[env-trinity] Will S.J. River plan slow the restoration of Trinity River?

[Tom Stokely]

 RIVER RESTORATION FUNDING:

Will S.J. River plan slow the restoration of Trinity River?

Stockton Record – 8/4/07

By Alex Breitler, staff writer

 

The Hoopa Valley tribe has lived for thousands of years along far Northern California's tumbling Trinity River, only to see most of its water diverted east to farms in the Central Valley.

 

A plan to restore the mountain stream is in place. But the Hoopa now fear that a more expensive project to resurrect the San Joaquin River may slow down progress along the Trinity.

 

The tribe is fighting legislation that would authorize a settlement ending 18 years of legal battles over the San Joaquin River. The tribe fears money dedicated to the Trinity will be siphoned away to the San Joaquin, a project that according to some estimates could cost $1 billion or more.

 

Conservationists who brokered the settlement say the tribe's fears are groundless. Nevertheless, Hoopa officials continue to criticize the San Joaquin plan.

 

"Maybe the negotiators originally had the best of intentions, ... but they appear to have lost their perspective" by focusing only on the San Joaquin and neglecting the rest of California, tribal spokesman Danny Jordan said recently.

 

At issue is a restoration fund to which water and power contractors contribute each year. The fund, usually about $40 million per year, is dedicated to projects lessening the environmental impacts of diverting water.

 

The Hoopa worry that the expensive San Joaquin project will drain this fund. While language in the settlement calls for up to $2 million a year from the fund, the actual legislation contains no such cap.

 

Both projects will need money in addition to what they get from the restoration fund, said U.S. Bureau of Reclamation spokesman Jeff McCracken. Indeed, last year the Trinity program's budget included $2 million from the restoration fund and $9.2 million from other sources.

 

"There's a lot that's been done up there," McCracken said. "There are a lot of successes and a lot more water coming down the river."

 

The Natural Resources Defense Council sued the government and farmers for diverting too much water from the San Joaquin River near Fresno, causing stretches of the river to dry up some years.

 

Hal Candee, an attorney with the San Francisco-based resources group, said there's no conflict in restoring both streams.

 

"We are a strong supporter of Trinity River restoration, and we believe the Interior Department and Congress should do more to support funding" for that cause, he said.

 

It has been 11 months since farmers, conservationists and the government announced the San Joaquin settlement. The legislation, which must be passed to free up $250 million in federal funds, has been delayed several times and may see no action until September.

 

But in the meantime, planning continues, Candee said.

 

"We're not aware of any impact on the ground ... from the delays that have been experienced," he said.

 

A spokesman for U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein said the senator remains hopeful that the legislation can be passed later this year. #

http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070804/A_NEWS/708040323

 

 
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