance and make recommendations to a Blue Ribbon Task Force appointed by the Governor last week, on ideas and innovations that will lead to a sustainable Delta,” according to a press release from the Governor’s office.

 

Former Assemblyman and past Sacramento Mayor Phil Isenberg – who was also chairman of the controversial MPLA Blue Ribbon Task Force - will serve as chairman of the Blue Ribbon Task Force.

 

“The Governor’s Delta Vision process depends upon a wide array of stakeholders and the wealth of knowledge and depth of experience they bring to the table,” said Chrisman.

 

However, not one single recreational angler or Indian Tribe representative was included in the so-called stakeholders group. The lone fishing group representative, Zeke Grader of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fisherman’s Associations, is overwhelmed by a panel heavy with people like Tom Birmingham of the Westlands Water District, water contractors, agribusiness folks, political hacks and others who are largely responsible for the crisis the Delta is in now.

 

In creating “Delta Vision,” the Governor’s office claimed its purpose is “to provide a sustainable management program for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay Delta, a unique natural resource of local, state, and national significance. Delta Vision was established by and Executive Order in September 2006.”

 

The Delta, formed by the confluence of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers, is the largest estuary on the West Coast and plays a key role in sustaining the coast’s salmon, striped bass, sturgeon and other valuable species. State and federal scientists since 2002 have documented an alarming decline in four pelagic (open water) species – Delta smelt, longfin smelt, threadfin shad and juvenile striped bass – and the zooplankton that these fish feed upon.

 

In addition to being the hub of the state and federal water projects, the 57 islands and waterways of the Delta are traversed by a major portion of Northern California infrastructure, including hundreds of gas lines, six highways, five high voltage lines and three railroads.

 

“We recognize the competing demands upon Delta interests as we work toward a sustainable management plan,” Chrisman said. “But we need to develop a common vision that we’ll be able to implement and this group will play an integral role in helping us reach that goal.”

 

Chrisman appointed several folks from the Environmental Water Caucus that have worked closely with anglers on the battles to restore the Delta, including Jonas Minton, Senior Project Manager for the Planning and Conservation League; Barry Nelson, Senior Policy Analyst, Natural Resource Defense Council; and Spreck Rosekrans, Senior Analyst for Environmental Defense, specializing in land, water and wildlife and electric utility issues.

 

Although these people are knowledgeable about Delta and California water issues, they form a distinct minority on the panel and their input will be overwhelmed by the water contractors and political hacks pushing for more water exports and a peripheral canal.

 

After being named to the panel, Zeke Grader quipped, “I just assumed I was appointed to represent commercial fishing and that there would be recreational fishing and tribal representatives as well, not that I'd be the only fishing representative. Mind you I don't mind carrying recreational and tribal concerns or the fact that I’m outnumbered something like 41 to 1 (the ratio has to be 50 to 1 or greater before I start to worry and that's only if the others have any modicum of intelligence) this old Marine can handle himself just fine).”

 

Grader agreed with me about the need for the panel to have recreational and tribal representatives such as the Winnemem Wintu Tribe on the panel.

 

“There does need to be recreational and tribal representation on the committee,” he emphasized. “First, because they can do a better job than me in representing their concerns. Second, because I have to deal with a lot of different issues and fisheries, there may be times when I can't be present. For that reason we need more than one fishing representative and for balance those should be from recreational fishing and tribe.”

 

So why doesn’t the Governor’s vision include recreational anglers or California Indian Tribes such as the Winnemem Wintu?

 

I suspect that it may because recreational anglers and the Winnemem Wintu Tribe have been in the forefront of the battle to stop the enlargement of Shasta Dam and to increase state and federal government water exports from the Delta. Anglers and the tribe most recently led the successful battle to temporarily halt the implementation of the South Delta Improvement Program, SDIP, a wacky scheme to redesign the hydrology of the Delta to provide for more water exports.

 

Recreational anglers and the tribe have also been critical of state and federal plans to resurrect the peripheral canal, a badly flawed scheme to route water around the Delta to the state and federal pumps.

 

“Our position is that there absolutely has to be some tribal representation on the panel, for a variety of reasons, because of the tribes that live in the Bay Area and up and down the Central Valley,” said Gary Mulcahy, governmental liaison for the Winnemem Wintu Tribe. “Whatever decisions the stakeholders panel and task force make about how the Delta will be managed will impact salmon and steelhead, which are important to indigenous people, and will affect sacred sites and cultural areas. The simple fact that there is no tribal representation on the stakeholders panel or task force once again shows how the Schwarzenegger administration doesn’t think native peoples’ opinions are important. “

 

He emphasized, “It’s interesting that Westlands Water District just purchased land to acquire water rights on the McCloud River and to remove any impediments to the enlargement of Shasta Dam, such as our sacred sites on the McCloud, so they can increased water exports to southern California. It’s very clear that the Governor didn’t want any tribal representatives - especially, the Winnemem Wintu - involved in either the stakeholders group or the task force.”

 

“It’s remarkable that no recreational anglers were even asked to apply for the panel,” said John Beuttler, conservation director of the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance. “The Governor apparently doesn’t envision anglers being at the table when it comes to making decisions on Delta water. It is also remarkable there is no water conservation and desalinization plans included as options in the Public Policy Institute (PPIC) of California study, ‘Envisioning Futures for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta,’ released on February 7.”

 

The people most impacted by the Delta decisions have been completely left out of the process. The Governor's Delta Vision Stakeholder Panel - just like his Delta Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force - appears to be a sham.

 

I suggest that everybody concerned about the inequitable composition of this "stakeholder" panel contact the Governor to demand that the stakeholder panel and task force be made more inclusive.

 

The first meeting of the Delta Vision Stakeholder Coordination Group was held on Monday, March 5, and Tuesday, March 6, 2007, at the Sterling Hotel Ballroom, 1300 H Street, Sacramento, CA 95814.

 

Contact: Governor’s Office, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, State Capitol Building, Sacramento, CA 95814, Phone: 916-445-2841. Fax: 916-445-4633. To send an Email please visit: http://www.govmail.ca.gov . #

http://www.californiachronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=22325

 

 

HETCH HETCHY RESTORATION:

Bush budget encourages Restore Hetch Hetchy group

Sonora Union Democrat – 3/16/07

By Mike Morris, staff writer

 

A Sonora-based group pushing to have O'Shaughnessy Dam torn down and Hetch Hetchy Reservoir drained is actively promoting President Bush's proposal to further study the idea.

 

Ron Good, executive director of Restore Hetch Hetchy, and Dave Mihalic, a former Yose-mite National Park superintendent, were in Washington, D.C., last week supporting Bush's proposal to allocate $7 million to more closely study the idea of restoring Hetch Hetchy Valley.

 

So far, the trip has apparently been successful: Rep. Dan Lungren, R-Gold River, announced Thursday that he is the first congressman to formally support draining Hetch Hetchy, a water source for Groveland and 2.4 million Bay Area residents.

 

Lungren, whose district includes Calaveras County, met with Good and Mihalic last week.

 

"We're cleaning up all sorts of Superfund sites and mistakes of yesteryear," Mihalic said Thursday from his Montana home.

 

"Here we have found a way to continue to have a water supply, to continue to have power generation, and to come up with a second Yosemite Valley. To me, it seems worth it to take a look at the costs and benefits and that's what this study is all about."

 

The president's $2.9 trillion budget, proposed last month for the 2008 fiscal year, includes $7 million to "support Hetch Hetchy restoration studies" that would explore the potential environmental and recreational advantages of returning the valley — which lies in the Tuolumne County portion of Yosemite National Park — to its natural state.

 

Federal studies would build upon last year's analysis by the California Department of Water Resources, which found restoring the valley is possible but would cost between $3 billion and $10 billion.

 

Bush's funding proposal, however, faces opposition in Congress where the idea has never found broad political support.

 

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the San Francisco Democrat who serves on the Senate appropriations committee, is a vocal opponent of tearing down the dam and has said she will try and make sure the money is not in the final budget.

 

The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission operates the reservoir, which stores 117 billion gallons of water. The water system stretches all the way from Yosemite to San Francisco.

 

SFPUC officials have argued that draining the valley would threaten the region's water supply and rob the city 20 percent of its electricity.

 

Congress approved damming the Tuolumne River nearly 100 years ago to create the reservoir and provide drinking water for San Francisco. Hetch Hetchy — about 15 miles north of Yosemite Valley — is the 20th largest reservoir in the state.

 

While on Capitol Hill last week, Good and Mihalic met with Department of the Interior officials as well as several members of the House of Representatives and their staff.

 

Mihalic — Yosemite's superintendent from September 1999 to January 2003 — said most people responded in one of two ways.

 

"Some people didn't understand the specifics of the issue, but they knew Dianne Feinstein's position," he said.

 

Others, Mihalic said, "were pleased to see President Bush put the $7 million in his budget. Some expressed surprise at that."

 

When asked if he was surprised Bush included the study in his proposed budget, Good said, "If there's anything Americans can all agree on, it's that we love our national parks and we want to see good things happen to them."

 

Mihalic agreed by saying, "National parks aren't partisan."

 

Good said there was some initial skepticism when Don Hodel, who was part of President Ronald Reagan's administration, first pitched the idea of restoring the valley nearly 20 years ago.

 

Some people thought the Reagan administration just wanted to "stick it to San Francisco," Good said.

 

But that's not the perception now as Hodel still supports draining the reservoir.

 

Restore Hetch Hetchy has rallied several other environmental groups, including the Sierra Club and Tuolumne River Trust, to send a joint letter to all members of Congress voicing support of the funding.

 

"While developing such a restoration plan presents a significant challenge, the reward would be tremendous," the letter states.

 

Within the past month, Restore Hetch Hetchy has also met with state Assemblyman Dave Cogdill, R-Modesto, and leaders of the Tuolumne County Chamber of Commerce, who last year ran newspaper advertisements titled, "Why Chamber Opposes Restore Hetch Hetchy" and "Restore Hetch Hetchy Has it Wrong."

 

"I think it was worthwhile," Good said of the meeting, adding that there is now a "more civilized tone between the two organizations."

 

The chamber, meanwhile, voted Wednesday to "strongly support improving the state's surface water storage capacity."

 

Chamber President George Segarini said, despite meeting with Restore Hetch Hetchy, the chamber opposes removing any dam in California.

 

"We are probably never going to agree on the issue," he said, "but we've agreed to keep this as professional as we can."  #

http://www.uniondemocrat.com/news/story.cfm?story_no=22994

 

 

Short Takes: Congressman's brain dammed upon Hetch Hetchy

Modesto Bee – 3/18/07

 

Interesting position that Rep. Dan Lungren, R-Sacramento, has on dams. Apparently, a dam that contributes to flood protection, provides drinking water for 2 million people, electricity for even more and many downstream recreational opportunities … is bad. But a dam that would be built on an active earthquake fault, that is of questionable use for flood control, isn't needed to provide drinking water and would provide opportunities only for land developers … is good.

 

Lungren became the first member of Congress to call for the removal of O'Shaughnessy Dam in Yosemite National Park, draining the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir. At the same time, he supports building the Auburn Dam on the American River near Sacramento. His reasons include adding 340,000 acre-feet of water storage — which would just about offset the storage that would be lost on the Tuolumne River.

 

The Auburn Dam, by the way, would cost about as much to build as it would cost to tear down O'Shaughnessy — $10 billion. That's $20 billion for water projects that would essentially cancel each other out. Such math might make sense on the banks of the Potomac River, but here on the banks of the Tuolumne River, it just doesn't add up. #

http://www.modbee.com/opinion/story/13395744p-14013788c.html

 

 

BATTLE CREEK RESTORATION PROJECT:

DFG Announces Salmon, Steelhead Restoration Plans for Battle Creek

By Department of Fish and Game – 3/16/07

YubaNet.com

 

The Department of Fish and Game (DFG) today announced $67 million in funding to re-establish endangered and threatened Chinook salmon and steelhead in northern California. Battle Creek, a tributary of the Sacramento River near Manton in Tehama County, becomes the largest single restoration effort funded by DFG, with construction beginning as early as fall 2007.

"The fact that salmon and steelhead may soon be thriving in an additional 42 miles of Battle Creek is a story of partnerships," DFG Director Ryan Broddrick said. "Wide support and cooperative efforts between state and federal agencies, the Pacific Gas and Electric Co., environmental groups, local community groups, and sport and commercial fishing organizations are the reason the Battle Creek Salmon and Steelhead Restoration Project has become a reality."

The project will remove several hydroelectric diversion dams in Battle Creek, as well as increase water flow while protecting fish and creating passages. The restoration project, funded by the California Bay Delta Authority, will allow for maximum anadromous fish habitat restoration to support the Central Valley Project Improvement Act.

Battle Creek offers the geologic and hydrologic conditions to support state- and federally-listed spring- and winter-run Chinook salmon and steelhead. Restoration of habitat in Battle Creek will allow for improvement of these fish populations, which will enhance the consistency in state and federal water project operations and the salmon harvest.

"We are proud to have worked with the communities around Battle Creek to help make this historic project possible," said Steve Thompson, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service California and Nevada Manager. "We are fully committed to this partnership effort to return winter-run and spring-run Chinook salmon and steelhead to the Battle Creek watershed."

Anadromous fish hatch in freshwater, spend up to two years in their natural stream and then swim to the ocean for one to five years before coming back to the freshwater stream to spawn.

Battle Creek has a relatively high and stable flow of water throughout the year, something unusual in California, making it a uniquely drought-resistant habitat for salmon and steelhead. Instead of seasonal rains rapidly flowing out of the watershed, large portions of annual rainfall percolates through the underlying volcanic rock and then emerges as cold springs. Snow melting from Mount Lassen provides cool surface water throughout much of the spring and early summer. This relatively stable base flow and cold water temperature offers an unparalleled restoration opportunity.

"The restoration of this magnificent habitat after nearly 100 years of blockage and human manipulation provides an incredible opportunity to recover three new independent populations of threatened and endangered Chinook salmon and steelhead in a stream where previously, these fish were only barely hanging on," said Michael Tucker, a fisheries biologist with the National Marine Fisheries Service. "The restoration of these Battle Creek populations to self-sustaining levels is considered an extremely important step toward the final recovery of these species. With the commitment of final funding for this project, today is a day for all to celebrate the eminent return of these fish to their native home in Battle Creek."

"Battle Creek is currently the biggest watershed restoration and dam removal project in the state and demonstrates the commitment of California residents to conserving our state's precious natural resources," said Dawit Zeleke, Regional Director for The Nature Conservancy's California program. "The Nature Conservancy is proud to contribute research and funding, through a generous grant from The David & Lucile Packard Foundation, to bring salmon and steelhead back to this once wild and beautiful river."

Historically, Battle Creek was the only Sacramento River tributary downstream of the Pit River capable of supporting all four runs of Chinook salmon and steelhead. In the early 1900s, miners built numerous diversion dams across the creek to provide hydroelectric power to Iron Mountain Mine near Keswick. The dams blocked migrating salmon and steelhead from accessing their spawning habitat and reduced water quality in Battle Creek to the point where these fish and resident trout could barely exist.

The Pacific Gas and Electric Co. later acquired the project as part of its vast hydroelectric operations to provide power for its customers. In 1999, the company voluntarily joined forces with four public agencies to pursue one of the largest and most significant ecological restoration efforts in California. The collaborative effort resulted in the landmark restoration plan that includes the removal of five diversion dams, construction of screens and ladders on three dams on Battle Creek, and increased stream flows.

"Pacific Gas and Electric Co. is proud to continue its tradition of responsible environmental stewardship," said Randy Livingston, PG&E's Senior Director of Power Generation. "This agreement is an example of private industry, public stakeholders, public agencies and a wide variety of others working together to restore the fishery while maintaining a renewable energy source. With the release of funding we are excited about this project and its contribution to the many fishery restoration efforts now underway in California."

Benefits of the restoration project are not confined to just salmon and steelhead. The project will boost populations of the native wild rainbow trout throughout a large portion of Battle Creek. DFG fishery biologists expect the trout population in these areas will increase to between 5,000 and 7,000 trout per mile due to restoration habitat changes.

"This project exemplifies the importance of diverse groups coming together to support common goals," said Kirk Rodgers, the Bureau of Reclamation's Mid-Pacific Regional Director. "Projects like this help restore fish populations and improve state and federal water operations' reliability."

For more information about the project, visit the Bureau of Reclamation Web site, www.usbr.gov/mp/battlecreek

http://www.yubanet.com/artman/publish/article_53065.shtml