Twin tunnels permit sought

Article from Stockton Record.

http://www.recordnet.com/article/20150910/NEWS/150919956

By Alex Breitler
Posted Sep. 10, 2015 at 6:29 PM

State officials applied this week for the latest in a series of permits they need to build the twin tunnels beneath the Delta, another indication of their intent to move forward with the $15 billion plan.

Two weeks ago, operators of the massive state and federal water projects asked regulators to change their water rights to allow them to divert water into the tunnels from the Sacramento River, before that water flows into the heart of the Delta.

Now, the state Department of Water Resources is asking the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for a permit to build the project within Delta waterways and wetlands, some of which may be environmentally sensitive.

The permit application predicts that 15 million cubic yards of “fill” material like soil, rock and concrete will be used to build in areas protected by the Clean Water Act. Most of that 15 million cubic yards would be needed to reconstruct the Clifton Court Forebay near Tracy, a manmade water body that the state notes has “extremely limited” wildlife habitat to begin with.

Still, 15 million cubic yards of material is enough to fill New Orleans’ Superdome three times. About 775 acres in the Delta would essentially be permanently altered.

The Clean Water Act requires a permit to be issued before such projects can begin. The state’s request kicks off a new public comment period, separate from one that is already underway on the tunnels project as a whole.

In their application to the Corps, state officials call the tunnels “an important step forward in the state’s efforts to resolve the longstanding conflicts in the Delta.”

The state says it will make up for any impacts on wetlands, perhaps by restoring wetlands elsewhere in the Delta or creating new ones.

Last year, the Corps submitted comments that were critical of an earlier version of the tunnels project.

“It’s going to be interesting to see how the Corps addresses this,” said Bill Jennings, a tunnels opponent and head of the Stockton-based California Sportfishing Protection Alliance.

“This is part of the state’s Hail Mary pass to cram this (tunnels project) through,” he said.

The potential impacts to waterways would be concentrated in certain areas: the Sacramento River, where the intakes would be built; Clifton Court Forebay, the tunnels’ southern terminus near Tracy; and at various locations across the Delta, where temporary docks would be built to accommodate barges toting equipment and supplies.

The state is also proposing 11 disposal sites to store soil and mud unearthed by the giant tunnel boring machines.

Construction should not substantially change river levels and should not cause significant accumulations of sediment that could hinder navigation, the state says in its application.

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