Delta Flows – Weekly Highlights from Restore the Delta
For the Week of May 28, 2007
One Step Forward and the Need for Ongoing Vigilance for the California Delta
On Friday afternoon, Federal Judge Oliver W. Wanger of the U.S. District Court in Fresno made what is being called a landmark decision for the California Delta. Judge Wanger writes:
"The Delta smelt is undisputedly in jeopardy as to its survival and recovery. The 2005 BiOp's 'no jeopardy' finding is arbitrary, capricious, and contrary to law."
That is, Judge Wanger found that the 2005 BiOp’s (biological opinions made by the Federal Government) that claimed that increased water exports from the Delta wouldn’t pose an increased threat to the Delta Smelt, were illegal and need to be rewritten.
As stated in previous alerts and newsletters from the Restore the Delta the last few weeks, we are alarmed about the rapid decline of the Delta Smelt because it is an indicator species. Its failing health and vitality reveal the overall ailments within the ecosystem, the precarious future of other fish species, the extent of damage being caused by excessive water exports to other regions in California, and the overall decline in Delta water quality for agricultural and human uses within the Delta.
Thus, while this victory is an important step forward for the Delta, and we commend the work of lawyers like Andrea Treece at EarthJustice, the fight is far from over.
As activist and editor of Fishsniffer, Dan Bacher, writes:
The California Sportfishing Alliance is in a heated legal battle with the State of California for failing to protect the Delta smelt, spring run chinook and winter run chinook. The state to date has to date refused to get a taken permit, as required under the California Endangered Species Act, for killing threatened and endangered species in its massive Delta export pumps.
So what does this mean for supporters of Restore the Delta? What can we do today?
First off, Restore the Delta supporters have done a terrific job contacting the Governor’s office these last ten days. But we must remain vigilant. While the fate of the Delta may be decided in the courts, Restore the Delta staff believes the execution of such court decisions will rest with Governor Schwarzenegger. We need to make it clear to him that we are counting on him to do right by the California Delta, especially seeing that the Department of Water Resources and the Department of Fish and Game have made it clear that their priority is continued water exports from the Delta. And if we do not stay on top of the situation, Delta Smelt could very well end up extinct before such new court rulings are enacted.
If you have not yet contacted the Governor’s office, please do so this week. And if you work with other community groups, churches, clubs, or civic organizations, please feel free to print out this newsletter and share it with your members so that they can also contact the Governor. Our supporters have found it best to call in the morning, or to use speaker phones while taking care of other mundane chore, while waiting to get through to a representative.
Office of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
Phone: 916-445-2841
http://www.govmail.ca.gov
