Why California’s Pending Salmon Extinction Isn’t Just About Salmon
A version of this article was first published on July 6, 2022 in CalMatters with the headline State’s Leaders Must Change Water Agreements to Reflect Climate Realities
by Tom Stokely
Board Member, California Water Impact Network
California’s once abundant salmon runs are on the verge of collapse. That’s a tragedy. But this story is bigger – and worse – than the extinction of an iconic fish that once fed millions and were the basis of thriving commercial, tribal and sport fisheries. Not to mix zoological metaphors, but salmon are the canary in the coal mine for California’s water and power ratepayers.
Here’s why: our salmon are flirting with extinction because they’re not getting the cold water they need to survive. Over the last few decades, that water has been mostly supplied from Shasta Dam on the Sacramento River, other dams on Sacramento and San Joaquin River tributaries, and Trinity Dam on the Trinity/Klamath River system. Collectively, these rivers comprise the state’s remaining salmon strongholds.
The ongoing drought and mismanagement, however, has left such cold water in short supply.
But it didn’t have to be that way. Even though they were aware of the looming water crisis, state and federal water managers have drawn down reservoirs rapidly over the past three years, leaving cold water – indeed, any water – in short supply. Why? To provide water to a small subset of commercial growers.
Agriculture consumes the lion’s share of the state’s water as a matter of course. Year in and year out, wet winter or dry, growers take 80% of California’s developed water while cities only receive 10%-13%. During drought years, millions of state residents endure severe restrictions. But that burden isn’t necessarily shared by some privileged growers. Long-established – and highly inequitable – water rights claims see to that.
One example: the San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors are beneficiaries of a settlement with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, a deal that cleared the way for the construction of Friant Dam on the San Joaquin River. The four irrigation districts that participated in the settlement traded their long-claimed rights to divert water from the San Joaquin River for water from the Central Valley Project (CVP) – the massive federal conveyance system that sends water to Southern California farms and cities from the California Delta.
The deal assured the small group of San Joaquin River water claimants reliable, long-term, and generous allocations – even during drought. They’ve prospered as a result.
In average years, the exchange contractors are allocated about 865,000 acre-feet of water from the CVP. That’s more water than Los Angeles uses in a year. But the contractors still receive generous allotments even during critically dry years. The West Coast is now struggling with its deepest drought in 1,200 years, and urban ratepayers are facing draconian restrictions. Meanwhile, the San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors are receiving 75% of their average deliveries through 2022 (650,000 AF).
Further, the rapid depletion of our reservoirs to meet settlement and senior contractor allocations is contributing to another state crisis: power shortages.
Hydroelectric production is down significantly due to low reservoir storage levels and decreased head on the turbines. Hotter weather from climate change is expected to increase demand for air conditioning and power. Rolling blackouts are a real possibility for California this year.
We’re in a new world now – one that will be characterized by multiple drought years punctuated occasionally by extremely wet winters. Stunningly, the agencies that control our water – the California Department of Water Resources and the federal Bureau of Reclamation – have no formal long-term drought plans. They essentially wing it year-to-year and pray for rain and snow.
This is unacceptable, but there is a recourse. The contracts for the San Joaquin River Exchange recipients include a five-year renewal window, with the Bureau of Reclamation empowered to modify terms and conditions prior to contract extension.
We urge the Biden Administration to change the settlement contract to reflect the dire hydrology and climate realities we now face – before the reservoirs run dry, the salmon disappear, and ratepayers can’t flush their toilets, wash their clothes, run their air conditioners, or light their homes.