Category Archives: Water Quality

An Inadequate Analysis of Long-Term Operations of the Central Valley Project and State Water Project

Posted on October 1, 2024 by Sarah Vardaro

On September 9, 2024 a coalition of nonprofits submitted comments to the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) in response to its 2024 Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) on the Long-Term Operations of the Central Valley Project (CVP) and State Water Project … Continue reading →

Posted in Water Quality | Comments Off on An Inadequate Analysis of Long-Term Operations of the Central Valley Project and State Water Project

Press Release: CALIFORNIA SPORTFISHING PROTECTION ALLIANCE SECURES AT&T’s REMOVAL OF TOXIC LEAD-CONTAINING PHONE CABLES FROM LAKE TAHOE

Posted on September 18, 2024 by Webmaster

Emerald Bay, Lake Tahoe, California. September 18, 2024 – California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA) is pleased to announce Pacific Bell Telephone Company, dba AT&T of California, has agreed to remove its abandoned telecommunications cables that have been leaching toxic lead … Continue reading →

Posted in Alerts & Advisories, Press Release, Water Quality | Comments Off on Press Release: CALIFORNIA SPORTFISHING PROTECTION ALLIANCE SECURES AT&T’s REMOVAL OF TOXIC LEAD-CONTAINING PHONE CABLES FROM LAKE TAHOE

PG&E Withdraws Application for Transfer of Hydropower Assets

Posted on August 22, 2024 by Webmaster

On May 10, 2024, California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA) reported that the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) had denied an application for the transfer of Pacific Gas and Electric Company’s (PG&E) hydropower assets to a subsidiary, Pacific Generation.  The CPUC … Continue reading →

Posted in Alerts & Advisories, Press Release, Water Quality | Comments Off on PG&E Withdraws Application for Transfer of Hydropower Assets

Adaptively Managing Extinction

Posted on August 19, 2024 by Chris Shutes

In the never-ending saga of calling a skunk an adorable striped kitten, the proponents of the Voluntary Agreements released, on August 16, 2024, their latest defense of the scheme to undermine the flows needed for San Francisco Bay and the … Continue reading →

Posted in State Board Bay-Delta Standards, Water Quality | Comments Off on Adaptively Managing Extinction

Merced ID Continues its Attempts to Avoid Compliance with the Clean Water Act and CEQA

Posted on July 2, 2024 by Sarah Vardaro

On June 27, 2024, CSPA and allies submitted a letter to Merced Irrigation District (Merced ID). The letter was written in response to Merced ID’s recent Notice of Intent (NOI) to rely on the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) produced by … Continue reading →

Posted in Hydroelectric (FERC), Water Quality | Comments Off on Merced ID Continues its Attempts to Avoid Compliance with the Clean Water Act and CEQA

State Board’s Proposed Order Set to Expedite and Strengthen Water Quality Certifications for Hydroelectric Projects

Posted on April 29, 2024 by Sarah Vardaro

On April 9, 2024, California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA) and other fishing and environmental advocacy groups submitted a response to the State Water Resources Control Board (State Board) supporting its recent decision to set aside water quality certifications for five … Continue reading →

Posted in Hydroelectric (FERC), Water Quality | Comments Off on State Board’s Proposed Order Set to Expedite and Strengthen Water Quality Certifications for Hydroelectric Projects

Celebrating the Life and Achievements of Bill Jennings

Posted on April 9, 2024 by Chris Shutes

On Sunday April, 7, 2024, friends of Bill Jennings gathered by the Mokelumne River to remember and celebrate his life and achievements.  The following eulogy was delivered by Chris Shutes, Executive Director of California Sportfishing Protection Alliance. Eulogy for Bill … Continue reading →

Posted in Water Quality | Comments Off on Celebrating the Life and Achievements of Bill Jennings

PRESS RELEASE: Groups and Tribe Urge Regulators to Control Toxic Pollution from Selenium

Posted on April 4, 2024 by Chris Shutes

PRESS RELEASE April 3, 2024 In an April 1, 2024 letter to three water boards, fishing and conservation groups and a Tribe have urged regulators to control recently measured excess levels of selenium in Mud Slough. Mud Slough drains selenium-impaired land on … Continue reading →

Posted in Press Release, Water Quality | Comments Off on PRESS RELEASE: Groups and Tribe Urge Regulators to Control Toxic Pollution from Selenium

How A Lack of Regulatory Oversight Dried Up the Merced River – The State Water Board Needs to Protect Merced River Flows Now

Posted on January 22, 2024 by Cindy Charles

Merced River, Yosemite Valley, Oct. 2022 / Dead Lower Merced River  Aug. 2022 The Merced River, the iconic wild and scenic river flowing out of Yosemite National Park, died in the summer of 2022 upstream of its confluence with the … Continue reading →

Posted in Water Quality | Comments Off on How A Lack of Regulatory Oversight Dried Up the Merced River – The State Water Board Needs to Protect Merced River Flows Now

The Delta Conveyance Project: Either We Survive Together or Perish Together

Posted on December 28, 2023 by Sarah Vardaro

On December 8th, 2023, the Department of Water Resources (DWR) issued the Final Environmental Impact Report (Final EIR) for its proposed Delta Conveyance Project, informally called the Delta tunnel. During the required comment period following DWR’s release of its Draft … Continue reading →

Posted in Fisheries, No Tunnels Campaign, Water Quality | Comments Off on The Delta Conveyance Project: Either We Survive Together or Perish Together

Nitrate Pollution: One Place Environmental Justice and Environmental Advocacy Meet

Posted on December 1, 2023 by Sarah Vardaro

In 2021, the Central Coast Regional Water Board (Regional Board) adopted Agricultural Order 4.0. This order contained measures to reduce nitrate pollution in groundwater caused by the agricultural sector. Specifically, Order 4.0 set numeric limits to regulate the amount of … Continue reading →

Posted in Water Quality | Comments Off on Nitrate Pollution: One Place Environmental Justice and Environmental Advocacy Meet

Sites Reservoir: Fast-Tracking and Greenwashing a Huge Water Development

Posted on November 15, 2023 by Sarah Vardaro

In the summer of 2023, Governor Newsom signed Senate Bill 149 into law. This bill gave the Governor the power to fast-track infrastructure projects deemed beneficial to the state of California’s bid to create a climate-resilient future. On November 6th, … Continue reading →

Posted in Water Quality, Water Rights | Comments Off on Sites Reservoir: Fast-Tracking and Greenwashing a Huge Water Development

Good News for Fish: Clean Water Act Holds for PG&E Hydropower Projects on Yuba and Bear Rivers

Posted on September 13, 2023 by Cindy Charles

The California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA) is pleased to report that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued an Order on September 5, 2023 that upholds the California State Water Board’s authority to require a “water quality certification” for new hydropower … Continue reading →

Posted in Cindy Charles, Hydroelectric (FERC), Water Quality | Comments Off on Good News for Fish: Clean Water Act Holds for PG&E Hydropower Projects on Yuba and Bear Rivers

Another CSPA Legal Victory: US Supreme Court Denies Appeal, Affirming State Regulation of Merced and Yuba Rivers

Posted on May 15, 2023 by Cindy Charles

The United States Supreme Court has declined to hear an appeal regarding the California State Water Resources Control Board’s authority to set mandatory conditions in the new operating licenses for four hydroelectric projects.  The appeal was filed jointly by the … Continue reading →

Posted in Cindy Charles, Hydroelectric (FERC), Water Quality | Comments Off on Another CSPA Legal Victory: US Supreme Court Denies Appeal, Affirming State Regulation of Merced and Yuba Rivers

CSPA Legal Victory: Supreme Court Denies Appeal of State Regulation of Tuolumne River

Posted on April 18, 2023 by Chris Shutes

The United States Supreme Court will not hear an appeal regarding California’s authority to add mandatory conditions in the new licenses for two hydroelectric projects on the Tuolumne River.  The appeal was filed by Turlock Irrigation District and Modesto Irrigation … Continue reading →

Posted in Chris Shutes, Hydroelectric (FERC), Water Quality | Comments Off on CSPA Legal Victory: Supreme Court Denies Appeal of State Regulation of Tuolumne River

Legendary California Fishery and Water Quality Activist Bill Jennings Dies at Age 79

Posted on December 28, 2022 by Chris Shutes

The California Sportfishing Protection Alliance and the fish of California lost Bill Jennings on December 27, 2022. Above all, Bill was a relentless activist. For over 40 years, he used the law, meticulously documented data, an irascible wit, and a … Continue reading →

Posted in Water Quality | Comments Off on Legendary California Fishery and Water Quality Activist Bill Jennings Dies at Age 79

Court Victory for California Water Quality and Rivers – and CSPA

Posted on August 7, 2022 by Chris Shutes

On August 4, 2022, a panel of judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit overruled the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), re-establishing California’s right to protect water quality in the Yuba, Bear, and Merced River watersheds … Continue reading →

Posted in Chris Shutes, Hydroelectric (FERC), Water Quality | Comments Off on Court Victory for California Water Quality and Rivers – and CSPA

D.C. Court Denies Waiver of Clean Water Act for Tuolumne River Hydro Projects; Ruling Vindicates CSPA and Allies

Posted on June 20, 2022 by Chris Shutes

On June 17, 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit issued a ruling denying waiver of Section 401 of the Clean Water Act in the licensing of two hydropower projects on the Tuolumne River.  Turlock Irrigation District and Modesto … Continue reading →

Posted in Water Quality | Comments Off on D.C. Court Denies Waiver of Clean Water Act for Tuolumne River Hydro Projects; Ruling Vindicates CSPA and Allies

CSPA Objects to Weakened Delta Water Quality without Strict Diversion Limits and a Ban on Transfers

Posted on April 9, 2022 by Chris Shutes

On April 6, 2022, CSPA and allied organizations AquAlliance and California Water Impact Network filed a protest and objection to a “Temporary Urgency Change Petition” for April-June 2022 water operations in the Delta.  The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) … Continue reading →

Posted in California Delta, Chris Shutes, Water Quality | Comments Off on CSPA Objects to Weakened Delta Water Quality without Strict Diversion Limits and a Ban on Transfers

CSPA Tells Water Board: Limit Shasta Reservoir Releases and Sacramento River Deliveries in 2022 to Save Fish and Water in ’22 and ‘23

Posted on March 19, 2022 by Chris Shutes

On March 16, 2022, CSPA presented recommendations to the State Water Resources Control Board to manage the Shasta and Trinity reservoirs and the Sacramento River in 2022.  The State Water Board must act now to limit releases from Shasta Reservoir … Continue reading →

Posted in Chris Shutes, Fisheries, State Board Bay-Delta Standards, Water Quality | Comments Off on CSPA Tells Water Board: Limit Shasta Reservoir Releases and Sacramento River Deliveries in 2022 to Save Fish and Water in ’22 and ‘23