<html><head></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div><a href="http://www.times-standard.com/news/ci_23887448/humboldt-county-supervisors-fresno-judge-release-our-water">http://www.times-standard.com/news/ci_23887448/humboldt-county-supervisors-fresno-judge-release-our-water</a> </div><div><span id="rds_global"><div class="contentStyle" style="text-align: left; width: 1097px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; "><span id="MNGiSection"><div id="regionParent" class="regionParent" style="text-align: left; overflow-x: visible !important; width: 1097px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; "><div id="outerOuterRegion" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 22px; font-size: 14px; text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: auto; 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-webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; position: static; z-index: auto; "><tbody><tr><td class="articleBox" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 15px; width: 639px; "><h1 id="articleTitle" class="articleTitle" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font-family: Merriweather, Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-weight: bold; line-height: 1.2; color: inherit; text-rendering: optimizelegibility; font-size: 33px; ">Humboldt County supervisors to Fresno judge: Release our water: Board warns of repeated fish kill</h1><div id="articleByline" class="articleByline" style="text-align: left; font-weight: normal; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-style: italic; font-size: 14px; ">Catherine Wong/The Times-Standard<div id="articleDate" class="articleSecondaryDate meta" style="text-align: left; font: normal normal normal 10px/16.989px 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(128, 128, 128); text-transform: uppercase; white-space: nowrap; border-top-width: 1px; border-top-style: solid; border-top-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(221, 221, 221); clear: both; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 5px; padding-top: 2px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 2px; padding-left: 0px; line-height: 22px; ">POSTED: 08/18/2013 02:35:27 AM PDT</div></div><br><span fd-type="start" fd-id="default"></span><div class="articlePositionHeader" style="text-align: left; "></div><span fd-type="end" fd-id="default"></span><div id="articleBody" class="articleBody" style="text-align: left; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); "><div class="articleViewerGroup" id="articleViewerGroup" style="text-align: left; float: right; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; 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padding-top: 5px; padding-right: 5px; padding-bottom: 5px; padding-left: 5px; font: normal normal normal 11px/normal 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(255, 255, 255); background-color: rgb(127, 127, 127); border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(204, 204, 204); display: block; ">Click photo to enlarge</span><div class="photocontainer" style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: auto; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; background-color: rgb(102, 102, 102); overflow-x: hidden; overflow-y: hidden; display: table; "><div class="photocell" style="text-align: center; display: table-cell; vertical-align: middle; "><div class="photo" style="text-align: left; "><a id="gallery_link" border="0px" href="http://www.times-standard.com/portlet/article/html/render_gallery.jsp?articleId=23887448&siteId=127&startImage=1" target="_new" style="color: rgb(82, 120, 174); text-decoration: none; -webkit-transition-property: initial; -webkit-transition-duration: 0.1s; -webkit-transition-timing-function: ease-out; -webkit-transition-delay: initial; "><img id="image" width="179" height="140" style="max-width: 100%; height: auto; vertical-align: middle; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; border-top-style: none; border-right-style: none; border-bottom-style: none; border-left-style: none; visibility: visible; " apple-width="yes" apple-height="yes" src="cid:7F11745D-A3F5-4C3F-A61D-C04CFA53ADDF@att.net"></a></div></div></div><div id="caption" class="caption" style="text-align: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 5px; padding-right: 5px; padding-bottom: 5px; padding-left: 5px; font: normal normal normal 11px/normal 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); border-top-width: 1px; border-top-style: solid; border-top-color: rgb(85, 85, 85); border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(85, 85, 85); "></div><div class="controlbox" style="text-align: left; height: 23px; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); "></div><span class="footer" style="clear: both; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; "></span></div></span><span fd-type="start" fd-id="default"></span><span fd-type="end" fd-id="default"></span></div><span fd-type="start" fd-id="default"></span><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">The Board of Supervisors has a message for the federal judge who halted flows meant to protect Klamath salmon: Lawsuit or no lawsuit by Central California farmers, there's water in the Trinity River that belongs to Humboldt County and we want it released.</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">”A lot of us are scared a massive fish kill will happen again,” Chairman and 5th District Supervisor Ryan Sundberg said, referring to the 2002 Klamath River fish kill of tens of thousands of salmon. “There were just dead fish lining the banks. It was really heartbreaking. We're committed to doing everything we can to prevent that.”</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">Sundberg is the author of a declaration sent to U.S. District Court Judge Lawrence J. O'Neill on Thursday that asserts that the federal government is legally obligated to provide no less than 50,000 acre-feet of water to Humboldt County and downstream water users.</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">The board will vote on ratifying the declaration during Tuesday morning's session, and discuss authorizing Sundberg to “respond as necessary” on the issue on behalf of the county.</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">The declaration cites the 1955 Trinity River Act and a 1959 contract between the county and the Bureau of Reclamation that resulted from the act.</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">According to a letter sent by Sundberg and Hoopa Valley Tribal Chairwoman Danielle Vigil Masten to U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Sally Jewell, the act allowed for the diversion of Trinity River water to the Central Valley, but stipulated “that not less than 50,000 acre-feet shall be released annually from the Trinity Reservoir and made available to Humboldt County and downstream water users.”</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">Sundberg said the contract was negotiated for the releases, but the federal government has never honored it. In his declaration, he states the contract was for permanent service and has priority over the Westlands Water District and the San Luis & Delta-Mendota Water Authority, which are the plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the bureau over additional releases.</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">The plaintiffs claim that planned Trinity River releases meant to stave off a fish kill on the lower Klamath would decrease already low water allocations available to farmers for irrigation. Farmers in the San Joaquin Valley also argue that federal agencies lacked the authority to authorize the flows.</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">O'Neill granted a temporary restraining order that blocked water releases from the Trinity River last week, and has ordered the bureau and U.S. Department of the Interior to demonstrate why he should not restrict additional flows until the lawsuit runs its legal course.</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">A hearing is set for Aug. 21. The temporary restraining order expires Aug. 23.</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">Hoopa Valley Tribal Fisheries Director Mike Orcutt said he and Vice Chairman Byron Nelson Jr. spent Friday preparing briefs, technical information and testimonies for the hearing.</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">”We have documentation of the devastation to the tribe from the 2002 fish kill. The fish were a tragedy, but it also harmed our tribe's membership,” Orcutt said. “We're expecting at least 272,000 Chinook this year.”</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">Third District Supervisor Mark Lovelace said the request for the restraining order did not come as a surprise.</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">”What was surprising was that the judge granted it,” he said. “I believe it showed the judge's lack of understanding of the seriousness of the issue. He basically said, 'Well, what's another week?' In a week, those salmon may already be in the estuary facing lethal conditions.”</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">In his declaration, Sundberg added that the state issued several water rights permits to divert water to the Central Valley, and that the permits require holders to release sufficient water from the Trinity and Lewiston reservoirs so at least 50,000 acre-feet is available annually “for the beneficial use of Humboldt County and other downstream users.”</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">He also includes that Humboldt County deems the Hoopa Valley Tribe a “downstream user,” and that state law defines the use of water to maintain a fishery in a wild and scenic river as beneficial.</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">Lovelace said records show that the board has consistently pushed for the county's water rights to be resolved. </p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">”When you see Delta-Mendota and Westlands Water District get involved, they claim the government is taking their water,” he said. “But these are shadowy quasi-governmental agencies that are benefiting from the taking and redistributing wealth in the form of water, water that belongs up here and not in the desert.”</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">Calls to the Westlands Water District administration and public affairs offices, as well as the San Luis & Delta-Mendota Water Authority administration office, were not returned by the Times-Standard's deadline.</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">In other business, the board will vote on a contract renewal with Bowman Systems LLC for Homeless Management Information Systems Software and a Fish and Game Advisory Commission grant allocation as items on the consent calendar.</p><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); "><br class="webkit-block-placeholder"></div><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">If you go:</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">What: Board of Supervisors meeting</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">When: 9 a.m. Tuesday</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">Where: Supervisors' chamber, first floor, Humboldt County Courthouse, 825 Fifth St. in Eureka</p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">The full agenda can be viewed online at <a href="http://co.humboldt.ca.us/board" style="color: rgb(82, 120, 174); text-decoration: none; -webkit-transition-property: initial; -webkit-transition-duration: 0.1s; -webkit-transition-timing-function: ease-out; -webkit-transition-delay: initial; ">http://co.humboldt.ca.us/board</a>.</p><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); "><br class="webkit-block-placeholder"></div><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 11.326px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; line-height: 22.652px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); ">Catherine Wong can be reached at 441-0514 or <a href="mailto:cwong@times-standard.com" style="color: rgb(82, 120, 174); text-decoration: none; -webkit-transition-property: initial; -webkit-transition-duration: 0.1s; -webkit-transition-timing-function: ease-out; -webkit-transition-delay: initial; ">cwong@times-standard.com</a>. Follow her on Twitter and Tout @cmwong27.</p></div></td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr><tr><td valign="top" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; "><div style="text-align: left; clear: both; "></div><div style="text-align: left; clear: both; "></div></td></tr><tr><td valign="top" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; "><span></span></td></tr><tr><td valign="top" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; "><div id="recommender" style="text-align: left; "><iframe id="ifrRec" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" name="Recommended for You" scrolling="no" width="650" height="275" src="http://static.newstogram.com/rmv2/recommender-h.html?apiKey=9607780600b5b925a07bee8e68163ef6&user=107CE7DE-2B64-482D-A450-8A58213C5A70&url=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.times-standard.com%252Fnews%252Fci_23887448%252Fhumboldt-county-supervisors-fresno-judge-release-our-water&title=Recommended%20for%20You&cssUrl=http%3A%2F%2Fsandbox.newstogram.com%2Frmv2%2Fcss%2Frecommender_styles-h.css&width=650&height=275&links=0&limit=6&truncate=48&adside=left§ion=0000&randomize=0&adcode=0&source=dailyme&filter=2&rotation=1&customer-params=%2F%3Fsource%3Ddailyme" style="width: 650px; height: 275px; visibility: visible; "></iframe></div></td></tr><tr><td valign="top" style="padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; "><br></td></tr></tbody></table></div></div></div></div><div id="footer" class="footerRegion" style="text-align: -webkit-auto; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 0px; display: block; margin-top: 25px !important; margin-right: auto !important; margin-bottom: 70px !important; margin-left: auto !important; width: auto; "><font class="Apple-style-span" face="verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif" size="1"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; line-height: 20px; "><br></span></font></div><div class="clear" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 22px; font-size: 14px; text-align: left; clear: both; "></div></div></span></div></span></div></body></html>