Project Overview
Water—California’s Next Crisis
California faces a looming water crisis that cannot be ignored. The state’s rapidly growing population is quickly outpacing available water supplies. With 25 million additional residents expected by 2040, California must find a way to supply water to all competing interests. While demand for water is growing, the resource is becoming scarcer. New water quality regulations and environmental requirements are shrinking supplies available for people and crops. In addition, rapidly growing neighbors, such as Arizona and Nevada, are now calling for their rightful allocations of Colorado River water, one of California’s primary water sources. Once Southern California’s imported supplies of Colorado River water are cut back, demand for water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta may increase sharply.
California’s water problem is not easy to solve. Very few sources of “new” water are under active development. And, the historical approach of increasing water storage by building new dams and reservoirs is now viewed by many as too expensive and environmentally disruptive. Innovative approaches that consider all available options are required—groundwater banking, public-private partnerships, recycling, reclamation, water transfers, and aggressive conservation. The imbalance between water supply and demand is reaching the breaking point. A way must be found to manage water wisely and share it equitably between urban and agricultural areas and recently increasing environmental needs. Time is of the essence—California must make investments now to prepare effectively for future droughts and population growth.
An Environmentally Responsible Solution
The Delta Wetlands Project is part of the solution to California’s current and future water supply challenges—a unique way to provide both desperately needed new storage and a new water supply. The project is designed to capture surplus water that historically has flowed to the ocean, and to store that water in close proximity to the state and federal pumping plants in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. In addition, the project will create precedent-setting new wildlife habitat and wetlands. The project involves four Delta islands straddling San Joaquin and Contra Costa counties. After years of farming and subsidence, the islands’ elevations are now well below sea level. By fortifying the surrounding levee systems, the project will store significant amounts of water on the two reservoir islands, forming a greatly needed new surface water storage facility. The project will capture surplus water when it is available, typically during the winter, and deliver it back into the system during dry summer months. The reservoir islands will have the capacity to store 220,000 acre-feet of water and, on average, can supply 170,000 acre-feet of new water each year.
Increasing Water Supply and Wildlife Habitat
The remaining two islands, designed in partnership with the California Department of Fish and Game, will be set aside permanently as wetland and wildlife habitat, forming a mosaic of seasonal and permanent wetlands, riparian woodland zones, ponds and lakes, and grasslands. In addition, a significant level of farming activity will be integrated into the habitat plan, preserving much of the history and character of the area in perpetuity. The habitat islands will provide extremely valuable wetland and wildlife benefits to the Delta, supporting a wide variety of species, including listed and endangered plants and animals and migratory waterfowl. The 9,000 acres of habitat will be one of the largest new conservation efforts in the region, surpassing both the Vic Fazio Yolo Wildlife Area and Stone Lakes National Wildlife Refuge combined.
The CALFED Bay-Delta Program (CALFED), a collaborative effort of state and federal agencies, has been working for nearly a decade to find a consensus on sharing water among the environment, agriculture, and cities. In 2000, CALFED adopted its historic Record of Decision (ROD), which serves as the working blueprint for managing water in the Delta for decades to come. Recognizing the Delta Wetlands Project benefits, CALFED incorporated the project within its ROD, where it is identified as a surface storage facility that can be operational years before all others. CALFED is evaluating the operational feasibility and financial aspects of this project for potential purchase or lease.
• Creating benefits for the entire state and for local residents, the project will:
• Capture surplus water, creating a significant new water source for California;
• Create a new and cost-effective water storage facility;
• Provide an additional supply of urban and environmental water, reducing pressure on local farmers whose supply already is threatened;
• Be operational in a short timeframe, assisting in the timely implementation of CALFED;
• Enhance operational flexibility within the state and federal water systems;
• Ensure protection of Delta water quality;
• Improve Delta water quality by reducing salinity during summer months;
• Improve levee stability in the region;
• Provide significant new employment and income for the region; and
• Preserve in perpetuity two Delta islands as habitat, wetlands and agriculture.
Bringing the Delta Wetlands Project to Reality
Project proponents have independently financed the acquisition, development and permitting of the project thus far, but a project partner has yet to be selected. Recognizing the large supply of new water that Delta Wetlands will provide, potential partnerships could include urban or agricultural water agencies, CALFED or some of its constituent agencies, large developers and other business entities. Furthermore, public-private partnerships offer California’s leaders an innovative and cost-effective opportunity to address the state’s water challenges.
The Delta Wetlands Project is located in the heart of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The Delta is part
of an interconnected system of waterways, islands and sloughs that includes the Suisun Marsh and the confluence of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers. The Delta, encompassing more than 700,000 acres, is the largest estuary on the Pacific Coast and serves as one of California’s most important water sources. From a water supply standpoint, the Delta Wetlands Project is ideally located for its intended use—downstream of California’s largest watersheds and in close proximity to existing state and federal pumps. The reservoirs can fill rapidly with freshwater flows into the Delta and later can release the water for a variety of beneficial purposes. Released water will reach state and federal export facilities or be used for Delta outflow—in a matter of hours—making the project an extraordinarily responsive real-time water supply and environmental management asset. The water stored on the islands can be used for a variety of purposes, including domestic, municipal, industrial and agricultural use, as well as fish and wildlife preservation and enhancement. Similarly, others (water districts, farms, etc.) can “bank” water on the reservoir islands, using the islands’ downstream location to great advantage, until the water is released for later use.
Delta Wetlands Has Undergone Stringent Environmental Review
Recognizing the large scale of this effort, the Delta Wetlands Project has undergone 14 years of environmental review with extensive public involvement and comprehensive technical analysis to ensure the feasibility, safety and environmental sensitivity of storing water on the reservoir islands. This exhaustive process, designed to protect surrounding environmental resources such as the Delta water system, water quality and wildlife, will ensure compliance with all applicable federal and state laws, including the California Environmental Quality Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, and state and federal Endangered Species Acts. The California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers served as co-lead agencies for this environmental compliance. In February 2001, the SWRCB approved the Delta Wetlands Project’s environmental documentation and granted water rights permits to capture surplus Delta flows and store this excess water. As dictated by these permits, strict operational limits have been imposed on the project to ensure the protection of fisheries, water quality, and neighboring islands from impact. In addition, the project has adopted water quality standards that are more stringent than existing state or federal requirements that control the Delta.
Technical Analysis Verifies Feasibility and Safety of Storing Water
Since the project must successfully coexist in the complex Delta ecosystem, which is home to the major export facilities of the state and federal water projects, fish and wildlife resources, and a multitude of local interests, great care has been taken to ensure that neighboring islands and levees will not be affected. Since acquiring the property, the project proponents have conducted extensive discussions with neighboring reclamation districts and landowners to address issues of local concern. In designing the proposed project, a team of leading engineering experts and firms evaluated the plans to ensure the feasibility and safety of storing water on the islands. And, as part of the environmental review process, the SWRCB and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers independently verified this effort. The project’s design and construction will include a comprehensive seepage control and monitoring program, with an extensive system of monitoring and interceptor wells on the reservoir islands and surrounding land, to prevent any potential impacts to neighboring islands. Should any seepage be detected, the project will quickly resolve the problem, alter operations, or cease water storage on the reservoir island.
Public Oversight Will Ensure A Safe, Successful Project
The Delta Wetlands Project is committed to a comprehensive process for local oversight. Public boards, which will include participation by federal, state and local agencies, will actively review the project’s design, construction, and ongoing operations. In addition, monitoring data and annual reports will be made available to the public to ensure the effectiveness of protective measures. Through such reports, the public will have the opportunity to review water quality reports, levee stability data, and operations of the habitat islands.