From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

Opinion: Twin Tunnels: LA prospers, Fortune 500 farmers thrive & SJ County dies

Coalition response…The State and federal water supply projects significantly aided in the advancements to California’s economy and a way of life sought by many, as indicated in the opening paragraphs by the author. Decades after these projects became operational, the Endangered Species Act was approved by the federal government and has threatened what had once been a reliable water supply.

ESA regulations have taken water away from farmers and 25 million Californians for the protection of endangered fish in the Delta. Federal officials have failed to provide proof that these actions are helping the fish. Combined with drought conditions, these regulations have forced hundreds of thousands of acres to be unplanted and thousands of workers to lose their jobs. The Bay Delta Conservation Plan and its tunnels provide a solution to reduce the ESA effects on California’s water supply by sending the allowed amount of water through the tunnels instead of pushing fish toward the pumps.

The author’s suggestions that include south Delta tunnels, levee improvements and new south of Delta reservoirs are good ideas but they do not resolve the threat to endangered fish.

Years of study by scientists, biologists and researchers have gone into the Bay Delta Conservation Plan. It is the best option to provide a secure water future for California.

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