The State Water Board is hosting an online Environmental Justice Listening Session on June 7th from 3pm to 7 pm. This listening session will focus on gathering Environmental Justice community input on its implementation of the Water Quality Control Plan for the San Francisco Bay Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Bay Delta Plan/BDP) and proposed Voluntary Agreements. Representatives of environmental justice organizations, economically disadvantaged communities (DACs); and black, indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) community members and individuals are specifically invited to this event. The Board will run short presentations on the Bay-Delta Plan process and Voluntary Agreements, including a recently released Tuolumne River Voluntary Agreement. These will be followed by the public’s “opportunity to provide input” and then breakout groups that will inform [...]
Action Alert
SAVE THE DATE! State Water Board Environmental Justice Listening Session on Bay Delta Plan and Voluntary Agreements
Understanding the San Joaquin Area Levee Construction & Maintenance Ballot
On March 16, 2023, the San Joaquin Area Flood Control Agency Board authorized balloting for a proposed property assessment to fund levee construction and maintenance. Assessment ballots have been mailed to affected property owners. Ballots must be returned by June 8, 2023. The SJAFCA’s property assessment for a property can be calculated here. Restore the Delta encourages property owners to vote FOR the assessment so state and federal money to come to our region for flood control.Our Community is Threatened by Massive FloodingAs California’s weather becomes more extreme, floods and drought are becoming the new normal. Unfortunately, San Joaquin County and cities like Stockton are not ready to combat it. Floods aren’t new for Stockton, but the upcoming climate change storms and [...]
Help us take action for a healthy Bay-Delta with the State Water Resources Control Board!
Dear Friends, Here is a more detailed update as to why we are asking you all to join us in advocating for a completed Bay-Delta Plan with the State Water Resources Control Board on 3/27 from 1 to 7 pm. (More details about the mechanics of the event at the end of this email.)If you have been following our work with petition filing with the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) and US EPA, you will note that we have been asking for the following: 1.Updated, protective Bay-Delta water quality standards because the Board has not updated standards for over two decades. The entire process has been delayed by the voluntary agreements, which will further short-change the Delta of protective water quality [...]
ACTION ALERT 10/4/22 San Joaquin Salmon, Youth Delta Symposium, Science for Communities
TODAY: Sign the Petition for San Joaquin River Salmon San Francisco Baykeeper and The Bay Institute are cosponsoring a petition demanding a renegotiation of the San Joaquin Exchange Contract to help restore San Joaquin River Salmon.“Each year, the federal government delivers up to 875,623 acre-feet to the Exchange Contractors. In some years, that is actually more than the entire natural flow of the San Joaquin River. Even in the driest years, deliveries to the Exchange Contractors are only reduced to 75 percent of the full amount, while other water districts are cut back much more.“The destruction of the San Joaquin River; its intended restoration under the 2006 agreement; and the increasing effects of climate change, all make the terms of the Exchange Contract–signed [...]
Updated Action Alert: Delta Tunnel Hearing and Science for Communities Workshop
The California Department of Water Resources public hearings on the draft environmental impact report (EIR) on the proposed Delta Conveyance Project have begun. Read Barbara’s latest blog on the subject for a summary of where we are right now in the process. We need everyone to get involved. NOTE: The new end date for the comment period is Friday, December 16, 2022. Below you will find instructions from DWR on how to make a three minute virtual public comment at one of the meetings. Remember 250 to 300 words is the maximum number of words for a 3-minute comment. Upcoming Delta Conveyance Project Draft EIR Hearings Wednesday, September 28, 2022, 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.Zoom Link:Click to Joinhttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/84861494062?pwd=jnx2K-i2_XhG47Dtw8DkncMBc-b-jD.1English Call-in Information:1-833-548-0282 (Toll Free)Webinar ID: 848 [...]
Action Alert 9/18/22: Delta Tunnel Hearings and Science for Communities
The California Department of Water Resources public hearings on the draft environmental impact report (EIR) on the proposed Delta Conveyance Project have begun. Read Barbara’s latest blog on the subject for a summary of where we are right now in the process. We need everyone to get involved. Below you will find instructions from DWR on how to make a three minute virtual public comment at one of the meetings. Remember 250 to 300 words is the maximum number of words for a 3-minute comment. Upcoming Delta Conveyance Project Draft EIR Hearings Thursday, September 22, 2022, 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m.Zoom Link:Click to Joinhttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/88236180216?pwd=99fG75btij8-A1UBxwilsfsS57UXBC.1English Call-in Information:1-888-788-0099 (Toll Free)Webinar ID: 882 3618 0216Passcode: 345979Spanish Call-in Information: 602-580-9659 | Access Code: 8833787Chinese Call-in Information: 605-313-5814 [...]
Sunday Roundup: Delta Tunnel Action Alert + Future Delta Leaders Symposium
The proposed Tunnel is a 1995 answer to new challenges California faces in 2022.At the end of July, the Department of Water Resources (DWR) dropped the environmental impact report (EIR) on the proposed Delta Conveyance Project. While the Newsom Administration is wasting time and failing to solve serious problems in the present, RTD is busy tackling the massive EIR document for the latest version of the tunnel. We are focusing on operations, climate change, water quality, agricultural impacts, some fishery impacts, flood control, environmental justice, air pollution, and anything that degrades Delta communities. How You Can Help:There will be several official EIR public meetings sponsored by DWR and the DCA during September.Below you will find instructions from DWR on how to make a three-minute virtual [...]
ACTION ALERT: Delta Tunnel DEIR Process Begins
The proposed Tunnel is a 1995 answer to the challenges California faces in 2022.At the end of July, Department of Water Resources (DWR) dropped the environmental impact report (EIR) on the proposed Delta Conveyance Project. While the Newsom Administration is wasting time and failing to solve serious problems in the present. We at RTD are tackling the massive EIR document for the latest version of the tunnel. We are focusing on operations, climate change, water quality, agricultural impacts, some fishery impacts, flood control, environmental justice, air pollution and anything that degrades Delta communities. How You Can Help: There will be several official EIR public meetings sponsored by DWR and the DCA during September. Below you will find instructions from DWR on how [...]
Action Alert 7/25/22: Write Governor Newsom About the Tunnel and CA Water Planning!
Restore the Delta received word over the weekend that the Department of Water Resources will be releasing their Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) early this week for the Delta Conveyance Project. Documents for federal review of the project will be released later this fall. Now we need your help. It’s time to write Governor Newsom and ask him: How can we move forward with a tunnel without updates to flow and water quality standards for the Delta? We have provided a sample letter for our members to send below and we are asking for people to submit their thoughts through the Governor’s online platform and via snail mail. Sample letter: Dear Governor Newsom:I am writing to request that you suspend moving [...]
Action Alert 4/21/22: Tell State Legislators DWR Tunnel Propaganda is Unacceptable
On April 20th, 2022, the Department of Water Resources sent out a non-factual statement about how the Delta Conveyance Project is the answer to managing our water system for climate change. While salmon die off, Delta smelt go extinct, water quality deteriorates in the Delta, and flood threat to disadvantaged communities increase, DWR sends out a ridiculous statement about how a Delta Tunnel will solve California’s water supply problems. This is false because we know that DWR’s climate change modeling is flawed. We know the Delta Conveyance project will further harm Delta water quality problems and fail to help Delta communities prepare for the flood threat because DWR is supporting a voluntary agreement process that will reduce flows through the Delta to [...]
