Five-Year Water Board Process Comes Up Short For Rivers during Historic Drought

The decision was a blow to Northern California waterways such as the Scott and Shasta Rivers, which suffer from extremely low to no flow, including during salmon spawning seasons. Above it a photo of the Scott River, taken in October 2014
The decision was a blow to Northern California waterways such as the Scott and Shasta Rivers, which suffer from extremely low to no flow, including during salmon spawning seasons. Above it a photo of the Scott River, taken in October 2014

On April 8, 2015, the State Water Resources Control Board rejected an urgent appeal of a coalition of conservation, tribal and fishing groups to formally recognize Northern California Rivers and Steads as “impaired” under the Clean Water Act. CSPA has been working with the group for years to get these waterways 303(d) listed under the Clean Water Act due to over-diversion that has resulted in flows too low to support fish and other uses. Numerous other states already identify waterways as “impaired” due to low flow and are acting on that identification to put more water back into waterways, but the State Water Board has chosen to dismiss this important opportunity.

Coalition Media Release