In this Issue...


We ex amine the issues associated with the State Water Board’s proposed revision of the water quality Bay-Delta Plan, most notably the question of whether additional fl ows are needed for the sys tem, and how they might be


provided.


How much water the Delta needs and where it comes from is a longstanding debate.


On the Cover Credits


Editors


Rita Schmidt Sudman Sue McClurg


Writer Gary Pitzer


Editorial Assistance Robin Douglas


Design & Layout Graphic Communications Photos


Bureau of Reclamation California Department of Water Resources Center for Sacramento History


Dave Feliz, Department of Fish and Game


Modesto Irrigation District Rita Schmidt Sudman


Graphic


Metropolitan Water District of Southern California


The Water Education Foundation thanks all the sources and experts who reviewed this magazine for balance and accuracy.


The mission of the Water Education Foundation, an impartial, nonprofi t organization, is to create a better understanding of water resources and foster public understanding and resolution of water resource issues through facilitation, education and outreach.


Western Water is published by the Water Education Foundation, 717 K Street, Suite 317, Sacramento, CA 95814 (916) 444-6240, fax (916) 448-7699. An annual subscription to this bi-monthly magazine is $65. The balance of the Foundation’s information program may be supported by larger amounts, which are tax deductible. Printed on recycled paper with soy-based ink.


E-mail: feedback@watereducation.org Web page: www.watereducation.org ISSN: 0735-5424


President: William R. Mills


Executive Director: Rita Schmidt Sudman © 2012 Water Education Foundation


Editor’s Desk


Since he took offi ce a lot of issues have been on Gov. Jerry Brown’s plate. Water has not been at the top of the list, which has been dominated primarily by fi scal and budgetary issues. Additionally, severe droughts or fl oods


have not struck the state as they did in the terms of other recent governors – giving Gov. Brown a bit of a breather on the contentious topic that is California water. So when word came that the Governor and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar were holding a joint press conference at the Capitol recently to discuss their support of the BDCP habitat plan and the idea of twin water diversion tunnels under the Delta, I decided I had to get in that room even though it was only open to accredited Capitol press and I’m technically not one of the media. It was a mob scene at the Resources Building where members of the press were trying to crowd into a small conference room. I somehow talked my way into the action with the help of reporters vouching for the Foundation’s work as they rely on Western Water and on our daily news blog Aquafornia.com (www.aquafornia.com). Once I fi nally got in the room, I couldn’t see over the TV cameras. I wanted to be able to ask Gov. Brown a question so I knew I had to push my way to the front of the room. I apologize again to the people I almost crawled over, including the woman in whose lap I fell! But I got up front and caught the Governor’s eye. I told him that as a young reporter I covered him in his fi rst term when he promoted the Peripheral Canal in 1982 and asked what made this proposal different. (You can watch the entire press conference at CalChannel, www.calchannel.com.) I was surprised at the forcefulness of his support of this proposal as he harked back to his youth and time spent with his dad, Gov. Pat Brown, listening to California and Western water debates. He noted he just came from a funeral and wants to get big things done (although he used a different term for “big things”!) including moving forward with this pro- posal. He showed he is defi nitely engaged in California water issues.


After the press conference, I went to the Capitol steps to cover the anti-tunnels rally


where in-Delta residents and other interest groups vocally expressed their vow to vigorously oppose the proposal. Their main concerns center on the proposed size and scope of the project and the assurances that freshwater fl ows continue to sustain the Delta farmlands and local economy. (See our Facebook page for photos I took at the Governor’s press conference and at the Capitol rally.) ❖


With this magazine, we are launching a new, interactive digital version of Western Water, which includes options to click on various information sites and view videos and other extra features. See the order form on page 15, visit our website, www.watereducation.org, or call, 916-444-6240, for more information.


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