Category Archives: Water Quality

CSPA Wins Settlement to Remove Phone Cable from Tahoe; Cable Contains 63 Tons of Lead

Posted on November 13, 2021 by Cindy Charles

On November 4, 2021, CSPA won settlement of a lawsuit it filed against AT&T’s PacBell subsidiary regarding eight miles of abandoned phone cable on the bottom of Lake Tahoe. As a result of the settlement, PacBell will remove the decaying … Continue reading →

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Court Ruling Finds FERC 401 Waiver Not Justified – Important Implications for California Hydropower Project Licenses

Posted on July 24, 2021 by Cindy Charles

On July 2, 2021, the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals issued an important decision regarding Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, overturning an Order by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).  FERC’s Order had found that the state … Continue reading →

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CSPA Protests State Water Board’s Protection of Irrigated Agriculture at the Expense of Fisheries and the Environment

Posted on June 6, 2021 by Bill Jennings

The California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA) and allies have vigorously protested two recent actions by the State Water Resources Control Board that virtually ensure a repeat of the last drought, when the Board’s disastrous decisions decimated multiple year classes of … Continue reading →

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CSPA & Allies Tell Biden Administration Not to Endorse Flawed Voluntary Agreements

Posted on May 10, 2021 by Cindy Charles

On May 7, 2021, CSPA joined a broad coalition of organizations in a letter urging the Biden Administration not to endorse so-called “voluntary agreements” that propose inadequate environmental requirements for the San Francisco Bay-Delta and its tributaries.   The letter was … Continue reading →

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

Posted on April 29, 2021 by Cindy Charles

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 … Continue reading →

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CSPA Says No Again to Suction Dredging Mining

Posted on March 21, 2021 by Cindy Charles

The California Sportfishing Protection Alliance, along with 19 other conservation, fisheries and community organizations, submitted comments on March 5, 2021 to the California State Water Resources Control Board on a proposed National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) General Permit for … Continue reading →

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CSPA Opposes Turlock and Modesto Irrigation Districts’ Petition for Waiver of Clean Water Act

Posted on November 23, 2020 by Chris Shutes

Joining a growing list, Turlock and Modesto Irrigation Districts (Districts) filed a Petition for Declaratory Order with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) on October 2, 2020 asking that the Commission find that the State of California has … Continue reading →

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

Posted on July 17, 2020 by Bill Jennings

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 … Continue reading →

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CSPA, Coalition Sues Interior and Westlands Over Long-Term Water Contracts

Posted on July 9, 2020 by Bill Jennings

On 8 July 2020, CSPA and a coalition of fishing organizations sued the U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and Westlands, San Luis and Panoche Water Districts in federal court over a series of interim water service … Continue reading →

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Here We Go Again – FERC Rapidly Issuing Waivers on Water Quality Certifications for California Dams

Posted on June 29, 2020 by Cindy Charles

By Cindy Charles The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) continues to roll out waivers for water quality certifications for dam relicensings in California at an alarming rate.  On June 22, CSPA and allies in the Foothills Water Network[1] (Network) filed … Continue reading →

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A Deal is a Deal – El Dorado Irrigation District Seeks to Add More Diversions from SF American River

Posted on June 1, 2020 by Cindy Charles

By Cindy Charles CSPA and a coalition of environmental and recreation organizations submitted comments in response to the April 17, 2020 Notice of Preparation of an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for El Dorado Irrigation District’s (EID) proposed modification of Water … Continue reading →

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Foothills Network Files for Rehearing of 401 Waiver on Nevada Irrigation District’s Yuba-Bear Project

Posted on May 18, 2020 by Cindy Charles

By Cindy Charles CSPA and allies in the Foothills Water Network (Network) filed a Request for Rehearing on an “Order on Waiver of Water Quality Certification” for Nevada Irrigation District’s (NID) Yuba-Bear Hydroelectric Project.  The Network filed the Request with … Continue reading →

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Letter Sent to Governor – Preserve the Application of the Clean Water Act to California’s Hydroelectric Projects

Posted on May 17, 2020 by Cindy Charles

By Cindy Charles CSPA, as a leading member of a coalition of environmental and fishing organizations, sent a joint letter to Governor Newsom on May 11, 2020 urging his Administration to prioritize action on an urgent threat to California’s rivers, … Continue reading →

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CSPA, Coalition Sues Bureau Over Long-Term Water Transfers

Posted on May 12, 2020 by Bill Jennings

On 11 May 2020, CSPA, AquAlliance, California Water Impact Network and the South and Central Delta Water Agencies filed a federal lawsuit against the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) and the San Luis & Delta-Mendota Water Authority over the EIS/EIR … Continue reading →

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Risky Business Again – Merced Irrigation District Selling Water Out of District in Critically Dry Year

Posted on May 7, 2020 by Cindy Charles

By Cindy Charles In March, Merced Irrigation District (Merced ID) filed a petition with the CA State Water Board (Board) for a temporary change to transfer up to 45,000 acre-feet of water to out-of-district water agencies[1].  Merced ID plans to … Continue reading →

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CSPA, Coalition Sues Waterboards Over Grasslands Bypass Pollutant Discharges to San Joaquin River

Posted on May 6, 2020 by Bill Jennings

On 5 May 2020, CSPA and a coalition of fishing and tribal groups (CSPA et al.) sued the State and Regional Water Boards, Bureau of Reclamation and San Luis & Delta-Mendota Water Authority over illegal discharges of pollutants from the … Continue reading →

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A Busy End-of-Year for CSPA

Posted on January 7, 2020 by Bill Jennings

As we wait for the Newsom Administration to unveil the details of its proposed Portfolio Project, with a single Delta tunnel, results of the “Voluntary Agreement” process to replace/argument the existing Water Quality Control Plan proceeding and efforts by the … Continue reading →

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Hydropower Reform Coalition Opposes Another Trump Administration Attack on the Clean Water Act

Posted on October 27, 2019 by Chris Shutes

The Hydropower Reform Coalition (HRC), including CSPA and allied hydropower advocates, has submitted extensive comments in opposition to the Trump Administration’s attack on Section 401 of the Clean Water Act.  Trump’s Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a … Continue reading →

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CSPA, Coalition Comment on Grasslands Management Plan

Posted on September 10, 2019 by Bill Jennings

On 9 September 2019, CSPA and a coalition of fishing, environmental, tribal and environmental justice organizations submitted comments to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) and the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board (Regional Board) regarding the Grasslands Bypass … Continue reading →

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CSPA Wins Huge Ninth Circuit Court Victory

Posted on September 8, 2019 by Bill Jennings

On 6 September 2019, CSPA joined by the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, Friends of the River, San Francisco Crab Boat Owners Association, Institute for Fisheries Resources and Felix Smith prevailed in a major decision by the federal Ninth … Continue reading →

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