Endangered Species Act.
From the Department of Water Resources: “Federal agencies responsible for the protection of species listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) today provided biological opinions on the proposed construction and operation of California WaterFix.
Under the ESA, other federal agencies must consult with the Service and NOAA when their activities have the potential to impact federally endangered or threatened species.
The Service biological opinion is available here, and the biological opinion from NOAA Fisheries is here.
“The wisest thing to do in the face of uncertainty is to monitor constantly, test hypotheses regularly, adjust operations accordingly, and reassess,” said California Department of Water Resources (DWR) Acting Director Bill Croyle.
“In the Delta, we always will be adjusting to improve resiliency and protect the environment.
The biological opinions are important components of the analysis of the environmental effects of WaterFix.
These biological opinions will also be considered by permitting agencies, including the State Water Resources Control Board in its hearing now underway on a petition by DWR and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to allow for the change in points of diversion to add three new intakes on the Sacramento River as part of WaterFix.
WaterFix would not change the volume of water to which the SWP and CVP are entitled to divert, but would add additional diversion points in a more environmentally protective place that also is easier to safeguard against natural disaster such as earthquake and sea-level rise due to climate change.” Stay tuned to Maven’s Notebook for coverage later today from the media call; Reactions to be posted tomorrow … ——————————————– Sign up for daily email service and you’ll always be one of the first to know!
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