ICYMI 7/30/23:
Water Wasted? The history of the Delta water tunnel project and why people are against it – ABC10 (Sacramento) 7/27/23
For decades, Delta residents and the state have been unable to agree on a plan to transport water from the rainy but rural northern part of the state down to the heavily populated, dry southern half.
The current Delta Conveyance Project wants to put a tunnel underneath the Delta to transport water. Former Governor Jerry Brown proposed two tunnels and Gov. Gavin Newsom narrowed it down to one.
…Restore The Delta has been an outspoken critic of the project from the start.
“It’s really sad. Restore The Delta was really earnest when it went and participated with the Design Construction Authority for two years. We didn't like the project, but we figured, okay, we're going to sit at a table for two years, we're going to explain our water quality concerns around harmful algal blooms, salinity, we're going to explain our concerns around air pollution during construction. Those were the big pieces for us and they weren't addressed,” said Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla.
…“We did, from right from the beginning of our conceptual design process, engage local communities through a stakeholder engagement committee,” said Bradner. “Our mission with that committee was to look for ways to reduce effects, construction, designing construction effects to communities and environment within the Delta.
“They hired a contractor who did some analysis of the project as they see it, but we went through the scoping meetings where you couldn't give proper community impact, you could give your reports to a recorder. So sure, they held X amount of meetings, but if they don't listen, if they don't answer your questions and they never take your concerns seriously, is that really meaningful engagement? We don't think so,” said Barrigan-Parrilla.
When asked if the Delta communities that the DCA has engaged with have been supportive, Bradner admitted they have not been.
“None of the folks who participated in the Stakeholder Engagement Committee are really supportive of the project. That wasn't the objective. The objective was to give everyone in the community an opportunity to be part of the concept design phase,” said Bradner.
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