Governor Schwarzenegger and Senator Feinstein Propose a Compromise Plan to Provide California Safe, Reliable, Clean Water

7/10/2008

Together with the Legislature, Bipartisan Bond Plan Aimed for the Ballot

“I know that legislative leaders share my goal of comprehensive water reform, but time is running out. The longer we wait; the worse our situation becomes.” Governor Schwarzenegger, Statement On Department of Water Resources’ Final Snow Survey of 2008, 5/1/08

Today, Governor Schwarzenegger and Senator Dianne Feinstein proposed a compromise plan to the Legislature to update California's water system by increasing storage, improving conveyance, protecting the Delta’s ecosystem, and promoting greater water conservation. California’s growing population, drought, federal court restrictions on water operations, and global warming all present critical challenges to our water infrastructure, environment and economy. While there is little disagreement that California needs a comprehensive water plan, there has yet to be a consensus on exactly how to achieve it. This bipartisan, $9.3 billion bond proposal is offered as a compromise that puts California on a path to restore water ecosystems, provide new water storage, and boost conservation efforts that can ensure clean, reliable water supplies for California. The need for a comprehensive water plan is immediate and the time to act is now.

California is Facing Historic Water Challenges. California’s population – 38 million residents and growing – depends upon water infrastructure originally built for 16 million. The state’s water resources are facing environmental change, the driest spring on record, and court-ordered restrictions reducing supplies from the state’s two largest water systems by 20-30 percent.

Our state’s hydrology is changing, fueled by global warming. California depends on water from its Sierra snowpack and from the Colorado River, both of which are experiencing record-low levels. California must take action – or face a continued and worsening water crisis.
- The Sierra snowpack has become dangerously unreliable. Between April 1 and May 1 2008, the snowpack dropped 30 percent – to 67 percent of normal levels.
- The Colorado River Basin is in drought.
- Fanned by the dry conditions, the state’s wildfire season is becoming year-round. More than 680,000 acres have already burned this year – that’s more than ten times as many acres as this date last year.

This year’s drought has already significantly damaged California’s economy. Agricultural crops are being plowed under, housing and business projects are stalled, and regional water authorities are instituting mandatory water rationing due to a lack of a reliable water supply.
- Thousands of jobs are lost to California’s water shortage. Construction projects have been put on hold because a water supply cannot be guaranteed.
- Our fisheries also face the crisis. In two of the past three years, California’s once-thriving Pacific salmon fisheries have been simply shut down. Delta fish are at just a fraction of their former levels.

Governor Schwarzenegger and Senator Feinstein Have Put Together a Plan That Includes Elements From All Stakeholders and is a Compromise That Will Work For California. For two years leaders have worked toward upgrading California’s water system, but have been unable to agree on the details of a way forward. This plan considers all the concerns and recommendations of California’s water stakeholders, including those of the Delta Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force.

The plan is a fiscal compromise. At $9.3 billion, the plan is $2.6 less than the Governor’s January proposal.
It is imperative that a water infrastructure plan be placed on the November ballot. The Governor and Senator Feinstein, in cooperation with the Legislature, aim to put this issue to voters this year.

The Right Way Toward a Reliable Water Future for California Includes More Storage, Improved Conveyance, Better Ecosystem Protection, and Increased Conservation. The plan the Governor and Senator Feinstein have proposed includes all of those essential elements.

Increased Storage will make our water supply more reliable year-to-year. More groundwater and surface storage will allow California to capture excess water in wet years to use in dry years.
- California was unable to capture much of the stormwater from the 2006 floods, and let it simply wash out to the ocean. Had we captured just a portion of those millions of acre-feet of water, we would be able to draw upon that supply to help ease today’s drought.
Improved Water Conveyance Will Reduce Water Shortages. By investing in conveyance projects that improve water management and regional interconnectivity, this plan will help water districts work together to prevent shortages to California’s communities and take pressure off of the Delta.
A Restored Delta Ecosystem Will Allow California to Take Control of its Own Water Systems. The federal court restrictions on Delta pumping are hurting California in this dry year. A restored ecosystem will see those restrictions lifted, providing California a cleaner and more reliable water supply.
Conservation is a Must In California. Any water plan must include a strong focus on conservation because even increased groundwater and surface storage and conveyance will not supply enough water to keep pace with the growth in our state’s population. This plan includes funding to encourage conservation and provide tools to use water more efficiently.

Safe, Clean, Reliable Drinking Water Supply Act of 2008: A Breakdown

$2,000,000,000	Water Supply Reliability
	For regional water supply and conservation projects that implement an integrated regional water management plan and to support regional and interregional connectivity and water management.
$1,900,000,000	Delta Sustainability
	For projects that support delta sustainability options – levees, water quality, infrastructure and to protect and enhance the sustainability of the Delta ecosystem.
$3,000,000,000	Statewide Water System Operational Improvement
	For water storage projects to improve state water system operations and provide net improvement in ecosystem and water quality conditions.
$1,335,000,000	Conservation And Watershed Protection
	For ecosystem and watershed protections and restoration, invasive species removal, watershed restoration in fire damages areas, and for fish passage improvement and dam removal.
$800,000,000	Groundwater Protection And Water Quality
	For groundwater protection, small community wastewater treatment, stormwater management and water quality, and coastal water quality.
$250,000,000	Water Recycling

A Summary of the Governor's Actions to Achieve a Comprehensive Water Package for California

In 2006:

The Governor proposed his Strategic Growth Plan, which included an $11.9 billion water plan, then promoted and campaigned for infrastructure bonds on the November ballot.

In September, the Governor signed an executive order creating an independent Blue Ribbon Task Force to develop a durable vision for sustainable management of the Delta.

The Governor endorsed Proposition 84, which addressed some of the water issues pushed by Governor Schwarzenegger by allowing for $5.4 billion in general obligation bonds for water quality, parks, etc.

In 2007:

As part of his state budget proposal, the Governor proposed a $6 billion water plan that included $4.5 billion in bonds for projects that will provide up to three million additional acre feet of surface storage and up to 500,000 acre feet of annual supply. The plan also includes ground water storage that will produce 500,000 acre feet in annual water supply.

In March, the Governor brought together a broad coalition in support of his $6 billion water plan and also toured several regions of the state talking of the need for comprehensive water reform.

In July, the Governor urged the Legislature to take action on his water plan, warning that another dry year could have disastrous results for California.

In an August meeting, the Governor and Senator Feinstein brought together state water experts and more than 30 stakeholders representing water agencies, environmental organizations, businesses, labor groups, the agriculture industry, various municipalities and Delta landowners to discuss California’s water future.

In September, the Governor called a special session of the Legislature to deal with ensuring a safe, clean and reliable water supply and submitted a $9 billion proposal to the Legislative special session that included: $600 million to immediately relieve pressure on the Delta; $5.6 billion in water storage; $1.9 billion for Delta Restoration and water supply reliability; $1.4 billion for habitat restoration; $500 million to address environmental concerns in the Delta.

In October, the Governor signed a package of legislation that called for development of a comprehensive Central Valley Flood Protection Plan and reforms the Reclamation Board to improve efficiency, require cities and counties to increase consideration of flood risks when making land use decisions and create a new standard in flood protection for urban development in the region.

In December the Governor embraced the final Delta Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force report.

In 2008:

In February, the Governor met with Senator Feinstein, legislative leaders, and stakeholders about water infrastructure.