Weekly Summary: August 14, 2016
Climate Change, California Water, and the Delta Tunnels “In California, drought is the new normal. Delta Tunnel proponents have tried to convince urban and agricultural water exporters that massive water deliveries will be available for capture and export to dry regions from big storm events.
Just one problem with that plan.
With less and less Sierra snowpack to melt, and fewer rainstorm events, there is no reliable water source for the Big Gulp. If constructed, using the Delta Tunnels at full capacity, 9,000 cfs (cubic feet per second), would only be possible during limited storm events, a huge waste of money for a project with a $17 billion price tag. Read our blog article.
DELTA TUNNELS: State Auditor to Audit CA “WaterFix” Funding The Joint Legislative Audit Committee voted to launch an audit into funding for the California WaterFix (Delta Tunnels) as requested by Assemblymember Susan Eggman and Senator Lois Wolk. Read press release.
Meet the California Couple Who Uses More Water Than Every Home in Los Angeles Combined In this story, Mother Jones reporter Josh Harkinson explores the how the Resnicks’ Wonderful Company came to control more of California’s water in some years than the residents of Los Angeles and the Bay Area combined.
Excerpts:
"I think the Wonderful Company and the Resnicks are truly the top 1 percent wrapped in a green veneer, a veneer of social justice," says Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla of Restore the Delta.
"The tunnels would completely bypass the ecologically sensitive Delta, eliminating much of the smelt-endangering pumping–and, by extension, many of the restrictions on Delta water diversions that have crimped the Resnicks' supply." Read the article.