The San Joaquin River, which helps drain California’s Central
Valley, has been negatively impacted by construction of dams,
inadequate streamflows and poor water quality. Efforts are now
underway to restore the river and continue providing agricultural
lands with vital irrigation, among other water demands.
After an 18-year lawsuit to restore water flows to a 60-mile dry
stretch of river and to boost the dwindling salmon populations,
the San Joaquin River Restoration Settlement is underway.
Water releases are now used to restore the San Joaquin River and
to provide habitat for naturally-reproducing populations of
self-sustaining Chinook salmon and other fish in the San Joaquin
River. Long-term efforts also include measures to reduce or avoid
adverse water supply impacts from the restoration flows.
State regulators want to leave more water for fish and
wildlife in the heavily tapped tributaries of the San
Joaquin River, setting the stage for another bruising
California water fight.
San Francisco faces potentially drastic cutbacks in its water
supply, as state regulators proposed leaving more water in
three Northern California rivers Thursday to protect wildlife
in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta estuary, the linchpin
of California’s water supply.
In a move that foreshadows sweeping statewide reductions in the
amount of river water available for human needs, California
regulators on Thursday proposed a stark set of cutbacks to
cities and farms that receive water from the San Joaquin River
and its tributaries.
Participants of this tour snake along the San Joaquin River
to learn firsthand about one of the nation’s largest and most
expensive river restoration plans.
The San Joaquin River was the focus of one of the most
contentious legal battles in California water history,
ending in a 2006 settlement between the federal government,
Friant Water Users Authority and a coalition of environmental
groups.
In a few weeks, the State Water Resources Control Board will
release a draft of an obscure water quality plan that could
dramatically increase the flow of the [San Joaquin] river.
As part of one of the largest restoration projects in the
country groups will begin working this summer to fully connect
water flowing out of Friant Dam in the San Joaquin River to the
Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and out to the ocean.
The San Joaquin River and its three main tributaries ranked
second on a list of “endangered” streams released Tuesday by a
national group. … American Rivers compiles the list to
draw attention to current or pending threats it sees on the
streams, including dams, hydroelectric plants, mining and
pollution.
In another sign that the drought isn’t over in this neck of
California, state officials are considering temporarily
loosening water quality standards on the Stanislaus and San
Joaquin rivers for the third year in a row.
A Fresno jury has awarded a Madera County development company
$25 million in damages against Fidelity National Title
Insurance in a civil trial over the developer’s blocked access
to the San Joaquin River.
The giant Westlands Water District will pay $125,000 to settle
Securities and Exchange Commission civil charges that it misled
investors about its financial health, officials said Wednesday.
Participants of this tour snaked along the San
Joaquin River to learn firsthand about one of the nation’s
largest and most expensive river restoration plans.
The San Joaquin River was the focus of one of the most
contentious legal battles in California water history,
ending in a 2006 settlement between the federal government,
Friant Water Users Authority and a coalition of environmental
groups.
Much of the honest debate about global warming has focused on
the costs and pace of switching from fossil fuels to
renewables. The discussion, however, should widen to include
examination of programs favored by environmentalists and
governments to preserve species.
More than six decades after their deaths, the San Joaquin River
and chinook salmon slowly are coming back to life in an
unprecedented, hard-fought revival. … The trick in restoring
this dried river is making water turn around and run uphill to
be used on farms.
After missing ambitious deadlines to restore the San Joaquin
River, federal leaders this week extended deadlines to 2030 and
beyond while holding down federal appropriations funding to
less than $50 million annually.
California water regulators flexed their muscles by ordering a
group of farmers to stop pumping from a branch of the San
Joaquin River amid an escalating battle over how much power the
state has to protect waterways that are drying up in the
drought.
