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<P class=MsoNormal><B><FONT face=Tahoma size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma">Deal reached on
<?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
/><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San Joaquin</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">River</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>
legislation<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns =
"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><B><FONT face=Tahoma size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma">Associated Press
– 11/12/08<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><B><FONT face=Tahoma size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma">By Garance
Burke, AP<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><B><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">FRESNO – Congress is on
track to sign off on a deal to restore California's San Joaquin River, bringing
water and salmon back to a now-dry stretch of the waterway that once nourished
the state's farm fields, Sen. Dianne Feinstein said Tuesday.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'"><SPAN
class=989540222-12112008>F</SPAN>ederal legislation needed to implement a legal
settlement for the restoration has been hung up for two years by concerns from
various parties.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">Feinstein told The
Associated Press on Tuesday that she had brokered a final agreement with all the
parties – including environmental and fishing groups, farmers, irrigation
districts and federal agencies – that could get lawmakers' approval during a
lame-duck session of Congress expected to begin next week.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">“I think everybody
realizes that this has been an 18-year fight,” Feinstein said. “Now that
everybody's on the same page, my view is that we should pass this bill, as it
is, as early as we can.” <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">The legislation would
implement a settlement that would return water to a dry 60-mile stretch of the
<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San Joaquin</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">River</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> by 2009 and bring
back Chinook salmon no later than Dec. 31, 2012. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">The San Joaquin is
<st1:place w:st="on"><st1:State w:st="on">California</st1:State></st1:place>'s
second-longest river. The lawsuit stems from the opening of Friant Dam in 1949,
which transformed the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San
Joaquin</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">Valley</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>'s main artery from a river thick
with salmon into an irrigation powerhouse for more than a million acres of
farmland. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">Under the 2006
settlement, the Friant Water Users Authority, which represents 21 irrigation
districts that distribute river water to thousands of farms, agreed to
relinquish a set portion of their traditional water supplies to help restore the
fish. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">Friant officials viewed
that as preferable to letting a judge rule how much water should be released
down the old river bed. <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:State
w:st="on">California</st1:State></st1:place> farmers are already facing cutbacks
in water supplies following two years of dry weather.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">Negotiators said the new
agreement also resolves the concerns of land owners downstream from the dam, who
wanted assurances that their farms wouldn't be flooded or otherwise harmed by
the new water releases. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">“This process has not
been easy, but the future of <st1:State w:st="on">California</st1:State>
agriculture rests on our ability to find solutions,” said Rep. George
Radanovich, R-Mariposa, who represents areas of the <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San Joaquin</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">Valley</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> affected by the legislation. “We
cannot afford to do nothing and allow the courts to be river
masters.”<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">Various disputes erupted
that stalled a final deal, including how to satisfy congressional “pay as you
go” rules that require a loss to the U.S. Treasury to be offset by other income.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">The total cost of the
bill has been disputed, but plaintiffs with the Natural Resources Defense
Council estimate it at between $250 million to $800 million.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">Under the deal Feinstein
announced Tuesday, Friant water districts will over the next 10 years pay back
about $200 million they owe the federal government for building the pumps,
reservoirs and canals attached to the Central Valley Project, plus $100 million
for restoration efforts. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">The state has committed
an additional $200 million in bond revenue, bringing the total restoration
funding for the next decade to about $500 million, said attorney Hal Candee,
lead negotiator for the NRDC. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">“This is the last piece
that was needed in order to fully implement this historic accord,” said Ron
Jacobsma, general manager with the Friant Water Users Authority. “This will help
set the stage to overcome protracted litigation and uncertainty in resolving
other environmental and water supply issues in the West.”
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">Feinstein said she hopes
to get the deal through Congress during its lame-duck session as part of a
larger package of public lands bills currently pending in the Senate, but it
still would have to pass the House before going to President Bush for his
signature. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Times New Roman'">If that doesn't work,
the bill would need to be reintroduced next year, when Congress reconvenes in
January under an Obama administration.#<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on"><B><FONT
face=Tahoma size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma">San
Joaquin</SPAN></FONT></B></st1:PlaceName><B><FONT face=Tahoma size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma">
<st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">River</st1:PlaceType></SPAN></FONT></B></st1:place><B><FONT
face=Tahoma size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma">
restoration bill nears passage<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN-RIGHT: 7.5pt"><st1:City
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on"><B><FONT face=Tahoma size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma">Fresno</SPAN></FONT></B></st1:place></st1:City><B><FONT
face=Tahoma size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma">
Bee – 11/12/08<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN-RIGHT: 7.5pt"><B><FONT
face=Tahoma size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black; FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma">By
Michael Doyle / Bee <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place
w:st="on">Washington</st1:place></st1:State>
Bureau<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></B></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><st1:State w:st="on"><FONT
face="Times New Roman" size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">WASHINGTON</SPAN></FONT></st1:State><FONT
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"> -- The <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San Joaquin</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">River</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> restoration effort, which has had
many near-death experiences amid federal budget concerns and farmer worries, now
appears poised for congressional approval as early as next week.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">Seemingly endless rounds of
negotiations were capped this week when negotiators resolved the lingering
concerns of Los Banos area farmers on the San Joaquin Valley's west side.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">This isn't the first time
negotiators have congratulated themselves, but the latest Capitol Hill progress
sounds final.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT><!-- no related content to display --></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">"I think it should satisfy
all concerned," Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein said Tuesday. "As far as I'm
concerned, this is it." <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">The negotiations answered the
lingering concerns of the "exchange contractors," who are Los Banos-area farmers
irrigating about 200,000 acres on the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">San Joaquin</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">Valley</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>'s west side. Exchange contractors
agreed to give up their historic share of <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San
Joaquin</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">River</st1:PlaceType> water in
exchange for delta water via the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Delta-Mendota</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">Canal</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>, but they reserved the right to
reclaim their river allocation. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">With these farmers mollified
about future water supplies, the stage is set for the river restoration bill to
be passed as part of an omnibus public lands package.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">The public lands bill
contains upward of 140 separate parks, wilderness and environmental provisions.
Feinstein said "the odds are even" the Senate will take up the package during a
brief lame-duck session next week; if it doesn't, Congress will consider the
legislation next year. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">"I think this thing is ready
to go," Rep. George Radanovich, R-Mariposa, said Tuesday.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">Feinstein is the chief Senate
author of the river restoration bill, first introduced two years ago in
considerably different form. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">Radanovich has joined Reps.
Jim Costa, D-Fresno, and Dennis Cardoza, D-Merced, in pushing for the bill as
well. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">The river legislation has
stalled since 2006, in part over questions of how to pay for it.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">The original bill had a
federal price tag of $250 million or more. It also alarmed some farmers who
worry that restoring water flows and salmon populations to the <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San Joaquin</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">River</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> below Friant Dam will sap needed
irrigation deliveries. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">The alarm remains in some
farm circles, as Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Visalia, has been fighting a rear-guard
action against a bill backed by the Bush administration, the state of <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:State w:st="on">California</st1:State></st1:place> and several
dozen irrigation agencies. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">The river rescue deal is
supposed to settle a 20-year-old lawsuit filed by environmentalists unhappy over
the decline of the once-teeming waterway. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">Facing tough budget
questions, Feinstein rewrote the $250 million river bill so that it provides
only $88 million in guaranteed funding. The rest of the federal funds needed
must be sought in future years, though Feinstein maintains the $88 million
understates how much funding is likely. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">The budget maneuver satisfied
the congressional pay-as-you-go requirement that all spending be offset.
However, it worried the Firebaugh Canal Water District, San Luis Canal Co. and
other exchange contractors, which feared they might be shortchanged.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">The modified bill is supposed
to give high priority to exchange contractor projects, such as installing fish
screens or fish bypass facilities along the <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San
Joaquin</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">River</st1:PlaceType> south of
its confluence with the <st1:place w:st="on">Merced River</st1:place>. The
modified bill also conditions the start of interim flows down the <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">San Joaquin</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">River</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> channel, currently slated for
October 2009, upon completion of a big environmental study that already is under
way. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="BACKGROUND: white; MARGIN: 0pt"><FONT face="Times New Roman"
size=4><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt; COLOR: black">The final revisions, agreed
to late Monday night, are meant to ensure future irrigation deliveries with
language stating that the river restoration plan will not modify the exchange
contractors' existing federal contracts. The exchange contractors insisted on
the language, though some lawmakers thought it
unnecessary.</SPAN></FONT></P></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV align=left><EM><FONT color=#808080>Byron Leydecker, JCT</FONT></EM></DIV>
<DIV align=left><EM><FONT color=#808080>Chair, Friends of Trinity
River</FONT></EM></DIV>
<DIV align=left><EM><FONT color=#808080>PO Box 2327</FONT></EM></DIV>
<DIV align=left><EM><FONT color=#808080>Mill Valley, CA
94942-2327</FONT></EM></DIV>
<DIV align=left><EM><FONT color=#808080>415 383 4810</FONT></EM></DIV>
<DIV align=left><EM><FONT color=#808080>415 519 4810 cell</FONT></EM></DIV>
<DIV align=left><EM><FONT color=#808080><A
href="mailto:bwl3@comcast.net">bwl3@comcast.net</A></FONT></EM></DIV>
<DIV align=left><EM><FONT color=#808080><A
href="mailto:bleydecker@stanfordalumni.org">bleydecker@stanfordalumni.org</A>
(secondary)</FONT></EM></DIV>
<DIV align=left><EM><FONT color=#808080><A
href="http://fotr.org/">http://fotr.org</A> </FONT></EM></DIV>
<DIV align=left><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT><A
href="mailto:bwl3@comcast.net"></A> </DIV>
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