Delta tunnels project cleared
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration took a big step Monday toward clearing the way for construction of two giant tunnels that would siphon water from the Sacramento River and send it south to farms and cities.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service determined that the tunnel project, officially known as California Water Fix, would harm several endangered fish in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, but that an extra 1,800 acres of habitat restoration, on top of the 30,000 acres the project calls for, would offset the damage.
Paul Souza, Pacific Southwest regional director of the Fish and Wildlife Service, said the additional habitat was “without question the biggest change” from earlier drafts that determined that fish would be harmed. Souza said agency biologists would monitor fish and make changes to the project if necessary to protect them once construction starts.
A top ambition of Gov. Jerry Brown, the estimated $17.1 billion twin tunnels would be the largest water project in
California since the 1960s, when former Gov. Edmond G. Brown, Jerry’s father, built the State Water Project that carries runoff through an aqueduct from the mountains of Northern California to much of the state.
The 4-story-high tunnels would take water from the Sacramento River and run it 35 miles under the delta, bypassing two massive pumps at the delta’s southern end that are powerful enough to reverse the natural flow of water and draw fish to their deaths.
About 25 million people in Southern California and 750,000 acres of San Joaquin Valley farmland depend on the state’s northern rivers for fresh water.
The tunnels need clearance from the two agencies that wrote the roughly 1,000-page report, known as biological findings, released Monday. The agencies are responsible for enforcing the federal Endangered Species Act, to ensure the project does not harm endangered species, including 35 native fish, plants and other animals in the delta.
Independent biologists say half a dozen fish in the delta are close to extinct, including the delta smelt, sturgeon, steelhead trout and several native salmon.
Jon Rosenfield, a fish biologist at the Bay Institute, an environmental group in San Francisco, called the agencies’ opinions “disappointing and unacceptable.”
“It’s clear that the Cal Water Fix will lead to declines in delta smelt and winter-run chinook salmon, among other species.”
He said the only way to help the fish is to limit the amount of water taken from rivers.
Proponents say the tunnels will improve conditions for fish by eliminating the deadly pumps while making water deliveries to the south more reliable. Critics say the tunnels will allow Southern California cities and farms in the San Joaquin Valley to take more water and starve the delta of freshwater.
Michelle Banonis, assistant chief deputy director at the state Department of Water Resources, called the federal assessments “a momentous step toward the future.” But the project still requires several additional approvals by state agencies.
Another key question is its financing. Water users are required to pay for the project, and must get enough water from it to justify its cost. Among the key players are the Westlands Water District, the largest water district in the nation and run by growers in the dry west side of San Joaquin Valley, and big city water districts such as Southern California’s Metropolitan Water District. These users must decide soon whether they are on board.
But the new assessment may not provide the certainty of a steady supply of water that these investors would need. Souza and Barry Thom, West Coast regional administrator for the National Marine Fisheries Service, said that the opinions cover only the project’s first construction phase and that a new biological opinion, potentially years down the road, would be required to cover how the tunnels are operated and how much water users get.
Westlands General Manager Tom Birmingham said the district has not decided whether to participate, saying he expects a decision in September that “will be based on an analysis of projected water supply benefits and costs.”
“Westlands has consistently stated that it will not obligate itself to billions of dollars of debt unless it is reasonably certain that the district’s water supply will be restored.”
Birmingham added that without “a significant water supply benefit” that is affordable, Westlands is unlikely to participate.
The projects faces intense opposition from delta lawmakers and environmental groups and has been stalled for much of the past decade. But there has been movement in the past year, including the Metropolitan Water District’s $175 million purchase of five delta islands in the path of the proposed tunnels that could be used for their construction.