Still Worth Your Fight
The State Water Resources Control Board (Water Board) continues to propose that 40% of the water produced by the Stanislaus, Tuolumne and Merced rivers watershed be released to the San Joaquin River...
The State Water Resources Control Board (Water Board) continues to propose that 40% of the water produced by the Stanislaus, Tuolumne and Merced rivers watershed (“unimpaired flow”) be released to the San Joaquin River so that it can flow into the southern Delta under their Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan (Plan). The Water Board asserts that this flow regime will have limited harmful effects. In truth, this is a water grab and it will have long-term, devastating impacts to our region.
Following years of tug-of-war with the Water Board, multiple review and public input sessions, including extensive scientific research, the Water Board is giving voice to our region for only 21 days to review and comment on the latest draft, the Final Amendments to the Plan. The local irrigation districts, whom are most directly affecting by the Plan, are working to petition the Water Board for more time to comment. As it currently stands, comments will be accepted only through noon on Friday, July 27, 2018.
Assembly member Adam Gray released the following statement condemning the announcement from the State Water Resources Control Board proposal to adopt radical new requirements to seize and waste critically needed San Joaquin Valley water. “The State Water Resources Control Board's decision today is the first shot fired in the next chapter of California's water wars. The board has chosen to create, in their own words, ‘a permanent regulatory drought' and shrugged off our concerns as ‘significant but unavoidable'…A small group of special interests have spent years plotting one of the largest water takes in our state's history. People [could] question why the proponents of a plan designed to save fish cannot demonstrate any meaningful benefit to those very fish or why the questions and concerns of a million people do not deserve even a halfhearted response.”
Stanislaus County will stand with those who oppose the new proposal and will continue to negotiate in favor of the best interests of the Valley. We will support a policy that opposes such extreme increases in unimpaired flows. Local control of water is the only way we can meet local needs.
The Water Board will hold Public Hearings in Sacramento on August 21-22 to consider adoption of the Plan. Speakers will be limited to three minutes. We encourage you and or your representatives to attend. Stay close to the conversation by following the Worth Your Fight on Twitter and Facebook feeds.













