A daily compilation of significant news articles and comment
July 3, 2007
3. Watersheds
Salton Sea's restoration leadership named - Desert Sun
HETCH HETCHY:
Editorial: Why waste $7 million studying a bad idea? -
LOWER RIVER DOCUMENTS RELEASED:
Proposed
Desert Sun – 7/3/07
By Jake Henshaw, staff writer
Resources Secretary Mike Chrisman would take charge of the initial restoration work at the
The proposal is seen as an interim step while local, state and other parties interested in restoring the state's largest lake develop a permanent agency to oversee the work that could cost $8.9 billion and last 75 years.
The interim step was proposed by the staff of the Assembly Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee as an amendment to Senate Bill 187 by Sen. Denise Ducheny, D-San Diego, that will be before the panel today.
Ducheny was attending a family funeral Monday and couldn't be reached for comment.
Chrisman also couldn't be reached for comment.
Rick Daniels, executive director of the Salton Sea Authority, said he doesn't oppose this step, but stressed that his agency will push hard for creation of a permanent governing agency this year.
"We need to make that decision this year because I think to advocate for the restoration of the sea we need an agency where that is their primary, if not sole, assignment," Daniels said.
One thing on which everyone seems to agree is that initial restoration work needs to start as soon as possible.
This includes development of 2,000 acres of shallow saline pool known as the Early Start Habitat, along with biological, air and water quality monitoring. 
"I think what is needed is to move forward on the stuff we can easily agree on," said Kim Delfino of the Defenders of Wildlife, an environmental group.
At issue is the future of the Salton Sea in
Chrisman headed the state effort that in May produced the $8.9 billion restoration plan to subdivide the present lake, creating a smaller recreation area, marshy wildlife habitat and exposed lakebed that would be managed for dust.
The Senate bill is intended to kick-start the restoration work by locking in $47 million that voters approved for the sea last year and clarifying the authority to spend it.
The current version of the 2007-08 state budget pending in the Legislature includes $23 million from a couple of sources, including the 2006 bond, for the
There also is $30 million in pending federal legislation, Daniels said.
Ducheny and supporters, including the Salton Sea Authority, have been working on plans for a permanent governing agency perhaps based on the structure of existing conservancies throughout the state such as the one for the
Daniels said the authority has suggested a tentative plan that calls for the agency to be run by a board of local representatives, gubernatorial and legislative appointments, plus two state agency heads.
The Torres-Martinez Tribe and relevant federal agencies also would have non-voting status.
"The governance could be a little tricky," Ducheny said in an interview last week. "There are a lot of folks who need to participate in that conversation and we are having it."
Ducheny and Delfino, who has been involved in discussions on the sea's future for years, said in separate interviews they aren't sure a new permanent governing agency must be set up this year.
"We could take some time and do it right," Delfino said. "If we can't reach agreement on a governance structure in the next two years, then we've got a problem."
But Daniels argued for creating a permanent agency now, saying, "there is a sense of urgency because of the threat to the existing fish population.
"I don't want to get into project drift," Daniels said, "because this requires a very focused, aggressive posture." #
http://www.desertsunonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070703/NEWS0701/307030001/1006/news01
HETCH HETCHY:
Editorial: Why waste $7 million studying a bad idea?
Any fantasy that the Bush administration was serious about knocking down O'Shaughnessy Dam has been debunked.
The budget that President Bush's team submitted to Congress recommended that $7 million be set aside to study the possibility of removing the dam and restoring the
Ostensibly, the $7 million would have either confirmed or refuted the state study last year that said it would take at least $3 billion, and possibly $10 billion, to restore the valley to its original splendor. Perhaps a federal study would have identified additional funding sources. Any funding sources.
When Congress removed the funds from the budget, there were no tears from President Bush. There were no entreaties, no arm-twisting, no deals offered and no threats made. The budget line just disappeared, sinking out of sight like a pebble tossed into the reservoir.
Perhaps that's because knocking down the dam is a bad idea.
Setting aside the politics,
If you don't believe this now, you will if we have another dry winter.
Draining Hetch Hetchy Reservoir would take 360,000 acre-feet of water out of the system. It would require rethinking how water gets from the Sierra to
A century ago, this newspaper was against the damming of the
Leaving the dam in place is the right call now. #
http://www.modbee.com/opinion/story/13748252p-14331753c.html
LOWER RIVER DOCUMENTS RELEASED:
Proposed
YubaNet – 7/2/07
The Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement (EIR/EIS) for the Proposed Lower Yuba River Accord is available beginning June 26, 2007, for a 60-day public review and comment period ending on August 24, 2007. The Draft EIR/EIS was developed pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) by the Bureau of Reclamation, Yuba County Water Agency (YCWA), and California Department of Water Resources (DWR).
The purpose of the Lower Yuba River Accord is to resolve instream flow issues associated with the operation of the Yuba River Development Project in a way that protects and enhances lower Yuba River fisheries and local water-supply reliability, while providing revenues for local flood control and water supply projects, water for the CALFED Program to use for protection and restoration of Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta fisheries, and improvements in State-wide water supply management, including supplemental water for the Federal Central Valley Project and California's State Water Project. The only identified potentially significant impact for the project is related to energy consumption. Increases in average annual energy consumption would occur due to increases in ground-water pumping within the Yuba basin.
The Draft EIR/EIS is available online at http://www.usbr.gov/mp/nepa/nepa_projdetails.cfm?Project_ID=2549. For a DVD of the document, please contact Ms. Dianne Simodynes at 916-569-1000 or Dianne.Simodynes@hdrinc.com. Should you encounter problems accessing the document online, please contact Ms. Lynnette Wirth at 916-978-5102 or lwirth@mp.usbr.gov. #
http://www.yubanet.com/artman/publish/article_60365.shtml
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