Delta conveyance project bad12/5/2023 And in addition to harming the environment, the SWP contractors who agreed to finance the Delta Conveyance Project would be responsible for paying debt financing charges for the tunnel, even as they get no additional water supply. While DWR hasn’t released any updated cost or financing information about the Delta Conveyance Project (despite significantly increased construction costs and higher interest rates over the past several years), prior analyses of WaterFix costs from several years suggest that the annual costs (including debt financing and operating costs) for a $16 billion Delta Conveyance Project could be $1 billion per year or more. While the Delta Conveyance Project would not have increased water supply this year, pumping through the Delta tunnel in January that DWR describes would have reduced survival of juvenile endangered winter-run Chinook salmon migrating downstream and would have harmed other native fish species. Over the past month, since San Luis Reservoir filled and pumping has been limited by “ Limited real-time demand,” it appears that the CVP and SWP could have pumped nearly 200,000 acre feet of water more than they did, simply because of the lack of storage space south of the Delta. That’s because the additional pumping simply would have filled San Luis Reservoir earlier in the year and caused the CVP and SWP to reduce Delta pumping. However, although DWR argues that the Delta Conveyance Project could have pumped more water in January, any additional pumping through the Delta tunnel earlier this year would not have increased water supply. Some contractors are even getting more than 100% allocations - DWR reports that since March 22 the SWP has delivered an additional 228,000 acre feet of water to SWP contractors that have their own storage facilities (like Kern County Water Agency and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California). Thanks to the near-record snowpack and storms this year, the SWP and CVP have announced 100% allocations for nearly all of their contractors. However, you’d never know this based on DWR’s latest misinformation about its Delta tunnel project.Ĭurrently, the State Water Project’s and federal Central Valley Project’s existing pumping plants in the South Delta could be diverting a lot more water than they are today while complying with existing or even stronger environmental regulations. However, for the past several weeks the SWP and CVP have been pumping significantly less water than they are allowed to, because San Luis Reservoir is completely full, meaning there is no place for the CVP and SWP to store additional water diversions. After the meetings in French Camp and Lodi, he sent letters of community feedback supported by countless constituents to the Army Corps of Engineers in Sacramento.If the Delta Conveyance Project had already been constructed, in 2023 the project would have provided zero acre feet of additional water supply, while contractors would have had to pay as much as $1 billion or more to pay for the project this year. Harder held two water town halls that were attended by more than 200 community members who universally oppose the Delta Tunnel project. Harder is a longtime opponent of the Delta Tunnel project, first voicing his opposition in 2018. The Delta Tunnel would ship water from the Central Valley south and would cost taxpayers $16 billion. Harder reintroduced his Stop the Delta Tunnel Act which prohibits the Army Corps of Engineers from issuing a federal permit necessary for the State of California to build the Delta Conveyance Project, commonly known as the Delta Tunnel. We will fight this tooth and nail.”Įarlier this year, Rep. Sacramento politicians are now trying to change the rules to build the tunnel against our wishes. Our community has spoken up time and again that this is a bad project. However, this plan is a Trojan horse – it’s supposed to be helping communities like the Valley, but in fact is also fast-tracking the Delta Tunnel, a disastrous water grab that would send our water to Beverly Hills. There’s no question we absolutely need good water projects built. “I’m all for speeding up transportation and water infrastructure projects. Josh Harder (CA-9) released the following statement on Sacramento’s newly announced plan to speed up water infrastructure projects including the disastrous Delta Tunnel water grab:
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