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 contracts and a series of permanent repayment (or conversion) contracts. The lawsuit alleges that the decisions by the Bureau allow environmentally harmful diversions by the Bureau’s Central Valley Project of massive quantities of freshwater from the Delta for consumptive use without the comprehensive environmental reviews and requirements required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Central Valley Project Improvement Act (CVPIA). The Second Amended and Supplemental Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief incorporates an earlier 2016 complaint for approval of interim water service contracts and the 2020 reauthorization of the same water service contracts.
The Law Offices of Stephan C. Volker is representing CSPA et al. in this matter.