Politics & Government
CoCo Takes Legal Action Against Delta Water Project
"It is a deeply flawed plan that does not improve statewide water supplies and would harm the Delta, the regions, and California's economy."
CONTRA COSTA COUNTY — The Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday voted 5-0 during a closed session to file a petition challenging the California Department of Water Resources' final environmental impact report for the Delta Conveyance Project once the state certifies it.
The decision follows the Dec. 8 release of the report for the controversial $16 billion water project that would build a tunnel and two intakes to pull water from the Delta and connect it to the Bethany Reservoir on the California Aqueduct before delivering it to homes and farms in Central and Southern California.
In a separate action, Supervisor Ken Carlson, on behalf of the county, signed onto a letter from the Delta Counties Coalition — addressed to DWR Director Karla Nemeth — to request at least 60 days of public review of the final EIR.
"While DWR may certify an EIR after providing 10 days' notice to responsible agencies, 10 days is inadequate for this massive infrastructure proposal, within which our counties are 'ground zero,'" stated the letter, which provided multiple reasons for why additional time for review should be allotted, including the fact that original comment letters are only being made available upon request.
The letter continued, "We note that this is the second time that DWR has chosen to release a Draft or Final EIR for a version of new Delta conveyance in December (last done in December 2013 and 2016, respectively). Given the counties' limited staffing and consultant availability in December due to holidays, associated vacations, and family gatherings, this practice unfairly hinders public review of this controversial and impactful project by the counties and other members of the interested public."
Carlson's signature was accompanied by DCC chair Patrick Hume, who is also a Sacramento County supervisor; Oscar Villegas, Yolo County supervisor; Solano County Supervisor Mitch Mashburn and Tom Patti, San Joaquin County supervisor.
DCC is a consortium of these five Delta-adjacent counties, working to "give one voice to the Delta."
An identical letter to Nemeth was also signed by a handful of senators and assemblymembers, including Sen. Bill Dodd, Assemblymember Carlos Villapudua, Assemblymember Lori Wilson, Sen. Susan Talamantes Eggman, Assemblymember Stephanie Nguyen, Assemblymember Kevin McCarty, Assemblymember Damon Connolly, Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan, Assemblymember Timothy Grayson, Assemblymember Heath Flora, Assemblymember Josh Hoover and Sen. Roger Niello.
The release of the final EIR signified the last step mandated under the California Environmental Quality Act before the report's certification and the project's possible approval.
Proponents say the Delta Conveyance Project will modernize the state's aging system that's not equipped to capture water amid climate change conditions and is currently at the mercy of possible future earthquakes.
But opponents, including tribal nations and environmentalists, have raised numerous issues with its design, such as the impact to the Delta's ecosystem, businesses, and urban and cultural communities.
Responses to the final EIR were equally divided. Numerous leaders from chambers of commerce, labor unions and water agencies — including Jennifer Pierre, general manager of the State Water Contractors — applauded the DWR for advancing the Delta Conveyance Project.
"The proposed project is a crucial part of the state's Water Resilience Portfolio and protects the state against future water supply losses caused by climate-driven weather extremes, sea level rise and earthquakes," Pierre said. "We look forward to seeing the final EIR certified."
Hume, however, said the tunnel described in the final EIR continues to be based on last century thinking and merely moves water from the north to the south without adding any new water to the system.
"It is a deeply flawed plan that does not improve statewide water supplies and would harm the Delta, the regions, and California's economy," Hume said, referring to the tunnel as a "16-year, $16+ billion ratepayer-funded mega project" that would cause grave environmental and ecological impacts in the Delta.
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