A familiar scenario; several years ago a plan was developed to protect the Delta and provide water to California which all agreed would do the job, yet it was killed by arguments that were faulty and the results are now in; the Delta is in worse shape and our solution is long overdue and much costlier, not to mention the damage that has been done already.
This is very similar to what has happened with flood protection and the Auburn Dam in Sacramento.
Hope for Delta deal
Panel has a protection plan, but canal issue still divisive
By Matt Weiser - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PDT Tuesday, September 4, 2007
A surprising degree of consensus is emerging among longtime foes on a plan to protect the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, but battle lines remain visible on the most controversial puzzle piece: a peripheral canal.
Representatives of 41 groups, representing an array of interests, have unveiled a plan they believe will restore the health of the Delta, while maintaining the sensitive ecosystem as a major supplier of water for the south state, and a home to farming and recreation.
The group was appointed to advise a Delta Blue Ribbon Task Force named by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, which met in Sacramento last week. The task force liked what it saw.
"It's a remarkable piece of work," said task force member Ray Seed, a levee expert and UC Berkeley engineering professor.
The task force was created in response to deteriorating conditions in the Delta, which supplies water for 23 million Californians and millions of acres of farmland. The heavy demand for drinking water and irrigation has harmed habitat for six fish species and raised water reliability concerns.
In June, state water export pumps near Tracy were turned off for nine days to protect the Delta smelt, a tiny fish whose numbers have plunged over the past four years. On Friday, a federal judge weighed in, finding that the law requires that something be done to protect the threatened smelt. In a ruling expected to have massive repercussions on San Joaquin Valley farming operations, the judge imposed limits on how much water can be pumped south through the Delta from December, when the fish spawn, until June.
Agreement by the advisory panel is a major step toward a new vision for managing the Delta, since the group's members -- environmentalists, farmers, water users, business and fishing groups -- have fought over its resources for years.
"There's a big difference this time," said Topper van Loben Sels, a Delta farmer and member of the Delta Protection Commission. "It's vital to the state of California that we get this right. If we upset the economy, we're all going to suffer."
