Farmers, local residents plead against state water board’s plan for the Delta

STOCKTON — San Joaquin County residents and public officials alike voiced opposition this week against a state plan to increase flows from the Stanislaus River as well as increase allowable salt in the southern San Joaquin Delta, stating the proposals could have significant negative impacts on the region’s agricultural viability.

The State Water Resources Control Board held its second of five public hearings to collect input on the substitute environmental document of its Water Quality Control Plan on Friday at the Stockton Memorial Civic Auditorium.

The Water Quality Control Plan hasn’t been updated since 1995, and the board has said an update is needed because there has been a decline in native species such as salmon and steelhead on the lower portion of the San Joaquin River since 2008.

The plan proposes to provide a minimum flow standard of 30 to 50 percent of the unimpaired natural runoff from the Stanislaus, Merced and Tuolumne rivers to be sent down the Lower San Joaquin River and into the Delta.

According to the board, scientific studies have shown that flow is a major factor in the survival of fish such as salmon, steelhead, sturgeon and smelt, all of which can be found in the Delta.

But the proposal would result in a 14 percent reduction in surface water to the region, increase groundwater pumping by 105,000 acre-feet a year, and increase unmet agricultural water demand by at least 69,000 acre feet a year, the board said.

In addition, the plan would decrease the region’s economic output by $64 million.

Public officials who voiced opposition to the plan included San Joaquin County Supervisors Kathy Miller and Chuck Winn and Assemblyman Heath Flora, R-Ripon. Representatives for Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs, Rep. Jeff Denham, RTurlock, and Assemblywoman Susan Eggman, D-Stockton, also spoke during the day-long hearing.

State Sen. Cathleen Galgiani, D-Stockton, said the region’s water was a vital resource for its agricultural industry, and increasing the flows out of the Stanislaus River reduces the amount of water farmers can use to grow crops.

The State Water Resources Control Board did not take action on Friday, but is scheduled to do so in July.

The full text of the Water Quality Control Plan can be viewed online at www.tinyurl.com/gw9dbpt.