Media
Advisory
November 20, 2008
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Contacts:
- Jay
Chamberlin, Environmental Program
Manager, (916) 651-7019
- Amy
Norris, Public Information Officer,
(916) 654-3755
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Public
Comment Sought on Delta Wetlands
Restoration Draft EIR
Dutch Slough
Tidal Marsh Project to Be
Discussed at Dec. 11 Meeting
Sacramento – The public
is invited to comment on the
Dutch Slough Tidal Marsh Restoration
Project Draft Environmental Impact
Report (DEIR) Dec. 11 in Oakley.
The meeting will take place
from 1-4 p.m. in the Oakley City
Hall Council Chambers, 3231 Main
Street.
Comments gathered at the meeting
will be considered as a final
EIR is created for the west Delta
wetlands restoration project. The
final EIR will be released late
in the Spring of 2009.
When complete, the project is
anticipated to benefit native
fish, including threatened spring
run Chinook salmon, endangered
winter run Chinook salmon and
Sacramento splittail. Additionally,
the project will provide recreational
benefits including public access
through more than four miles
of trails and a public park developed
by the City of Oakley, which
owns 55 acres adjacent to the
restoration project.
Preparation of the DEIR was
funded by the California Coastal
Conservancy and the CALFED Ecosystem
Restoration Program. The total
project cost for restoration
is anticipated to be $32 million
over five years, and will be
paid for by the Department of
Water Resources, the California
Department of Fish and Game and
the California Coastal Conservancy. The
project funds will come from
Proposition 84, the Safe Drinking
Water, Water Quality and Supply,
Flood Control, River and Coastal
Protection Bond Act of 2006,
approved by the voters in November
2006.
A 60-day public comment period
for the DEIR will close on Jan.
19, 2009.
To view the DEIR visit: http://www.water.ca.gov/floodmgmt/dsmo/ecb/maep/dutchslough.cfm |
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News Advisory
for Immediate Release
November
12, 2008
Contacts:
- M.
Elizabeth Scott, DWR Public Information
Officer, (916) 835-5344
DWR and USGS
To Begin Delta Salmon Tracking
Experiment
Scheduled
Media Opportunity in Old Sacramento
Sacramento - The Department of Water
Resources (DWR) and U.S. Geological
Survey (USGS) are set to begin the
largest-ever environmental experiment
to track juvenile salmon in the Delta.
Beginning Friday, November 14, DWR
and USGS scientists will release
the first of 6,000 tagged juvenile
salmon into the Sacramento River
at Old Sacramento. Scientists will
track their migration through the
Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta over
the next three months using unmanned,
robotic boats and electronic gear.
The data will be used to develop
management tools capable of estimating
how current operations and potential
new projects may impact out-migrating
juvenile salmon.
Reporters will have the opportunity
to photograph and videotape the salmon
release and DWR and USGS study teams
will be available to answer questions
about the high-tech experiment and
equipment.
Time: Friday, November
14, 2008
Location: Boat
dock on Sacramento River just south
of Tower Bridge, behind the Embassy
Suites Hotel
Interviews will be conducted from
10 to 11 a.m. Availability for photographs
and videotape of the salmon release
is set for 11 a.m.
Available b-roll and photographs:
In addition to the opportunity to
interview staff and photograph the
release, DWR will, upon request,
provide b-roll and photographs of:
- This week’s fish surgeries
conducted by USGS scientists, implanting
transmitters into the study’s
juvenile salmon
- Last weekend’s lowering
of electronic monitoring equipment
into the Sacramento River at
the Delta Cross Channel in Walnut
Grove
- Unmanned, robotic boats used
to detect transmitters implanted
in salmon (a robotic boat will
also be docked and available
for photographing during Friday’s
event)
For specific b-roll
format requests, please call
Elizabeth Scott, DWR Information
Officer at (916) 835-5344 or
email mescott@water.ca.gov.
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News for
Immediate Release |
September 4, 2008 |
Contacts: Wendy
Martin, Statewide Drought Coordinator (916)
653-0758
Matt
Notley, Public Affairs Office (916)
651-7242 |
State Officials
Host Statewide Drought Summit;
Announce Creation
of a Drought Water Bank |
SACRAMENTO – State,
federal and local water officials
gathered today to discuss California’s
ongoing drought and ways to alleviate
the effects of ongoing dry conditions. At
the Drought Summit hosted by the
Department of Water Resources (DWR),
Director Lester Snow announced
the creation of a 2009 Drought
Water Bank, a program designed
to facilitate water transfers.
“We are in the midst
of a drought right now and California
potentially faces another dry year
in 2009. It’s clear that we
must find solutions to our water
crisis,” Snow said. “A
water bank provides a valuable tool
to help provide water to communities
who need it most. This is just one
of the many ways the state is working
to address the drought.”
Secretary for Resources Mike Chrisman,
Secretary for Food and Agriculture
A.G. Kawamura, State Water Resources
Control Board Executive Director
Dorothy Rice and the U.S. Bureau
of Reclamation Regional Director
Don Glaser participated in the summit.
Information about the state’s
water and reservoir supply, drought
modeling and forecasts of future
water allocations, financial and
programmatic assistance and other
efforts to help water contractors,
local water agencies, farmers and
all state water users cope with the
drought. A significant recent action
was the expedited funding of $17
million in Prop 50 Drought Assistance
Program grants last week to local
water agencies and districts to implement
water saving projects.
At the Summit, local agencies had
the opportunity to share examples
of how a lack of water is affecting
their communities and made recommendations
about how the state can support local
water agencies, large and small,
as they grapple with the shortages.
On June 4, Gov. Schwarzenegger issued
Executive Order S-06-08 declaring
a statewide drought, which directed
state agencies and departments to
take immediate action to address
the dry conditions. He also issued
a State of Emergency Proclamation
for nine Central Valley counties
(Sacramento, San Joaquin, Stanislaus,
Merced, Madera, Fresno, Kings, Tulare
and Kern) to address that area’s
urgent water needs.
2009 Drought Water Bank
To implement the 2009 Drought Water
Bank, DWR will purchase water from
willing sellers, primarily from water
agencies upstream of the Sacramento-San
Joaquin Delta. This water will
be transferred using State Water
Project (SWP) or Central Valley Project
(CVP) facilities to water agencies
that are at risk of experiencing
water shortages in 2009 due to drought
conditions and that require supplemental
water supplies to meet anticipated
demands. Water acquired by the 2009
program would be available for purchase
by public and private water systems
in California based on certain needs
criteria.
Water supplies from the
2009 Drought Water Bank will be
open to all water providers who
can obtain water from the Delta
either directly or by exchange
with other water providers who
have access to Delta water supplies
from the SWP or CVP.
DWR in coordination with U.S. Bureau
of Reclamation will confer with the
California Department of Fish and
Game, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
and National Marine Fisheries Service
as appropriate to meet legal requirements.
DWR will provide California Environmental
Quality Act (CEQA) and Endangered
Species Act (ESA) compliance for
the program, and will require certain
environmental safeguards to be included
in purchase agreements, depending
on the nature of the transfer and
location of the transfer water. DWR
will hold interactive webinars on
the program aimed at buyers and sellers
on Tuesday, Sept. 17. For additional
information about the details of
the Water Bank or on the webinars,
please visit www.water.ca.gov/drought
or call the DWR Public Affairs Office
at (916) 653-9712.
Drought Summit
The organizations participating
in the Drought Summit include the
Association of California Water Agencies,
State Water Contractors, California
Farm Water Coalition, League of California
Cities, California Urban Water Conservation
Council, California Rural Water Association,
California Urban Water Agencies,
Metropolitan Water District of Southern
California, East Bay Municipal Utility
District, Kern County Water Agency,
San Diego Water Authority, Santa
Clara Valley Water District, San
Luis Delta Mendota Water Authority,
Contra Costa Water District and Northern
California Water Association. In
all, these organizations represent
the interests of more than 25 million
California water users.
Drought 2008 facts:
- For the Northern Sierra, this
spring and summer were the driest
on record since 1921. In addition,
2007 and 2008 made up the ninth
driest two-year period in 88
years of record keeping for the
Northern Sierra.
- Statewide precipitation for
the six-month period February
through July 2008 was 45% of
average – the
fourth driest of 114 years on
record.
- State reservoir capacities are
at severe lows, with Folsom at
31%, Shasta at 34% and San Luis
at 13%.
- By the end of this water year
(Sept. 30), Lake Oroville will
reach its lowest carryover storage
since the drought of 1977.
- The water shortage is affecting
the state’s economy, slowing
down development projects and forcing
growers to fallow land. For example,
farmers in northern San Diego County
are stumping avocado trees and
pulling out citrus trees due to
water shortages. The Westland Water
District reports that one-third
of the farmland is being fallowed
this year, at a loss of at least
500 jobs. The California Department
of Food and Agriculture reports
the result of the drought is a
$260 million loss to the state’s
ag industry this year.
Preliminary information shows that
the 2009 water year likely will also
be severely dry. State water
planners are preparing for a protracted
drought by instituting a variety
of programs intended to conserve
water and stretch the state’s
resources. For additional information
about the drought, visit the Department
of Water Resource’s drought
web page at www.water.ca.gov/drought.
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The Department of Water Resources
operates and maintains the State
Water Project, provides dam safety
and flood control and inspection
services, assists local water
districts in water management
and water conservation planning,
and plans for future statewide
water needs. |
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Contact the DWR
Public Affairs Office for more
information about DWR's water activities. |
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Stockton Record Articles
on The Delta:
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GET INVOLVED
IN THE PERIPHERAL CANAL ISSUE:
Two upcoming Delta meetings are scheduled
in Stockton:
- The state Department
of Water Resources hosts a meeting
at 6 p.m. Thursday, August 21, at the
Stockton Memorial Civic Auditorium,
525 N. Center St. Discussion includes
flood protection, levees, water quality,
environment and conveyance (peripheral
canal).
- Gov.
Arnold Schwarzenegger's Delta Vision
comes to Stockton from 4 to 7 p.m.
Aug. 28 at the Scottish Rite Masonic
Center, 33 W. Alpine Avenue. The Delta
Vision task force, set to issue recommendations
on the Delta's future by October, is
seeking comment on its draft plan,
which can be found at www.deltavision.ca.gov.
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Dept of
Water Resources names first Delta Regional
Coordinator (PDF) >>>
More! |
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Purchase the
NEW California Delta Map to exploring
the fabulous California Delta.
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