[Mat_Helm]

Many replies seem to think this is about obtaining more water for Southern California. That is just plain wrong! Water stored in northern reservoirs is only a small fraction of water diverted in the state. Most of that water is used for agriculture. The dams and conveyance facilities including the California Aqueduct have been paid for by farmers as they pay the capital cost to deliver water every year to deliver water to their land. While the larger bodies of water like Shasta and Orville provide flood control, they primarily supply water for the State and Federal water projects for farming and wildlife refuges. This water is already going through the delta and in most all years accept the driest represents a tiny fraction of what goes out San Fransisco Bay to the ocean. A peripheral canal would move the same water in the same historic quantity, but would convey the water around the delta instead of through the delta.

The delta smelt issue shuts down the export pumps on the south delta. There is no science to support shutting down the pumps. Cities around the delta are doing more harm to the smelt by killing the plankton and and organisms the tiny fish eat. The pumps take a few hundred fish and billions of dollars are lost and agriculture suffers in a starving world short of food because of brain dead environ wackos suing to shut down the export pumps. One big earthquake later when the delta levees fail, just like hurricane Katrina, and the delta is broken for years and the California aqueduct shuts down because the water has turned to salt, and California dries up and goes back to the 1850's. Morons! The canal should have been built decades ago.

[SierraWasp]

Have you heard the latest? They’re going to create Delta Smelt Fish Hatcheries to replenish what the pumps chew up!!! REALLY, TRULY!!! (we go from the ridiculous to the sublime!!!)(or is it the other way around???)(well who the hell cares anymore, right???)

[PeterFinn]

One big earthquake later when the delta levees fail, just like hurricane Katrina, and the delta is broken for years and the California aqueduct shuts down because the water has turned to salt, and California dries up and goes back to the 1850's. Morons! The canal should have been built decades ago.

The plan here in each of the options is to build the Peripheral Canal AND let the delta fall to pieces and allow more salt to intrude as levves are destroyed or allowed to fail in order to create more marshland.

So the farmers in the delta get screwed and LA gets their water. Obviously, you don't live in the area affected by this, do you?