The 2024 General Election has come and gone. The races have been decided, the anxiety and constant drum beat of the campaign have thankfully subsided. What do election results mean for the San Joaquin Valley’s water supply? Well, in addition to perhaps a reduction in texts and emails asking for campaign donations, there is the chance of some positive change.
The Water Blueprint for the San Joaquin Valley (Blueprint) has joined forces with water interests throughout the state. In cooperation with the Southern California Water Coalition the Blueprint was in communication with Governor Gavin Newsom and US Secretary of Interior Debra Haaland stating a case for adaptive management in the Delta.
The Blueprint and its partners urged ramping down the scientifically unsound Fall X2 Line. The X2 Line measures how far a minimum amount of salt water intrudes into the Delta from the San Francisco Bay.
Regardless of the actual location of the X2 Line, water flows through the Delta were mandated based on the calendar. These X2 flows reduced the amount of water supplies for the Valley and Southern California with minimal to no benefit to the Delta’s ecosystem.
The regulatory powers agreed to implement adaptive management using real time data to protect a variety of native species, resulting in a savings of an estimated 350,000 acre feet of water supplies that would have passed through the Delta and out to sea. A victory for science and as important in this day and age, cooperation.
The Blueprint is not a government agency, it is an organization of willing volunteers from throughout California and the San Joaquin Valley working together as per its vision statement, “Unifying the San Joaquin Valley’s voice to advance an accessible, reliable solution for a balanced water future for all.”
But as history shows there will always be a need for vigilance when it comes to protecting our water sources. Yes, the new situation from the elections may well help in some areas. But it remains there are still forces with agendas that don’t view the Valley’s water supplies as an important priority.
The Valley has myriad water needs: from recharge to domestic wells to small, rural communities to farming – the backbone of our economy and a national security concern – there are lots of ways to use surface water. But since the mid-1970s the San Joaquin Valley is receiving about half of the surface water it’s contracted for. When the curtailment of groundwater pumping due to the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act is figured in the Valley is looking at permanently fallowing up to one million acres of the most productive farmland on earth.
A saying often attributed to Mark Twain goes, “Everybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it.” Look around, everybody is talking about water. But what can we do?
- It seems overwhelming for one person to make a difference. But you can.
- Task yourself to become aware of the situation and developments in water. Knowledge is powerful.
- Join with others to magnify your impacts. It’s past time to leave it up to someone else to fight the fight.
The Water Blueprint for the San Joaquin Valley is ready to work with you. For more information on what you can do to help ensure the water future of our families, lifestyles and communities contact the Blueprint at: https://waterblueprintca.com/meetings/
