Fish Sniffer On Demand Digital Edition Issue 3720 Sept 14-18 | Page 29

Sept 14 - 28, 2018
VOL.37 • ISS. 20
Fishermen, Tribal Members and
Conservationists Push for Increased
Flows on San Joaquin River
O
ne day before the State Water
Resources Control Board’s hearing
on increased flows for the San Joaquin
River and its three tributaries was held
in Sacramento on August 21, Jonas
Minton, Senior Water Policy Advisory for
the Planning and Conservation League,
expressed exactly what is is at stake in the
board’s decision.
”The truth is the truth. Fish need water,”
said Minton at a press conference held by
a coalition of environmental organizations,
Northern California Indian tribal members,
and commercial and recreational fishing
organizations on the West Steps of the
State Capitol.
“In the 23 years since the Plan was
last updated the fisheries of the Sacra-
mento - San Joaquin watershed have
been decimated, some to the very edge of
extinction,” said Minton. “Californians
cannot afford further delays in the adoption
of strong standards that protect our rivers
for current and future generations.”
Minton joined with representatives of the
Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s
Associations, Pit River Tribe, Water for
Fish, Sierra Club California, San Francisco
Baykeeper, Restore the Delta and the
Tuolumne River Trust to share their
perspectives as to why it is imperative that
the State Board increase flows for the San
Joaquin River and its three lower tribu-
taries that is designated as outflow through
the San Francisco Bay.
Morning Star Gali, Tribal Organizer for
Save California Salmon and Pit River tribal
member, agreed with Minton’s assessment
of the need for increased flows to restore
fisheries.
“We must restore our rivers if we are
going to have clean water and fish into the
future,” said Gali. “Large fires and lack of
water supply are caused by climate change
and wasteful water use practices, not
environmental laws. Appropriate flows are
needed for the health of our sacred rivers,
to restore the health of our communities,
and to protect the quality of California’s
water supply.”
You can watch the recorded video on the
Restore the Delta Facebook page: https://
bit.ly/2nKwhgX
The event took place before agribusi-
ness representatives and their allies held a
noon rally opposing increased San Joaquin
River flows for fish. In contrast with the
growers, conservationists advocated for
strong salinity standards and unimpaired
San Joaquin River flows as part of the
Water Board’s Water Quality Control Plan
updates for the Bay-Delta (Phase 1).
In response to agribusiness pressure, U.S.
Secretary of Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke
issued a controversial memo calling for
actions to be taken to “maximize Central
Valley Project deliveries” to agribusiness
and other water contractors. These actions
include “streamlining” Endangered Species
Act (ESA) and National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) consultations, reas-
sessing legal interpretations, identifying
infrastructure upgrades, and preparing
legislative and litigation measures.
To date, Governor Brown Jerry has
remained silent on on Zinke’s memo
calling for actions to “maximize Central
Valley Project deliveries.”
Dick Pool, a member of the salmon
industry who is on the Board of the Golden
Gate Salmon Association and is President
of Water4Fish, has been in business for
forty years and fighting to restore the
Central Valley salmon for forty years.
“I am involved with several coalitions
that are working hard on habitat projects
that will help with recovery,” said Pool.
“We have some very good ‘on the ground’
projects on the drawing board. However,
none of them come close to the gains we
would achieve with increased flows. The
loss of the river and tributary flows has
done more damage to the salmon than
anything else. Increasing them will undo a
lot of that damage.”
Pool then held up a chart documenting
the deep relationship between river flows
and salmon escapement to the San Joaquin,
Stanislaus, Tuolumne and Merced rivers.
“This chart shows the relationship
between flows and returning adult salmon
from the ocean,” said Pool as he explained
the chart. “