Enforce State Doctrines

California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA) advocates for the enforcement of the reasonable use doctrine and the public trust doctrine in California’s water management. These legal doctrines are fundamental in balancing the state’s water use with environmental protection.

Enforcing the Reasonable Use Doctrine

The reasonable use doctrine is a principle enshrined in the California Constitution. The reasonable use doctrine mandates that all water use in the state must be “reasonable and beneficial.” CSPA works to ensure that water rights holders comply with this doctrine by advocating for regulations that prevent the over-extraction and waste of water, particularly in agricultural and industrial sectors.

CSPA urges decision makers to consider the ecological impacts on fisheries and aquatic habitats from unsustainable water use. CSPA does this through legal and regulatory avenues.

CSPA often participates in hearings before the State Water Resources Control Board (State Board), providing expert testimony, scientific analysis, and legal arguments to promote water management practices that are both environmentally sound and economically efficient. They emphasize that water users, including large agricultural operations and urban centers, should not use more water than necessary, especially during drought conditions when water is scarce.

Defending the Public Trust Doctrine

The public trust doctrine protects natural resources such as navigable waters. The public trust doctrine mandates that such natural resources are to be held in trust by the state for the benefit of all Californians, including future generations.

CSPA advocates for the public trust doctrine to be upheld by the state in its decisions on water policies and projects that impact public resources such as fish, rivers, and wetlands. CSPA defends the public trust doctrine to protect these resources from degradation caused by water diversions and pollution.

CSPA engages in legal action to hold state agencies and water users accountable for decisions that harm the environment, particularly California’s iconic fisheries like salmon and steelhead. By filing lawsuits, submitting public comments, and lobbying for stronger water quality standards, CSPA seeks to prevent damage to ecosystems that are vital to the health of the state’s watersheds and fisheries. Maintaining healthy aquatic environments is not just a legal requirement but a moral and ecological necessity for the long-term sustainability of California’s water resources.

CSPA works to ensure that the state’s water laws are enforced in a way that balances water supply for human use with the preservation of California’s fisheries.

Other Flow Restoration Campaigns

Recent News

Enforce State Doctrines

CSPA Submits Comments on Proposed Bay-Delta Plan Update

On Friday, January 19, 2024, California Sportfishing Protection Alliance and AquAlliance submitted comments on the State Water Resources Control Board’s (State Board’s) proposed changes to the Bay-Delta Plan. The State Board proposed these changes in a Draft Staff Report (Report) released on September 28, 2023. The stated objective of the Plan update is to provide […]

CSPA & Allies File Lawsuits on Groundwater Management in Butte, Colusa & Vina Subbasins

By Cindy Charles The California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA), along with AquAlliance and the California Water Impact Network, filed three separate lawsuits in February 2022 against the Butte, Colusa, and Vina subbasins’ Groundwater Sustainability Plans (GSPs). The lawsuits argue that all three GSPs will continue to threaten groundwater users and the environment by accepting domestic […]

The Merry-Go-Round of Denial Must Stop – Transfer of Public Trust Water to Agriculture Is On Repeat

The California Sportfishing Protection Alliance and allies AquAlliance and California Water Impact Network (CWIN), filed an objection on January 7, 2022  to yet another petition to weaken flow and salinity standards that protect the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.  The objection urges California’s State Water Board to reject the Temporary Urgency Change Petition (TUCP) submitted by the […]

CSPA Comments on State Water Board’s Response to Climate Change

CSPA, the California Water Impact Network and California Water Research submitted a comment letter on March 31, 2021 to the California State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Water Rights on the Water Board’s Recommendations for an Effective Water Rights Response to Climate Change: Identification of Data Needs and Recommendations to Incorporate Climate Change into […]

Landmark Lawsuit Settlement Between CSPA and State Water Board to Protect Public Trust Fisheries

On 17 July 2020, shortly before trial, CSPA and its partners, California Water Impact Network and AquAlliance, settled a contentious 2015 lawsuit against the State Water Resources Control Board (State Board).  The lawsuit alleged that the State Board had embraced a “pattern and practice” that failed: to comply with the Public Trust Doctrine; implement Sacramento […]