Distorted Water

Distorted Water Clarifying facts to combat the twisted views of radical environmentalists...

A publication by Congressman Devin Nunes. www.nunes.house.gov

Dear Friends,

D

uring the debate in Congress concerning California’s government-imposed drought, I have heard a host of excuses as to why San Joaquin Valley residents should not be given immediate help. Many of the most troubling statements about our region have been posted on my YouTube Channel or are discussed in my blog. However, I prepared this document because it is important for us to understand the distortions used against us and to respond to them with facts.

Sincerely, Devin Nunes Member of Congress

Map of California water infrastructure



Water Terminology Central Valley Project The federal Central Valley Project (CVP) delivers water from reservoirs in the wet northern parts of the state to the arid southern parts of the state. Twenty dams and reservoirs, eleven hydroelectric power plants, and 500 miles of canals and aqueducts make up the infrastructure of the project. State Water Project The California State Water Project, commonly known as the SWP, is one of the world’s largest publicly built and operated water and power conveyance system. There are 701 miles of canals and pipelines, five hydroelectric facilities and 34 dams and reservoirs.

Acre Foot It is defined by the volume of one acre of surface area to a depth of one foot. This is approximately 325,851 U.S. gallons. As a rule of thumb in U.S. water management, one acrefoot is the planned water usage of a suburban family household annually.

The Delta The Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta is an expansive inland river delta and estuary in northern California. It is formed at the western edge of the Central Valley by the confluence of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers and lies just east of where the rivers enter the upper arm of San Francisco Bay. Delta Pumps Located near the City of Tracy in the southern end of the Delta: The Jones Pumping Plant is owned by the federal government and the Banks Pumping Plant is owned by the state of California.

A publication by Congressman Devin Nunes. www.nunes.house.gov

Distorted Water DISTORTION: Agriculture uses 80% of California’s water.

FACT: Quite the reverse is true – 76% of Delta water is used by the environment.

In an average year, the entire state of California receives about 200 million acre feet of water through precipitation. More than 50% evaporates into the atmosphere, percolates into the soil, or is used by native vegetation.

eries by pumping groundwater or negotiating transfers. Groundwater pumping and transfers were used to offset Delta water losses for 2009. However, groundwater is an exhaustible resource and transfers are not reliable - both are temporary stopgaps. In addition, groundwater in the San Joaquin Valley is of a much lower quality. Not all crops can be irrigated with groundwater. Despite the best efforts of local farmers and governments to mitigate for lost water, shortages resulted in 500,000 acres of farmland being fallowed. This represents a land mass the size of Rhode Island. Summer 2005

Summer 2009

The remaining water, approximately 82 million acre feet, flows into rivers. Of this amount, California dedicates 48% to the environment – the single largest use of water in California. The remaining water is used by agriculture (41%) and cities (11%). It is important to note that of the water that actually reaches the Delta, 76% is flushed to the ocean for environmental reasons. Bay Area water users, combined with users in Central and Southern California, consume 18% of Delta water. Delta cities and farmers use the remaining 6%.

An area the size of Rhode Island has been transformed into desert due to the government-imposed drought.

DISTORTION: The pumps are on.

FACT: The pumps are turned off from December through July and do not operate at full capacity the rest of the year thanks to government decisions.

The state and federal water projects were built for year-round operation. Since two-thirds of California’s water is located in the north and two-thirds of the population is in the south, it is essential that water deliveries continue year-round.

A depiction of Delta water use.

DISTORTION: The Westside received 80% of the water it needed in 2009. They were even hoarding water from 2008.

FACT: Federal water deliveries were 10% for 2009 There is no “hoarded” water being held by any San Joaquin Valley agency. In 2009, Westlands Water District had hopes that their claim for 270,000 acre feet of water would be honored. However, this water was not guaranteed to be delivered. Westside farmers have had to make up for lost surface water deliv-

The entire system of dams and canals composing the state and federal water projects were specifically built for the purpose of balancing wet and dry years. The San Luis Reservoir, just south of the Delta, is a key component of California’s water conveyance infrastructure – holding just over two million acre feet of water. It has no natural streams and is filled by Delta pumping during the fall and winter. It is important to note that water stored at the San Luis Reservoir is used to supply the San Joaquin Valley, as well as Southern California – particularly during periods of significant drought when pumping may be reduced. In summary, farmers do not make planting decisions in July when they may get water. They make them in the early winter. Farmers have to decide what they are going to plant based on the expected

A publication by Congressman Devin Nunes. www.nunes.house.gov

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water deliveries for the next year. The farmers then go to their bankers with that information to secure loans to purchase seed, fertilizer, etc. The farmers plant in the early spring and need the water at that time. If you do not have water in the spring, you can’t plant. Therefore, water deliveries in July are not enough to save rural communities – there isn’t anything to water because the crops were never planted. Environmental activists cannot dispute that the Delta pumps were shut off between December and July and will be again every year for the foreseeable future unless Congress acts. DISTORTION: The pumps are the reason the Delta smelt, salmon, and other species are in decline.

FACT: While the past few years have been declared “droughts”, Northern Sierra precipitation for 2009 was 93% of average according to the State of California. This is where Delta water originates – the water that serves San Joaquin Valley residents, as well as Californians further south. Water shortages in central and southern California are not uncommon – both regions are historically dry and can be desert-like. However, the construction of our state and federal water projects allowed reliable water deliveries despite unfavorable natural conditions. This has been true even during catastrophic droughts of our recent past.

FACT: This statement is disputed. Approximately 76% of the water that transits the Delta flows into the ocean.

Do environmentalists really expect us to believe that increasing flows will restore these species? Even NOAA, the federal agency who authored the infamous “killer whale” biological opinion, admitted during Congressional testimony that salmon and other species are impacted more profoundly by ocean conditions. When the Central Valley Project Improvement Act (CVPIA) was enacted in 1992, environmental flows were increased by 1.2 million acre feet. Since then, biological decisions on the Delta have raised this number to 3.4 million. Meanwhile, none of the threatened or endangered species have recovered. In fact, since CVPIA became law more species have been listed not less. Common sense demands we try something new.

The California Department of Water Resources produced this graph of Northern Sierra precipitation. The blue line represents cumulative monthly precipitation during a wet year (1982), the red and brown lines represent major droughts (1976 and 1923) and the black dotted line represents average rainfall. This year, the green line, was only slightly below average.

Today, we are experiencing a drought that is mild in comparison to many we have already survived. Overall, California’s state-wide precipitation for 2009 was 81% of normal. By comparison, during 1977’s drought - the driest year in state history - it was 45% of normal and in the 1991 drought - the fifth year of a protracted drought - it was 76%. Indeed, during late-season rain events this year a number of reservoirs associated with the state and federal water projects were forced to spill water as they reached capacity. Massive water flows passed through the Delta but could not be stored in the San Luis Reservoir because the pumps were off. This graph depicts Delta pumping, outflow and fishery conditions. It shows no correlation between pumping and fish populations.

DISTORTION: A drought is to blame for water shortages, not the Enangered Species Act.

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While new storage and conveyance systems are needed to meet growing needs and to improve reliability of the system, the current crisis is directly related to government decisions to withhold water (pumping restrictions). The bottom line: The Delta pumps must operate year-long if the state and federal water projects are to serve the people of Central

A publication by Congressman Devin Nunes. www.nunes.house.gov

and Southern California. DISTORTION: Water has been over-promised to farmers.

FACT: This statement is false.

large sum was provided despite the fact that the total economic impact of the closed salmon run was estimated at $82 million (according to the Congressional Research Service, the economic impact was actually $57.9 million, but we will accept the higher number for the sake of argument).

In order to come to the conclusion that water is over-promised, you have to first accept the false notion that water is only used once. Water is used, processed and reused many times as it travels through the state’s water conveyance system. The only water that is not recycled in California is the water that is flushed into the ocean for environmental purposes.

Salmon Disaster Payments 3 payments of $500,000 213 payments over $100,000 Total payments for 2007-2009

$230 million

A unique form of disaster relief, the salmon fishermen bailout money replaced 100% of fishing income based on the their “best recent year,” resulting in six figure payouts for many. This unprecedented bailout came on top of a $60 million salmon industry bailout in 2007. San Luis Resevior reached its lowest recorded level in 2009 due to Delta pumping restrictions.

DISTORTION: Fishermen are out of work because of Delta pumping. More than 23,000 jobs and $1.4 billion has been lost to the economy of California due to termination of commercial and recreational salmon fishing.

FACT: According to the Pacific Coast Federation of Fisherman,

there are approximately 3,000 fishermen in California and Oregon. There is no reliable data that suggests these individuals are all unemployed nor is there reliable data that suggests as many as 23,000 workers have lost their jobs. With the American people not buying the policy of protecting fish at the expense of families, liberals are now touting a new argument. Congress can’t restore the flow of water because it would hurt fishermen. This simply isn’t true. Furthermore, despite limited evidence of “devastation” more than $200 million has been spent by taxpayers to bail out fishermen over the past two years - more money per recipient than Hurricane Katrina survivors. Indeed, thanks to an earmark by liberal leaders in Congress, each of 1,722 permit holding salmon fishermen received generous payments from the federal government in 2008 - $170 million worth. More than a thousand businesses also received payments. This

While I believe there are serious problems with the fisheries off the coast of California, I reject the claims of radical environmentalists and their proxies in the fishing industry. Delta pumping is not responsible for the fishery collapse (see chart on opposite page). And while there are likely commercial and recreation fishermen who have suffered as a result of these problems, the magnitude both in economic terms and human cost does not begin to compare with the suffering in the San Joaquin Valley – where nearly 40,000 people are out of work, and 500,000 thousand acres of farmland have become desert. A final point, the unemployment on the North Coast of California, the supposed area of great economic distress due to fishery collapse, is below the state average. DISTORTION: Republicans are also to blame – they supported/signed laws that hurt the valley.

FACT: There are several compelling facts that prove the origin

of our crisis to be Democratic lawmakers (see Water Crisis Timeline on next page). The first major blow against San Joaquin Valley farming occurred in 1992 with the passage of the Central Valley Project Improvement Act. The bill was authored by Democrat Congressman George Miller, who was Chairman of the Resources Committee at the time, and folded into a larger piece of legislation – where it passed with veto proof majorities in the House and Senate. At the

A publication by Congressman Devin Nunes. www.nunes.house.gov

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1930

August 11, 1935

Friant Dam construction begins: Griffith Company and Bent Company of Los Angeles were awarded the Friant Dam construction contract on a low bid of a little more than $8.7 million. Under contract terms, the firms had 1,200 days from October 1939 to finish the job.

1950

Friant Dam begins operations: Millerton lake can reach 520,000 acre feet at maximum capacity.

The Modern Environmental Movement is born: Rachel Carson publishes Silent Prairie and successfully leads the effort to ban DDT - a chemical instrumental in the eradication of malaria in the developed world.

1970

Water Crisis Timeline

ESA becomes law: Large Democratic majorities in the House and Senate help speed passage of the Endangered Species Act, authored by Rep. John Dingle (D-MI).

NRDC sues the federal government over the Delta smelt.

NRDC leads San Joaquin River Lawsuit: Fifteen environmental groups sued the federal government in 1988, arguing contract renewals should be subject to environmental review under provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

1980

1990

Smelt ruling: U.S. District Court Judge Oliver Wanger orders Delta Smelt protected by imposing limits on water flows caused by pumps at San Joaquin-Sacramento River delta from December to June.

2000

Test Flows Begin: As the westside of the San Joaquin Valley is transformed into desert due to Delta pumping restrictions, the eastside of the valley begins to spill water from Friant dam to restore a long-gone fishery on the San Joaquin River. The river restoration sets the stage for massive water diversions that ultimately will mirror those of the westside.

2010

Turn on the Pumps Act Defeated: Congressman Nunes’ HR 3105, the Turn on the Pumps Act, would have returned Delta pumps to normal operations. Democrats killed consideration of the measure (Roll Call 616).

Obama Ruling: The National Marine Fisheries Service ruled that Delta pumping was killing salmon, steelhead, sturgeon and killer whales.

Democratic lawmakers and environmenalists - a history of taking water from the San Joaquin Valley.

1960

August 31, 2007

Friant surrenders: The San Joaquin River Settlement Agreement is signed.

June 4, 2009

Dry dirt and tumbleweeds: Congress enacts the San Joaquin River Settlement as part of a larger omnibus public lands bill. The legislation mandates a salmon-run on the river and leaves open-ended future water diversions from the region’s already dry communities.

July 23, 2009

October 1, 2009

May 20, 2005

Minnows get protection: The Delta smelt is listed under the Endangered Species Act as “threatened.”

March 25, 2009

Central Valley Project is born: With the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1935, the federal government assumed control of the Central Valley Project and its initial features were authorized for construction by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

1940

CVPIA becomes law: Large Democratic majorities in Congress speed passage of the Central Valley Project Improvement Act, sponsored by Rep. George Miller (D-CA). The bill dedicated 800,000 acre feet of water to the environment.

September 13, 2006

September 1962

NEPA created: Large Democratic majorities in the House and Senate help speed passage of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) - leading to the establishment –of the Environmental Protection Agency.

A publication by Congressman Devin Nunes. www.nunes.house.gov

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1988 March 5, 1993

February 3, 1973 October 1992

February 21, 1944 Construction begins: Construction of the initial units of the Central Valley Project begin in October 1937.

January 1, 1970

October 1939

The case against Friant is born: California Fish and Game code 5937 is updated. The law mandates the owner of any dam shall allow sufficient water at all times to pass through a fishway, or in the absence of a fishway, allow sufficient water to pass over, around or through the dam, to keep in good condition any fish that may be planted or exist below the dam.

October 1937

Funds for construction of the initial features of the Central Valley Project were provided by the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act of 1935 (49 Stat. 115). The project was authorized by a finding of feasibility by the Secretary of the Interior and approved by the President on December 2, 1935, for construction by Reclamation.

1937

time, Democrats controlled 270 House seats and 57 Senate seats. CVPIA diverted more than a million acre feet of water away from communities south of the Delta. In addition, Congressman George Miller has admitted to a central role in a host of lawsuits that have devastated the San Joaquin Valley. These lawsuits lead to biological opinions that are seriously flawed - denying entire regions of California access to water. Democrats were also instrumental in the passage of the San Joaquin River Settlement earlier this year, which in time will dry up communities on the east side of the valley. DISTORTION: Farm jobs have increased during the past year.

FACT: According to a May 2009 study conducted by the Univer-

sity of California, Davis, 35,285 jobs and $1.6 billion in economic revenue have been lost as a result of the man-made drought. Far more jobs and economic activity are at risk. The overall unemployment rate in the San Joaquin Valley (15%) is far higher than the rest of California (12%). The unemployment in water deprived communities is still higher (36%). Farmers, local governments, small businesses and unemployed workers all cite water shortages as the predominate factor. In sharp contrast, each of the North State counties claiming catastrophic unemployment due to closed fisheries are experiencing unemployment rates below the state average (Mendocino 10.1%, Humboldt 10.3%, Sonoma 9.9%, Del Norte 11.9%, Marin 8%).

to do with saving the Earth.” Moore continues to explain that radical activists have anti-human agendas. There are countless examples of radicalism run amok in the environmental community. While most of these groups push their antihuman policies through Congress and the courts, some are more direct. For example, the Animal Liberation Front (ALF) and Earth Liberation Front (ELF) are identified by the FBI as terrorist organizations. In 2001, ELF was named one of our nation’s most active extremist groups and a top terrorist threat. Despite their notoriety among our nation’s top law enforcement agencies, these organizations are virtually invisible in America. So too is their association with organizations like Greenpeace, which has helped finance acts of eco-terrorism according to federal prosecutors. Acts of terrorism are not the only indicator of extremism among environmental groups today. The modern environmental movement is a threat to public health and safety in other ways. For example, radicals are working to ban the chlorination of water. This backwards policy is being advocated despite the fact that it would result in epidemics of cholera and other deadly diseases around the world. Environmentalists also persist in opposing the use of the lifesaving chemical DDT. This chemical was used to protect the American people from malaria until the 1960s but was banned following a public campaign led by activist Rachel Carson. She has since been recognized as the founder of the modern environmental movement. Despite the fact that the World Health Organization (WHO) has rejected the scientific basis for banning DDT, environmentalists like Al Gore cling to the ban for political rather than scientific reasons. Meanwhile, malaria is an epidemic and global health threat. There are 500 million cases of the preventable disease every year.

Food line in Mendota California.

DISTORTION: Radicals are not in control of the environmental movement. They are the exception.

FACT: Radicals have taken control of the environmental move-

ment – including organizations that are viewed as “mainstream” by the public. Patrick Moore, a founding member of Greenpeace and environmental activist, recently said that many environmental leaders “have abandoned science and are following agendas that have little A publication by Congressman Devin Nunes. www.nunes.house.gov

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A publication by Congressman Devin Nunes. www.nunes.house.gov