Lodi News-Sentinel Thursday, February 8, 2018 75 cents State moves forward with WaterFix
Department of Water Resources releases plan to complete Delta tunnels in stages
The California Department of Water Resources announced on Wednesday that it plans to proceed with the controversial California WaterFix project, known colloquially as the Twin Tunnels, by building one tunnel at a time.
Under the plan, the first stage of the project will include one tunnel, one intermediate forebay, one pumping station and two intakes with a total capacity of 6,000 cubic feet per second. The overall cost of the project remains at $16.3 billion, according to DWR, and the first stage is expected to cost $10.7 billion.
The one-tunnel option is still considerably more expensive than the estimated $6 billion to $6.5 billion that’s been pledged so far by participating southof-the-Delta water agencies,
“WaterFix is a long-overdue infrastructure upgrade that will maintain a reliable water supply for 25 million Californians while also protecting the Delta ecosystem.” KARLA NEMETH DIRECTOR, DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES “We remain convinced that a fifth reiteration of the project will not save WaterFix from failure and will ultimately deal a devastating blow to the health of the ailing San Francisco Bay-Delta estuary.” BARBARA BARRIGAN-PARRILLA EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, RESTORE THE DELTA
the Sacramento Bee reported
The state is conducting a cost-benefit analysis, and the DWR expects work to begin near the end of 2018, once the environmental review and permits have been completed.
“WaterFix is a long-overdue infrastructure upgrade that will maintain a reliable water supply for 25 million Californians while also protecting the Delta ecosystem,” DWR Director Karla Nemeth said in a press release. “With the current stated support of the participating public water agencies, the state is proposing to pursue WaterFix as planned, but also explore an option to implement construction in stages. This prudent approach aligns the urgent statewide need for action with the project’s current support. We are eager to move forward with WaterFix to protect the Delta and water supplies.”
Assemblyman Jim Cooper of California’s 9th Assembly District, who has long been an opponent of the tunnels, voiced his displeasure at DWR’s announcement. “I’m opposed to the tunnels, as are the majority of residents in the 9th Assembly District. I think it’s the wrong way to deal with the drought and lack of water resources. I am adamantly opposed to the tunnels,” Cooper said.
Rep. Jerry McNerney, DStockton, was similarly opposed.
“It doesn’t matter whether it is one tunnel or two, this project is misguided and a waste of taxpayer dollars,” McNerney said in a statement. “Our water infrastructure is rapidly deteriorating and in need of repair. Instead of spending billions of dollars on a short-term fix, we should be investing in long-term sustainability and regional self-sufficiency through water conservation, recycling, and capture. I’ve put forward a legislative proposal in the House that would do just that.”
There have been several weeks of debate over whether an additional environmental review was necessary, said San Joaquin County Supervisor Chuck Winn, who represents Lodi.
DWR argued that it did not need another review, and the plan has remained largely unchanged.
Winn was not surprised by the announcement, but said that he wished that more options had been explored.
“There is a whole host of other projects that would generate more water at a lower cost (than the tunnels). Not only that, but they would provide local jobs,” Winn said.
Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, executive director of Restore the Delta and one of WaterFix’s fiercest opponents, does not believe that DWR has enough funds to begin construction within its anticipated timeframe, saying in a press release that she expects DWR to seek additional funding.
“Realistically, there is not enough time between now and December 2018, when DWR plans to break ground — whether symbolically or physically. Impacted parties have the right to measure the impacts of a single 6,000 cfs tunnel on fisheries, water quality for environmental justice communities, and the public interest,” she said.
“DWR’s attempts to jam through a permit for one project, while working secretly with water exporters to create another, is unconscionable,” she added. “We remain convinced that a fifth reiteration of the project will not save WaterFix from failure and will ultimately deal a devastating blow to the health of the ailing San Francisco Bay-Delta estuary.”
Wednesday’s announcement is expected to trigger months of horse trading in which enthusiastic backers of the project would commit additional money to WaterFix, essentially “buying out” reluctant water districts, the Bee reported.
The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which has already pledged more than $4 billion to the project, has indicated it might be willing to put more money in. Nemeth said Wednesday she thinks other agencies will contribute, such as the Santa Clara Valley Water District.
“We have information that the benefits are there and there’s enough willing buyers for this first stage of the project,” Nemeth said in an interview with the Sacramento newspaper.
Nemeth said DWR will supplement the environmental impact studies conducted on the project to reflect the change in scope, but it won’t have to start that laborious process from scratch and can wrap it up by October.
Critics of the project, including Delta landowners and many environmental groups, say even one tunnel would damage the Delta’s fragile ecosystem. They have vowed to continue fighting WaterFix in court and in regulatory proceedings.
The tunnels are designed to fix a problem that has festered for decades. Water pumping by the State Water Project and the federal Central Valley Project has irrigated the southern half of the state but caused considerable harm to the Delta’s ecosystem. Several fish species, notably the smelt and Chinook salmon, face possible extinction.
By law, pumping often has to be curtailed or halted altogether to protect the fish, which means water destined for the pumps flows out to sea instead. This requirement has reduced water deliveries to the millions of acres of irrigated farmland that depend on the Delta, as well as the 19 million residential customers of Metropolitan, the largest water agency in the system.