The Accidental Activist

Fun piece on the Bay Citizen about salmon fisherman Mike Hudson, one of the characters featured in Delta Blues. A passionate advocate for salmon - and the Blues.

Bay Area coalition calls delta plan a water grab

Good overview in the SF Chronicle about the progress of the Bay Delta Conservation Plan and the ongoing issues with the Delta. 

Delta Blues Screens at Green Screen Environmental Film Festival

 Delta Blues screens at the festival in Venice, CA on Saturday, October 30th at 3:30p. For more info and online ticket purchase, go here.

Stealth State Plan Would End Salmon Fishing in California

Zeke Grader, the Executive Director of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations, has a blog entry on sfgate.com that's causing a stir about the future of the Delta and salmon fishing in California. Worth a read.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/zgrader/detail?entry_id=73372#ixzz10wfo4MFr

Study: Cut in delta water use needed for fish

From the SF Chron. Sounds good, but two quotes sum up how far away a Delta solution still is:

"The board has finally put to rest the argument about whether the delta needs more water," said Cynthia Koehler, water legislative director with the Environmental Defense Fund. "You can't divert 50 percent of the flows and think the fish and ecosystem are going to be just fine."

"The information certainly is interesting and informative ... but it's immaterial," said Tom Birmingham, general manager of Westlands Water District, a sprawling agricultural zone in the Fresno area. "Protecting the public trust resources are not the only goals of the planning processes."

Interesting Water Deal

From the Fresno Bee - "Drawn together by water losses due to drought and endangered species protections, two fierce competitors for California's water are trying to cut a rare deal."

Westlands willing to trade away 1/3 of this year's water supply to the Metropolitan Water District (SoCal) in return for a guaranteed amount next year. A wet year makes for strange bedfellows.

Schwarzenegger moves to pull water bond measure

 The SF Chronicle looks at the decision. This appears to be political reality, as the state is broke and the public is in no mood to spend more money on a complicated infrastructure bill. But delays of this type are often the first sign of a doom for measures like this. The bond measure will only get more expensive in the future - and probably more complicated.

The Delta is in need of action now and any delays in repairing levees, protecting declining fish populations and finding a solution to delivering a reliable water supply south is troubling and short-sighted.

One surprise: I always thought Schwarzenegger wanted the water bond and the accompanying infrastructure projects as his lasting legacy as he leaves office. Next year (or later) it will be the next Governor's issue.

New state agency tries to revive delta

Comprehensive article in the SF Chronicle about the demise of CalFed and its replacement, the Delta Stewardship Council.

As with most things in California these days, it comes down to money. Will it be fully and consistently funded? Or will it become another victim of the state's very serious budget crisis over the long term?

Both sides claim victory in water compromise...

...but it's a short term compromise at best. Stay tuned for the next round.

The Fresno Bee has the story.

Help the makers of the documentary film CRUDE with their legal fees

Chevron seeks all the footage and material collected for the making of the documentary film CRUDE as part of their huge legal fight in Ecuador. Whether you like the film or believe in its message, this legal action is an enormous trampling of journalists and documentarians First Amendment rights and will have a chilling effect on future work. Especially investigations of large corporations.

A Puzzler

From the Chron: "U.S. District Judge Oliver Wanger will consider restoring the water supply and ordering government biologists back to the drawing board during a hearing today that could decide the fate of the state's beleaguered salmon."

It's a puzzler because Wanger is the judge who ruled that diversions were hurting salmon and his rulings are the primary reason why strict water restrictions were placed on Central Valley farmers the past few years.

And it's sad because it means endless legal battles into the future. Farmers and fish won't benefit, only lawyers will.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/05/19/MNFT1DGOGD.DTL#ixzz0oQZqE4dX

New Strategy for Salmon Release

Article in the Bee about changing strategies to assist with the survival of salmon smolt and "imprint" their birth river.

Salmon Summit in San Francisco

Here's an article about the summit in the SF Chronicle.

Study backs efforts to save delta fish

From the SF Chron:

A study by the National Academy of Sciences declared Friday that the efforts to save endangered fish in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta by restricting water delivery are "scientifically justified."

Not Enough Jobs and Not Enough Water

Good, balanced radio story about water and jobs in the Central Valley.

Lots of action in Cal water this week

First there was this: "A topsy-turvy week in a federal courtroom in Fresno, Calif., has led to the imposition of water flow restrictions to aid endangered delta smelt in the San Joaquin-Sacramento Delta." This was after Judge Wanger ruled with Westlands last week and allowed additional pumping. Read more in the New York Times.

Also, yesterday Dianne Feinstein threw her support behind Central Valley farmers with legislation in the Senate. Some strong comments from NorCal House members in this article.

Finally, chinook salmon numbers are out for 2009 and they're dismal. Looks like a third straight year of closure for the commercial salmon fishing season. Lots of jobs and businesses impacted. More here.

Delta environmental review begins amid skepticism

Read the story about the National Academy of Sciences meeting in the Bee. Lots of controversy about the speakers. It seems strange that representatives of the salmon fishing industry and residents of the Delta are not part of the program.

2009 another bad year for Delta ecosystem

It's not just smelt and salmon in decline. The numbers cited at the end of this article are startling.

We went on one of those fish trawling trips in the Delta with Peter Moyle. Look for it in the upcoming documentary.

Fall Salmon Run Down Again

The Fall Chinook Salmon run looks to be about the same (meaning very bad) or worse than 2008, according to this piece by Matt Weiser in the Bee. Also, it appears that the run is increasingly becoming a hatchery based one, with almost 90% of returning salmon coming from hatcheries - which raises other concerns.

And with three straight years of dismal fall salmon returns, there's a good chance the run could be listed on the Endangered Species Act, at a time when the ESA is facing increasing scrutiny, especially from Central Valley water interests. Depressing news all the way around.

From the Jet Propulsion Lab

NASA Data Reveal Major Groundwater Loss in California

December 14, 2009

PASADENA, Calif. – "New space observations reveal that since October 2003, the aquifers for California's primary agricultural region -- the Central Valley -- and its major mountain water source -- the Sierra Nevadas -- have lost nearly enough water combined to fill Lake Mead, America's largest reservoir."

More

More evidence that the amount of water used for agriculture in California - from groundwater pumping in the Central Valley to diversions from the Delta - is unsustainable for the long term.

Where the $ for the water bill are going

The $11 billion water bill is a lot of money, but to understand how much it really is and where the money is slotted to go, read this article in the Bee. Stunning amounts and something for virtually every player in the California water power game.

And here's a cool Google map from KQEDhealth.

Major Water Bill Passes, Huge Fight Ahead

An $11 billion bond initiative will go to the voters next November. Expect an epic California political battle: north vs. south, coastal vs. inland, enviros vs. farmers, water districts vs. water districts. The total package may top $40 billion.

Schwarzenegger wants this as his legacy project and will fight very hard for it as he goes out the door next year. He's also pledged to build the peripheral canal, a huge battle within the battle. And this water package is sure to be a big issue in both the Governor and Senate races.

I'll post some of the analysis as it becomes available. Here's coverage from the NYT and LA Times on passage of the package.

Delta Blues will cover many of these issues. Look for it in early 2010.

Here's Schwarzenegger's Announcement of the Water Package

Warning: It's long

State GOP tries to steal Dems' fire over water

Interesting political aspect to the California water story. Will it work?

Op-Ed in Sacramento BEE

My View: Farm, fishing industries can't remain foes in water debate

The author, Larry Collins, is in Delta Blues. Here's an excerpt:

"...California farmers and fishermen are in the same boat, but the two groups are being pitted against each other in rhetoric used by politicians, activists and the media."