The League of Women Voters of California has submitted comments on the Administration’s plan to build twin tunnels under the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta--the Bay Delta Conservation Plan/California WaterFix. We conclude that the environmental impact report/statement "fails not only to meet the League’s criteria for supporting new conveyance infrastructure in the Delta but also to conform to established law. We therefore cannot support the Administration’s California WaterFix."

Our letter states:

The League of Women Voters of California (LWVC) appreciates the opportunity to comment on the Recirculated Draft Environmental Impact Report/Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (RDEIR/SDEIS) for the Bay Delta Conservation Plan/California WaterFix, the Administration’s plan to build twin tunnels under the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

The LWVC has long-standing policies supporting nonstructural alternatives for water supply in California. With respect to the Delta, these policies align with principles established by the 2009 Delta Reform Act that are now part of the California Water Code and the Public Resources Code.

Were the LWVC to support any new infrastructure for conveying water through or around the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, we would have to be persuaded that the proposed infrastructure conformed to League policies, such that

1. realistic limits have been placed on the amount of water to be exported
2. strategies such as water conservation and wastewater reclamation have been employed and will continue to be employed to the fullest extent by both agricultural and urban users to minimize reliance on water exported through the Delta
3. federal and state entities intend to abide by high water quality standards in the Delta and the estuary
4. the conveyance plan includes strong, binding environmental safeguards, including reserving stream flows for protection of fish and wildlife and their habitat, and for other in-stream uses
5. the economic, social, and environmental costs and benefits of the project have been fully assessed.

In all these areas, the RDEIR/SDEIS fails not only to meet the League’s criteria for supporting new conveyance infrastructure in the Delta but also to conform to established law. We therefore cannot support the Administration’s California WaterFix.

Read our full letter, which considers those points in order, with references where applicable to the California Water Code.

Subject

Bay Delta Conservation Plan/California WaterFix Environmental Review Documents (RDEIR/SDEIS)

In response to

Bay Delta Conservation Plan/California WaterFix Environmental Review Process