Posted on 01/24/2004 10:56:46 AM PST by farmfriend
Hoopa Tribe blasts Westlands Trinity plan
By John Driscoll The Times-Standard
Thursday, January 22, 2004 -
The Hoopa Valley Tribe has roundly criticized a proposal by Central Valley irrigator Westlands Water District that aims to skim water from Trinity River flows called for in a federal fish restoration plan and keep it moving south.
The tribe's analysis released this week found that the proposal would result in the failure of the restoration program approved by former U.S. Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt in 2000. That program has been litigated by Westlands and other water and power interests, and much of the matter rests with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The tribe found that the Westlands proposal, aimed at settling that suit, doesn't consider the impacts of altering the flows called for in the 2000 plan. The proposal reduces the number of years that would see high flows critical to salmon, while increasing the number of low water years.
The tribe and Westlands have been in discussions with U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California, who has said she is interested in resolving the litigation.
Hoopa fisheries director Mike Orcutt said the tribe is still willing to talk, but not about the Westlands proposal, which he called a public relations deception.
"We are hoping Sen. Feinstein can help because the Trinity River's fish are dying while litigation and redundant studies burn up time and money that should be used to restore the river's fish habitat," Orcutt said.
The diversion from the Trinity began in 1964. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation at times sent up to 90 percent of the water above the dam to the Sacramento River, from where irrigators -- like Westlands in the San Joaquin Valley -- get their water.
The embattled restoration plan calls for 47 percent of the water to be allowed down the river, while the rest is exported.
"The Westlands' proposal does not improve upon the science contained in the (restoration plan)," tribal biologists wrote, and "increased the risk of failure in achieving restoration objectives."
Federal biologists reviewing the Westlands' plan last year also had concerns that it would not meet restoration goals.
Feinstein's office could not be reached for comment by deadline.
Reducing the lowest summer flows on the Trinity would reduce the amount of spawning and rearing habitat available to spring-run chinook salmon, the tribe found. Since the population of the chinook exist at the "environmentally harsh fringe of their geographic range," they rely on the few favorable wet years to balance out increasingly common dry years, the analysis found.
The Westlands proposal increases the number of dry -- low flow -- years to 26 out of 100, more than double that called for in the federal restoration plan. It would also reduce the number of wet years by 25 percent.
Guys?
I believe the Trinity contributes about 30 to 40% of late summer flows to the Klamath. When Trinity lake was formed in the 60s the agreement was to be no more than 55% of the flow. The last few years they have taken 90%. I may be slightly off on that but close. Remember, if it were not for the dams the fall flows would be much less...
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