ICYMI 10/1/23: Competing Bay-Delta rescue plans released

ICYMI 10/1/23: Competing Bay-Delta rescue plans released

California wants to restore its rivers and San Francisco Bay to health. Here is its controversial plan - SF Chronicle 9/29/23
California water regulators have teed up what promises to be one of the state’s biggest debates on water in years, releasing a long-anticipated proposal to revive dozens of rivers, creeks and wetlands by reining in the draws of cities and farms.
The goal is nothing short of ensuring that sufficient water is flowing from the High Sierra to San Francisco Bay, to nourish vast and diverse landscapes, support fish and wildlife and halt the decline of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, the largest estuary on the West Coast and the hub of the state’s water supply.
The nearly 6,000-page document released Thursday, an update to what’s known as the Bay-Delta Plan, focuses on boosting water flows, and limiting pumping, in the delta and the Sacramento River basin. A previous update, in 2018, did the same for the San Joaquin River basin, to the south. Taken together, the two updates, once implemented, provide regulatory standards for the entire Sacramento-San Joaquin River watershed, from the Oregon border to Fresno.