Posted on 10/07/2004 7:37:38 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
SACRAMENTO (AP) - A joint federal and state water program intended to unite farmers, city folk and nature lovers was hailed by water users Thursday, but criticized by environmentalists who said a congressional reauthorization bill did not do enough to improve habitat.
President Bush is expected to sign the $395 million California Federal Bay-Delta Program bill passed Wednesday by the House of Representatives that aims to restore the fragile Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The system feeds the nation's most productive farm land while providing drinking water to 22 million Californians.
The bill, which has been the subject of six years of debate and negotiations and has shrunken from once seeking more than $1 billion, reauthorizes the so-called CalFed program that was conceived to improve water supply and quality and save threatened wildlife.
Tim Quinn, a vice president for Metropolitan Water District of Southern California serving 18 million people, called the bill historic for making peace among factions who have long fought over the state's limited water supply.
Farmers throughout the Central Valley and water agencies in the San Francisco Bay area and Southern California were all united in their support of the bill, which had support from both parties in the state's congressional delegation, he said.
"Californians have never been this united on how to manage their water in the future," Quinn said. "It's a turning point."
Environmental groups, however, said the bill was flawed because it doesn't authorize additional money for ecosystem restoration, said Barry Nelson of the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Nelson said money in the program once devoted to bringing back salmon can now be diverted to buying water. He also said rigorous reporting required for people selling land to federal agencies to restore habitat will make it cumbersome and slow improvements.
"It's painfully ironic that a bill that's supposed to promote restoration is interfering with restoration activities," Nelson said.
CalFed was started a decade ago as a long-term multibillion project bringing the first major changes to California's water systems since the 1960s.
The state, the federal government and water users are supposed to pay a third each for the program, but Congress has not reauthorized the bill, costing the state millions in the past few years.
Under the bill passed Wednesday, $90 million will be spent to reconstruct levees and several major storage projects will be studied. It will also speed approval of 49 water recycling projects and ensure water for fisheries.
Water flows will increase to Southern California, and the feasibility of restoring the Salton Sea, which is suffering from increasing salinity, will be studied.
Supporters of the bill said it will increase the flexibility to move water through a system of canals, reservoirs and the delta, an intricate web of levees and rivers where the San Joaquin and Sacramento rivers join and flow to San Francisco Bay.
"It balances the program as it was designed to be balanced," said Jeff McCracken of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. "The balance now is it's going to go ahead and look at water supply and continue to look at restoration. It's always looked at restoration."
Carl Zichella of the Sierra Club said the balance now tilts in favor of large water users. He said environmental rules to save threatened and endangered species were required to offset years of damage from dams and reservoirs.
"The ability to save ecosystems," he said, "I think is in question now."
The California Bay-Delta Authority that coordinates the program chose not to comment on criticism.
"It's not our job to debate stakeholders in the program," said spokesman Keith Coolidge.
Tom Birmingham, general manager of Westlands Water District that consists of nearly 600,000 acres of arid farmland in the San Joaquin Valley, said the bill was a breakthrough that would improve conditions for farmers and other users.
If implemented as originally envisioned, he said the program has the potential to eliminate the state's longtime water conflicts. But he added that some groups will probably always be opposed to pumping more water south of the delta.
Northern California is wet. Southern California for the most part is dry. There are wetspots in Southern California, you have to go the mountains and be on the windward side.
Bah. The envirowhackos won't be happy until we're all living in caves and wearing loincloths again. Anything that pisses them off is definitely good for America.
The Grange pushed the CalFed program.
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