Leaving Water in River For reatened Salmon Sparks Controversy
24/09/2016
A major river in California has so much water taken from it by agribusiness that it runs dry for miles. Now, the state agency responsible for the health of California waterways wants to leave some water in the river and its tributaries for fish and downstream farms. But it's not going to happen without a fight.
That's the take-away from the last week of reaction to a proposal by the State Water Resources Control Board to leave more water in three tributaries of the lower San Joaquin River. The proposal comes as part of a draft update to the Board's decade-old Bay-Delta Water Quality Plan. The Board says the change is needed because people continue to take too much water out of the San Joaquin River system. That threatens both the ecological health of the Delta and the livelihoods of Delta farmers, because with less fresh water flowing in from the south, the Delta's channels become too saline.
In addition, keeping more water in the Tuolumne, Stanislaus, and Merced rivers between February and June would give a much-needed boost to the San Joaquin's beleaguered Chinook salmon run.
But the San Joaquin Valley agricultural interests that benefit from water diversions are already gearing up for battle, with local legislators delivering citizen petitions to the Board in an attempt to delay the decision. They're demanding extended public comment time and additional public hearings, saying that limiting water diversions would harm a farming economy already battered by five years of drought.
--
--
American society has changed few river systems as thoroughly as it has the San Joaquin. Rising from a number of tributaries in the highest part of the High Sierra, the San Joaquin system nourished an amazing abundance of both aquatic and terrestrial wildlife, along with the people that depended on that wildlife. Seasonal floods fed a chain of wetlands reaching to the Delta from around the present-day location of Corcoran 200 miles north to the Delta; in exceptionally wet years, those floods likely also fed Tulare Lake to the south, the largest freshwater lake west of the Mississippi.
Almost as soon as white settlers reached California, they set about re-engineering its rivers. First through hydraulic mining, then through aqueduct diversions, and finally through massive dams, the Central Valley's rivers were altered one by one mainly for the benefit of industry.
The San Joaquin Rivers watershed | Map: Wikimedia Commons
The San Joaquin's current woes really started in 1930, when construction began on the huge Friant Dam northeast of Fresno. By the time the dam was completed in 1942, the river's fate was sealed. Tulare Lake showed the future of the San Joaquin: due to diversions from the Kings, Kern, and Kaweah, Tulare had been mostly bone-dry for half a century by the time Friant was finished.
Within a short time after the dam was finished, so were the upper San Joaquin's salmon. Water from the river, impounded in Millerton Lake, was diverted to San Joaquin Valley irrigators. The river often went dry in summer for stretches of 60 miles or more. Chinook once swam into the San Joaquin in spring and fall runs, spawning as far upstream as 16 miles past Friant Dam. After the 1940s, they couldn't make it much past the river's confluence with the Merced at Hills Ferry.
Even downstream from the spot where the Merced joined the San Joaquin, conditions have been none too good for salmon. Agricultural drainage canals add dissolved salts to the river, as well as runoff pollution from both agricultural and residential sources.
Since 1978, the State Water Resources Control Board has issued Water Quality Control Plans to set standards for water quality in the Bay and Delta. The most recent update of that plan was published in 2006. Among many other things, it mandated ongoing measurement of both river flows and salinity at a spot on the San Joaquin River near Vernalis, just a few miles from the point where the Delta begins.
The Board now says that one monitoring station isn't enough, as it doesn't provide information on the health of each of the major tributaries flowing into the San Joaquin upstream from Vernalis.
The board also says that what information it does have about flows in the Stanislaus, Tuolumne, and Merced rivers indicates that from 1984 through 2009, the average amount of water diverted from each of those rivers during the critical spring salmon migration was 60, 79, and 74 percent, respectively. Those percentages are historical medians, which means that half the time even more water would be taken from each of those rivers.
That's a problem. Not only do low flows mean the water is likely too warm - or too nonexistent - for salmon spawning, but salmon are thought to home in on their rivers of birth by reading the different smells of each river's water. Lower flows means less reliable GPS for the Chinook to use in getting to their home streams. And the Spring run of Chinook in these waters, part of the Central Valley Spring Run, is legally considered a Threatened species, so the state is obligated to take steps to preserve them.
That's why the Board is proposing new water quality standards that would require average flows of between 30 and 50 percent of the three rivers' total supply be left in the rivers for the salmon.
In a summary of the proposed changes to the Plan for the San Joaquin watershed, the State Water Resources Control Board said that expanding knowledge of the Delta ecosystem is driving the adjustments in water quality standards:
The refined salinity requirements reflect updated scientific information about salt levels that reasonably prote
LINK: | https://www.kcet.org/redefine/fish-fight-leaving-water-in-river-for-th... |
See more stories from kcet |
Most recent headlines
04/08/2024
Dalet Appoints Santiago Solanas as CEO to Lead Next Era of Growth and Innovation
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, is excited to announce Santiago Solanas as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO)....
03/06/2024
Dalet and Veritone Reach Agreement to Distribute, Transact and Monetize Media Archives
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, a...
28/04/2024
Mediahaus delivers the first SRT live-streaming sports production over 5G with URSA Broadcast G2
Mediahaus delivers the first SRT live-streaming sports production over 5G with U...
19/04/2024
Thank You for visiting us at NAB 2024!
Thank You for visiting us at NAB 2024! Thank you for joining us at the ToolsOnAir booth during NAB Show 2024! We were delighted to showcase our latest inno...
19/04/2024
Stress Positions Mines Health Anxieties for Comedy
PARK CITY, UTAH - JANUARY 18: (L-R) John Early and Theda Hammel attend the 2024 Sundance Film Festival Stress Positions premiere at Library Center Theatre on ...
19/04/2024
Give Me the Backstory: Get to Know Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie, the Filmmakers Behind Sugarcane
By Lucy Spicer One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival...
19/04/2024
Mexico City Watchlist: 7 Documentaries About Working in CDMX
Pictured: Midnight Family By Stephanie Ornelas A great way to get to know a city as culturally unique and rich as Mexico City is to listen to the stories tol...
19/04/2024
SNS Dominates NAB Show 2024 With Triple Win For MOD
St. Louis, MO - April 18, 2024 - Studio Network Solutions (SNS) announced today that MOD won three prestigious industry awards at NAB Show 2024 held this week i...
19/04/2024
How Spotify Approaches Safety With Sarah Hoyle, Global Head of Trust and Safety
Spotify's mission is to unlock the potential of human creativity by giving a million artists the opportunity to live off their art and billions of fans the ...
19/04/2024
Spotify and Taylor Swift Create a One-of-a-Kind Library To Celebrate THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT'
It's a beautiful day to be a Swiftie. Today, Taylor Swift dropped her 11th s...
19/04/2024
L3Harris Announces Quarterly Dividend
MELBOURNE, Fla., April 19, 2024 - The Board of Directors of L3Harris Technologies (NYSE:LHX) declared a quarterly cash dividend of $1.16 per common share, payab...
19/04/2024
Intel Lays Out 8K Production, AI Tech Plans for Paris Olympics
PARIS Intel has announced that its plans for the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024 will include using artificial intelligence technology powered by Intel ...
19/04/2024
Tech Advances Boost Adoption of 8K Production
LAS VEGAS Technologists working on all aspects of the 8K media production chain offered an optimistic update at the 2024 NAB Show on the state of 8K in video pr...
19/04/2024
OpenDrives New Software-Defined Platform Atlas Wins 2024 NAB Show Product of the Year Award
OpenDrives New Software-Defined Platform Atlas Wins 2024 NAB Show Product of the...
19/04/2024
Grass Valley Showcases Next-Generation T3 Series 4K/HD Digital Recording and Playback for Venues and Stadiums
Grass Valley Showcases Next-Generation T3 Series 4K/HD Digital Recording and Pla...
19/04/2024
NiTRo's M-CUBE Studio Levels Up Esports Productions with AJA Gear
NiTRo's M-CUBE Studio Levels Up Esports Productions with AJA Gear Brie Clayton April 19, 2024 0 Comments Esports' rapid rise to popularity can...
19/04/2024
Blackmagic Design Announces DaVinci Resolve 19
Blackmagic Design Announces DaVinci Resolve 19 Brie Clayton April 19, 2024 0 Comments Major update adds new DaVinci Neural Engine AI tools, new color ...
19/04/2024
Sony Considering Bid to Acquire Paramount
Sony Pictures Entertainment is reportedly in talks with Apollo Global Management to make a bid to acquire Paramount which itself is currently discussing a merge...
19/04/2024
How 1185 Films created the VFX on new horror, All You Need Is Death
Simon Wilkinson, head of VFX at 1185 films, talks about the technology behind the newly-released horror By Matthew Corrigan Published: April 19, 2024 Simo...
19/04/2024
Could Sony be preparing a bid for Channel 5's parent company?
The global electronics company is said to be considering joining forces with investment firm Apollo Management to bid for Paramount Global By Jenny Priestley ...
19/04/2024
EBU report highlights contribution of free-to-air sport broadcasting
The report broke the economic footprint of EBU member sports broadcasting into three main areas By Matthew Corrigan Published: April 19, 2024 The report b...
19/04/2024
CBS Stations Launches CBS News California Investigates' Segments
CBS Stations has launched CBS News California Investigates , with Julie Watts named regional CBS California correspondent. She will uncover and raise awarenes...
19/04/2024
MediaCo Acquires Estrella Media's Spanish-Language Network, Content Assets
MediaCo Holding, which owns radio stations WQHT (Hot 97) and WBLS in New York, said it acquired Estrella Media's Spanish-language video, audio and digital c...
19/04/2024
Season 5 of The Witcher' Will Be Final One
Netflix has ordered season five of fantasy drama The Witcher, which will be the final season. Production has recently begun on season four, and the two remainin...
19/04/2024
DirecTV Stream To Carry Eight More The CW Affiliates
DirecTV Stream said it added eight more The CW affiliates to its lineup on Thursday....
19/04/2024
CBS Orders More Elsbeth'
CBS has renewed Elsbeth for the 2024-2025 season. The drama, with Carrie Preston in the lead role, debuted February 29....
19/04/2024
With Bears on the Clock. NBCU Local Chicago Plans Extensive NFL Draft Coverage
With the Bears picking first, NBCUniversal Local's properties in Chicago plan extensive coverage of the NFL draft next week....
19/04/2024
Comcast Launches NOW
PHILADELPHIA As government subsidies for broadband services come to an end, Comcast has launched NOW, a new product portfolio of lower-cost Internet, mobile and...
19/04/2024
DirecTV Stream Adds CW Affiliates
DirecTV Stream has added more local CW stations for its streaming customers in Boston, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Hartford-New Haven Conn., Phoenix, San ...
19/04/2024
MediaCo Acquires Estrella Media's Content and Digital Operations
NEW YORK & LOS ANGELES MediaCo Holding Inc. has announced that it has acquired all of Estrella Media's network, content, digital, and commercial operations....
19/04/2024
Adobe Launches New Adobe Express Mobile App with Firefly AI
SAN JOSE, Calif. Adobe has announced that the all-new Adobe Express mobile app is available to all users, bringing features powered by Adobe Firefly generative ...
19/04/2024
Netflix Adds 9.3M Subs in Q1
LOS GATOS, Calif. Netflix reported another blockbuster quarter by adding 9.33 million new subscribers in Q1, 2024 as global paid memberships hit 269.6 million, ...
19/04/2024
The Current State of the Industry and the Future Impact of AI
The Current State of the Industry and the Future Impact of AI Hillary Lewis April 18, 2024 0 Comments The Entertainment Industry: How did we get here ...
19/04/2024
After Effects Tutorial Text Blur Reveal
After Effects Tutorial Text Blur Reveal Andy Ford April 18, 2024 0 Comments Here's a way to do a quick blur reveal for your text layer. Start by...
19/04/2024
Hollyland Mars M1 Enhanced Wireless Transmitter / Receiver
Hollyland Mars M1 Enhanced Wireless Transmitter / Receiver Colin Smith April 18, 2024 0 Comments This tutorial shows the new wireless transmitter rece...
19/04/2024
Resolve Fusion: Writing Expressions with Lua
Resolve Fusion: Writing Expressions with Lua Simon Ubsdell April 18, 2024 0 Comments The answer to the very frequently-asked question: what is the pro...
19/04/2024
B+C,' Next TV' Announce Winners of Best of Show Awards at NAB Show
B+C and Next TV have announced the winners of Best of Show Awards for the 2024 NAB Show. The awards were judged by a panel of industry experts at the convention...
19/04/2024
Cate Blanchett Narrates Nature Series on Netflix
Cate Blanchett narrates the Netflix series Our Living World, which premieres April 17. The four-part series looks at the extraordinary creatures around the glob...
19/04/2024
For All Mankind' Spinoff Is in the Works at Apple TV Plus
Apple TV Plus has a spinoff of For All Mankind in the works. It is called Star City and details the cosmonauts, engineers and intelligence officers working behi...
19/04/2024
Jacquie Walker, Longtime Buffalo Anchor, Stepping Down From Desk
Jacquie Walker, longtime anchor at WIVB Buffalo, will step down from the anchor desk. She has spent over 40 years at WIVB and her last day as an anchor is May 2...
19/04/2024
Bob Hearts Abishola' To Make Syndicated Debut This Fall
Bob Hearts Abishola will premiere in broadcast syndication this fall on such station groups as Nexstar Media Group, Sinclair, Hearst Television, Tegna, E.W. Scr...
19/04/2024
Live With Kelly and Mark' Celebrates One-Year Anniversary
Live With Kelly and Mark remains TV's top entertainment talk show as Kelly Ripa and her co-host and husband Mark Consuelo celebrate their one-year anniversa...
19/04/2024
Sean McLaughlin Named VP of News at Graham Media Group
Sean McLaughlin has been named VP of news for Graham Media Group. He had been senior VP of local news at E.W. Scripps. He will will be responsible for developi...
19/04/2024
Netflix Shares First Peek at Long-Awaited One Hundred Years of Solitude'
Netflix has shared the first trailer from One Hundred Years of Solitude, a series based on the esteemed novel by Gabriel Garc a M rquez. The streamer is on boar...
19/04/2024
NAB 2024 in Review: West Hall - SportsTech Buzz From AWS, Appear, Ateme, The Switch, TATA Communications, Telstra, TVU Networks, Verizon, and More
NAB 2024 in Review: West Hall - SportsTech Buzz From AWS, Appear, Ateme, The Swi...
19/04/2024
NAB 2024 Draws 61,000+ Attendees With More Than Half Attending the Show for the First Time
NAB 2024 Draws 61,000+ Attendees With More Than Half Attending the Show for the ...
19/04/2024
Rohde & Schwarz and VIAVI support European OTIC in Berlin for O-RAN conformance certification
Rohde & Schwarz and VIAVI support European OTIC in Berlin for O-RAN conformance ...
19/04/2024
Riedel launches Bolero Connect for seamless integration with PunQtum
Wuppertal April 19, 2024 Riedel launches Bolero Connect for seamless integration with PunQtum A pioneer in the field of digital intercom, Riedel has recently ...