[env-trinity] Ultra-Urgent Action Alert: Save The Bay-Delta Estuary!

[Daniel Bacher]

Dear Friends

Of all of the action alerts I have ever sent out, this is probably the most 
urgent. Please spend a few minutes to send a short letter to the Governor. 
Ask him to stop the SDIP (South Delta Improvement Project) and any 
additional Delta export projects until the ecology and fisheries of the 
estuary are restored.

The health of the Bay-Delta estuary and the fisheries of the West Coast are 
in the greatest jeopardy they have ever been in! At a time when state and 
federal scientists are documenting a collapse of the Delta food chain, it 
would be absolute insanity to export MORE Water from the Delta, as the state 
and federal governments are planning to do.

Please forward this to everybody that you know!

Dan Bacher


Action Alert

Fishing Groups Align to Oppose Additional Delta Water Export
and Need Your Support!

In light of the government's recent announcement of the on-going collapse of 
the Bay-Delta Estuary that once sustained multiple runs of salmon and 
abundant runs striped bass, American shad, sturgeon and steelhead, many 
sport and commercial fishing groups have aligned to oppose all additional 
water export out of the Delta until the estuary and its fisheries are 
restored.
 
The California Sportfishing Protection Alliance, the Northern California 
Council of Fly Fishers, and the California Striped Bass Association have 
been joined in their opposition by California Trout, United Anglers of 
California, the Recreational Fishing Alliance, United Pier and Shore Anglers 
of California, the Anglers Committee, California Fly Fishers Unlimited, 
Tri-Valley Fly Fishers, Fly Fishers of Davis and by commercial fishermen 
through the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Association. These 
groups are asking all anglers and the public to engage and express 
opposition to any additional export of Delta water to the governor until the 
estuary ecosystem and fisheries are restored.

According to agency scientists, the estuary's primary production of food is 
so low it is signaling the collapse of the Delta ecosystem. Populations of 
key plankton and tiny shrimp that fuel the foodweb and drive the system's 
ecology have virtually disappeared, as have some of estuary's important 
species of fish including Delta smelt, longfin smelt, shad and 
young-of-the-year striped bass. This collapse is the harbinger of what will 
happen to other fish and wildlife resources dependent on the estuary.

Most alarming is the incredible fact that as this collapse occurs and agency 
biologist scramble to try and figure out scientifically what is going wrong, 
the Department of Water Resources has announced it will move forward with 
their "South Delta Improvement Project" (SDIP) that would increase water 
exports out of the Delta up to 25%! They say the SDIP draft Environmental 
Impact Report will be circulated for public review by the end of this month.

The decision to move the SDIP forward in the face of a collapsing estuary 
can only make the estuary's problems worse and do irreparable harm to its 
fishery resources. While declining productivity in the estuary in not new 
since declines in salmon, steelhead and striper bass have become common 
place, what is new is the near total collapse in ecosystem primary 
productivity upon which everything else depends.

The SDIP will be the straw that breaks the estuary's back. If the foodweb is 
lost it will result in the estuary's fisheries not being able to find food 
where and when they need it for survival. The foodweb is irreplaceable! 
Scientists have long maintained that water export affects the productivity 
of the estuary by changing the once natural flow regime and the amount of 
water that used to flow through the Delta into the San Francisco Bay.

Instead of the high spring runoff through the entire estuary, the water 
projects have greatly reduced these flows and changed the timing of when 
that water would normally be available to the estuary. Such dramatic changes 
are at the very hart of the problem.

While we understand that other factors such as toxic pesticides and 
unintentionally introduced "exotic" species may be involved in this 
collapse, this is not the time to be increasing exports! In order for the 
waters of the estuary to produce food, the water must stay in the system 
long enough to do so. When 60% of the estuary's fresh water is exported 
annually, that leaves only 40% of the water to do what 100% used to do. 
Increasing exports beyond the current level can only make the situation 
worse.

If we are to completely understand and address the reasons for the collapse, 
increasing exports must be stopped until the solutions are found that 
restore the estuary and our fisheries.

Given the push to export more water by water contractors, the best way to 
stop the SDIP is to contact Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. We urge you to 
ask the Governor to stop the SDIP and any additional Delta export projects 
until the ecology and fisheries of the estuary are restored. You can email 
the Governor by going to http://www.govmail.ca.gov where you can fill out 
the email form and send it to the Governor's office. Or you can send a 
letter or card to him at:
 
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814

You can also call or fax his office:
Phone: 916-445-2841
Fax: 916-445-4633
 
The message is simple, ask the Governor to stop the plans of the Department 
of Water Resources to implement the South Delta Improvement Project and the 
export of any additional water out of Delta until our estuary and its 
fisheries are restored.

You can mention that DWR's recently released Bulletin 160 clearly 
demonstrates that the state's water needs will be met for at least the next 
decade with the existing water infrastructure. There is no water crisis to 
justify the destruction of the Delta! It is time to raise our collective 
voice. The estuary is truly at stake!
 
If you would like to send a more detailed letter to the Governor, a sample 
letter follows:

Date

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
State Capitol Building
Sacramento, CA 95814

Dear Governor Schwarzenegger:
 
I am writing to urge you to stop the efforts by your Department of Water 
Resources to increase the export of fresh water out of the Delta. Given the 
ecological value of the Delta as a public resource which meets a variety of 
water needs for the state, the recent collapse of its food-web is a disaster 
of unparalleled significance. The future of the Bay-Delta estuary and its 
vitally important public fishery resources is at stake.

As you may know some 60% of the fresh water that flows into the Delta is 
exported out of the system for agricultural (85%) and urban consumption 
(15%). Over the past several months agency scientists have confirmed that 
the estuary's capacity to produce the food-web that sustains critical 
populations of fish and wildlife has collapsed!
 
I believe your leadership is needed to halt all efforts to increase Delta 
exports, including the South Delta Improvement Project, until the problems 
that have caused this catastrophe are determined and solutions implemented 
that have restored the estuary and its fishery resources.
 
Given the fact that DWR's recently released Bulletin 160 clearly 
demonstrates that the state's water needs will be met for at least the next 
decade with the existing water infrastructure, it is imperative to stop 
additional exports planning until the long promised restoration of the 
estuary and its fishery resources is accomplished!

Sincerely,

(Your name and address)

John Beuttler
On Behalf of the Allied Fishing Groups

To contact CSPA and the Allied Fishing Groups for further information, send 
your email to: CSPAORG at aol.com or call us at 510-526-4049