[Sosfbay-discuss] Fw: Fw: [Fwd: [G-C-F] First the wars, military budget, then healthcare. Now the admin is getting involved in Ca water...]

Wed Nov 11 08:46:30 PST 2009

----- Forwarded Message ----
From: Rosie Yacoub <rayacoub at yahoo.com>
To: Caroline Yacoub <carolineyacoub at att.net>
Sent: Wed, November 11, 2009 6:36:00 AM
Subject: Re: Fw: [Sosfbay-discuss] [Fwd: [G-C-F] First the wars, military budget, then healthcare. Now the admin is getting involved in Ca water...]

Steinberg (my State Senator here in Sacto--one of the Delta Counties) actually sponsored the bill the Gov signed.  He has insisted over and over that this bill does not create a canal that would export 'more water' out of the Delta.  But I think that the debate is really over long term battles that in part have to do with "what is water?".

So on that issue:
Water is not salt water.  Some parts of the Delta are pretty close to where fresh water becomes salt water.  If large amounts of this water are removed to a canal--will salt water bcome an issue for farmers and delta habitat?

Water is a legal right.  It may be that there is a San Joaquin water district that has strong water rights that could not be delivered because the pumps they use to access that water impact the Delta Smelt.  Creating a canal that bypasses the need for these pumps may not give this district more water on paper--it just gives it more water.  This means less water will be available in the Delta.  Fisheries and farmers in this area will be impacted--and may come into conflict with each other.  With water, what is fair and what is right can be two different things....

McNerney, by the way, has a long history of being a good environmentalist.  His career was covered in a PBS special recently.

--- On Tue, 11/10/09, Caroline Yacoub <carolineyacoub at att.net> wrote:

>From: Caroline Yacoub <carolineyacoub at att.net>
>Subject: Fw: [Sosfbay-discuss] [Fwd: [G-C-F] First the wars, military budget, then healthcare. Now the admin is getting involved in Ca water...]
>To: rayacoub at yahoo.com
>Date: Tuesday, November 10, 2009, 8:05 AM
>
>
>Again, what's your take on this? Good guys? Bad guys? Thorns?
>
>
>
>----- Forwarded Message ----
>From: Wes Rolley <wrolley at charter.net>
>To: Green Discuss <sosfbay-discuss at cagreens.org>
>Sent: Mon, November 9, 2009 8:05:01 PM
>Subject: [Sosfbay-discuss] [Fwd: [G-C-F] First the wars, military budget, then healthcare. Now the admin is getting involved in Ca water...]
>
>I forwarded this to a member of the Democratic Central Committee for Santa Clara County today.  This person is closely involved as a community volunteer for Congressman McNerney on environmental issues. 
>
>Here was their response. 
>
>
>Just one of many disappointments with this President and his Administration.
>>I feel betrayed.Thanks, Kalmran, for the ammunition. 
>
>In contrast, here is what Congressman McNerney has to say on the question. 
>
>http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091108/A_NEWS/911080317#STS=g1u50cbp.20mx
>
>Hard to know that Cardoza and McNerney are in the same party. 
>
>-------- Original Message -------- 
>Subject: [G-C-F] First the wars, military budget, then healthcare. Now the admin is getting involved in Ca water... 
>Date: Mon, 9 Nov 2009 16:52:58 -0800 (PST) 
>From: Kalmran Alavi <calm_ron at yahoo.com> 
>To: cal-forum at cagreens.org 
>
>
>Dennis Cardoza, representing northern San Joaquin valley broadcast emmail this one today:
>
>Drought relief commitment made to Reps. Cardoza and Costa
>Obama Administration to assist with Valley water projects
>
>For Immediate Release: November 9, 2009
>
>WASHINGTON – Over the last several months, Congressmen Cardoza and Costa have met with top officials from the White House and the Department of Interior. As part of ongoing discussions, the Congressmen have expressed the need for the Obama Administration to take action to address California’s Central Valley water crisis. In conjunction with their recent legislative efforts, the Congressmen have provided the Administration with a list of water-improvement projects and actions that would provide significant relief to San Joaquin Valley farmers, farm workers, and farm communities.
>In response to these discussions, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar today released the following statement:
>
>Salazar’s Statement on Obama Administration Actions 
>To Deal with California Water Crisis
>WASHINGTON, D.C. – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar released the following statement on the Obama Administration’s actions to deal with the California Water Crisis: 
>“Today, Governor Schwarzenegger is signing milestone water legislation in Fresno County, one of the counties hardest hit by California's water crisis – a crisis caused by the brutal combination of a three-year drought, the collapse of native fisheries in the Bay Delta, and the fact that California's investments in water conservation and infrastructure have not kept up with its growth. 
>“I would like to take this opportunity to express the federal government's commitment to being a full partner with the state and stakeholders in laying a foundation for California's water future, providing a sustainable water supply for Californians, and helping those hardest hit – including in the San Joaquin Valley. 
>“To that end, I am pleased to announce that the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) National Research Council Governing Board is meeting tomorrow and is expected to approve the request of the Department of the Interior and Department of Commerce for an independent scientific review of key questions relating to the California Bay Delta, and how to both protect the ecosystem and provide a reliable water supply. 
>“Secretary Locke and I are sensitive to the need for operational flexibility in using both the Central Valley and State Water Projects to move water during this critical drought crisis. With tomorrow’s timely action, NAS will be on track to deliver the first of two reports by March 15, 2010.
>“If approved, the first NAS report will direct particular attention to the water delivery restrictions in the biological opinions and whether there are available alternative actions that would have lesser impacts on water deliveries while still providing equal or greater protection for the species and their designated critical habitat. The NAS report will also look at the extent to which factors other than water pumping (known as “other stressors”) are contributing to the collapse of the Bay Delta ecosystem.
>“In addition, the Administration is fully committed to funding and moving forward with the construction of the Delta-Mendota Canal/California Aqueduct Intertie, pending the completion of a Record of Decision on the project, which we anticipate within the next 60 days. 
>“The Administration is also continuing to pursue the Two-Gates Fish Protection Demonstration Project through the required permitting processes, on an expedited basis. Other potential projects that could supplement water supplies for the Valley include the Patterson Irrigation District Fish Screen project and related Pipeline Project. The Administration is interested in potentially pursuing both projects, subject to federal and cost share funding constraints. In addition, the Department of the Interior has used Recovery Act funds to help diversify Level 2 and Level 4 refuge supplies, and will look for additional opportunities to continue this diversification effort. 
>“The Administration remains committed to working to implement a broad suite of tools to help alleviate the critical water supply and environmental situation in California. As announced in October, the Department of the Interior, the Department of Commerce and other federal agencies are working together under a Memorandum of Understanding that commits the federal government to produce an integrated work plan to address California water issues by December 15. The Administration is also working closely with the state on a variety of important fronts including, in particular, the development of a Bay Delta Conservation Plan. We will continue to pursue all of these efforts, in close tandem with the state and other stakeholders as we address both the short-term and longer-term water needs for California.”
>
>
>-- 
>"Anytime you have an opportunity to make things better and you don't, then you are wasting your time on this Earth" Roberto Clemente
>
>Wes Rolley
>17211 Quail Court, Morgan Hill, CA 95037
>http://www.refpub.com/ -- Tel: 408.778.3024
>
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