New Life for the Delta

Pity the poor salmon, steelhead or striped bass that tries to navigate the swirling tidal waters of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, which collects the waters of 13 major streams and funnels them through San Francisco Bay to the ocean. The waters meander via hundreds of miles of channels and sloughs through the 700-square-mile estuary. Compounding the confusion, the giant pumps of the state and federal water projects at the south end of the delta create their own currents. Many of the smaller fish get sucked up by the pumps and dumped into the giant canals that carry the water to the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California.

The result has been a drastic decline in the important delta sport and commercial fisheries since federal Central Valley Project and state Water Project pumping began. The bass population in the estuary now is estimated to be only one-fourth of what it was two decades ago. The salmon runs up the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers have experienced similar devastating declines. Over the years the state Department of Water Resources and the state Fish and Game Department have quarreled over the effect on the fishery of the pumping from Clifton Court Forebay near Tracy, and what to do about it.

At last, however, the agencies appear to have agreed on a program to minimize future fish diversions and compensate for the losses that have occurred since the pumping began. State Water Project contractors, through the Department of Water Resources, would provide an immediate $15 million to begin the restoration process. Another $2 million would be spent annually for up to 12 years to offset future fish losses.

Also participating in the negotiations were commercial and sport fishermen’s groups, the Planning and Conservation League and the state Water Project contractors, including the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California. All of these groups will monitor the success of the program and consult on future fish-protection efforts.

The tentative agreement will facilitate the proposed installation of four additional pumps at the state plant at Clifton Court. The new pumps will permit the project to extract more water from the delta during high-flow periods when the damage to the fishery and delta water quality is at a minimum. Money will be saved by permitting greater pumping during off-peak electrical-use periods when power rates are lower. And pumping capacity will be increased in anticipation of some future date when additional exports to Southern California are authorized.

The parties should be commended for their work and urged to conclude the agreement promptly. This will be another important step in restoring the natural balance in the delta that was upset by massive water exports to the valley and the south--a mission of importance to the entire state.