California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA) campaigns for the enforcement of existing laws that protect the water quality of California’s rivers. CSPA also campaigns for all future water plans to set clear enforceable flow and water quality standards.
All over California rule of law has given way to Voluntary Agreements (VAs). The VAs are just one example of the ways in which rule of law is flouted when it comes to the regulation of water exports and diversions, and water quality across the state.
Background
In 1967 the State Water Resources Control Board (State Board) was established by California’s state legislature. The State Board and the nine regional water quality control boards that were created in 1949 are responsible for implementing and enforcing the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act (Porter-Cologne Act).
The State Board’s Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan (Bay-Delta Plan) was created to protect the beneficial uses of water within the Bay-Delta watershed. The objective of the State Board’s Bay-Delta Plan is to identify beneficial uses, to create water quality objectives, and to establish a program to implement and enforce those objectives.
The most important objective to protect water quality in the Bay-Delta is maintaining flows that are protective of fish and wildlife. Fish in the Bay-Delta need increased flows to survive.
The State Board cannot do it alone. Providing enough flow to meet its water quality objectives rely on water quality certifications issued to projects under section 401 of the federal Clean Water Act, and flows released by the State Water Project and Central Valley Project that are managed by the US Bureau of Reclamation and the Department of Water Resources.
In 2007 the State Board updated the Bay-Delta Plan to address the precipitous decline of pelagic and anadromous fish. In 2018 the State Board adopted an update that required 40% of unimpaired flows with an adaptive range of 30% to 50% to maintain native fish in the Bay-Delta.
In its resolution adopting the update the State Board allowed for the potential for Voluntary Agreements to replace flow requirements set by the Bay-Delta Plan.
The Voluntary Agreements were first proposed in 2015 under the Brown Administration. The Newsom Administration has encouraged the State Board to continue pursuing the Voluntary Agreements.
Actions CSPA Takes
CSPA campaigns for clear and enforceable flow requirements for the Delta by participating in the update to the Bay-Delta Plan and by opposing VAs at every opportunity in the regulatory process. CSPA also works toward securing better flow conditions in tributaries through its campaign to leverage hydropower relicensing.
Other Bay-Delta Campaigns
Recent News
Bay-Delta Initiative