Bay Delta
Conservation Plan
From: Henry I.
Miller, Forbes
Coalition
response...It’s
refreshing to see some deep thought and consideration of the full effects of
California's water supply crisis as opposed to the steady drumbeat of
opposition to the Bay Delta Conservation Plan. There are real consequences to
not taking the bold actions led by Governor Jerry Brown. This article by Henry
Miller strips away the phony arguments against BDCP and shows it for what it is
- a solution for California that restores environmental resources and provides
reliable water supplies for millions of Californians.
From: Dan
Bacher, Sacramento Bee
Coalition
response...Installing
"state-of-the-art fish screens" at the south Delta pumps would not
benefit fish, as claimed by the author, but would increase their risk and
exposure to predator fish. Fish are currently pulled to the pumps along a
channel that has become heavily populated with predators. BDCP's proposed
tunnels and screens would divert water from the north Delta. Instead of
trapping the fish at the end of a channel like in the south Delta, fish would
continue their journey along the Sacramento River toward the ocean. The
letter-writer's suggestion is a death sentence for fish.
BDCP provides the
best choice to provide a supply of water to public water agencies that already
have legal contracts for a certain amount of water. That supply becomes
reliable under BDCP for 25 million Californians and thousands of farmers who
are growing food for a world market. Reducing the delivery to only 3 MAF per
year falls short of the existing contracts and would create higher water rates
to urban users and force farmers to idle thousands of acres that would result
in an increased reliance on imported food. Also, no criteria exists from the
State Water Resources Control Board to support the author's position of reduced
exports.
From: Yolanda
Long, Sacramento Bee
Coalition
response...Claims that
the BDCP's proposed tunnels will "drain the Delta" are without fact
and ignores studies already conducted by scientists and researchers who have
worked for year in developing BDCP. The amount of water that will flow through
the tunnels will be limited by the actual day-by-day conditions and flows of
the Sacramento River. Studies have concluded that water diversions will likely
be in the range of average exports over the past 20 years. When flows are high
more water can be moved through the tunnels. When flows are lower less water
will be moved...or none at all under dry conditions. Learn more at
Restoration of the
Delta's ecosystem is also one of the goals of BDCP, which includes protection
for fish species. For the past 20 years State and federal fish agencies have
attempted to protect and restore imperiled fish species through regulating
water supplies that has taken water away from 25 million Californians and
thousands of farmers. The result has been money spent, water lost and
socio-economic upheaval in rural and disadvantaged agricultural communities.
Little if any improvement for these species has been accomplished.
If California is
going to secure a reliable water future that includes a restored Delta
ecosystem, then BDCP must move forward to reality.
From: Richard
Morat, Sacramento Bee
Coalition
response...Over the
past seven years the Bay Delta Conservation Plan has evolved using the largest
body of scientific evidence for any project of its kind in California - more
than 18,000 pages. That information is available for review at www.baydeltaconservationplan.com. The
letter-writer's criticism of the so-called "insatiable thirst" by
agriculture is simply wrong. Between 1967 and 2000 the volume of farm
production rose 89 percent while applied water remained almost flat, according
to data from the Department of Water Resources and the National Agricultural
Statistics Service. And more improvements have occurred since then as well.
Between 2003 and 2010 San Joaquin Valley farmers invested more than $2.1
billion upgrading the irrigation systems on 1.8 million acres, enhancing their
ability to efficiently grow food for much of California, the U.S. and consumers
abroad. How is that a bad thing?
Individuals and
organizations too often use the term of "subsidized water" without
fully understanding or explaining its meaning or benefits. The only
"subsidy" that exists today is the result of action by Congress in
1935 when it waived the interest costs on building the Central Valley Project.
That investment has returned billions more in new tax revenue from the farming
operations and related businesses that depend on CVP water. Find out more
about the economic benefits farm water brings to the economy at www.moneygoeswherewaterflows.org.
From: Kathryn
Phillips, Contra Costa Times
Coalition
response...Despite the
Sierra Club's opposition to the Bay Delta Conservation Plan, Governor Jerry
Brown is on the right track to help solve some of California's biggest water
supply and environmental challenges. The Club claims to be concerned about the
long term water supply needs of millions of Californians (not to mention
thousands of food-producing farmers) but at the same time it ignores the
reality of today's broken water system.
The Bay Delta
Conservation Plan has been developed to benefit all of California through a
reliable water supply and a restored Delta ecosystem. Years of scientific
research have resulted in more than 18,000 pages of documentation that
demonstrates that the co-equal goals within the BDCP is the right way to go -
for water users and for the environment.
In the end the
Sierra Club asks the Governor to "fiercely protect and fight for the
public trust of surface and groundwater resources, which belong to all
Californians." Publicly the Sierra Club claims that water resources belong
to all Californians. The problem with their plan is that it prevents millions
of us from having much access.
Water supply
From: KGET 17
From: KION
46/FOX 35
Groundwater
From: Dennis
Pollock, Western Farm Press
Transfers
From: William
Dotinga, Courthouse News Service
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