Governor Brown makes false claims about tunnel plan during debate

Governor Brown makes false claims about tunnel plan during debate

by Dan Bacher

The Republican and Democratic Party establishments have been steadfast supporters of the Bay Delta Conservation Plan (BDCP) to build the peripheral tunnels, so Neil Kashkari, the Republican challenger to Governor Jerry Brown, surprised many when he attacked Brown's tunnel plan during the debate in Sacramento on September 4.

Kashkari said, “The Obama EPA is saying your tunnel program is fundamentally flawed. That’s your own president, President Obama saying that, not me.”

Brown replied: “That doesn’t make it right, by the way.”

The clash began after the debate moderator asked Brown how the tunnels project could proceed after the Environmental Protection Agency issued a scathing comment letter stating that the tunnels would violate the Clean Water Act.

Brown, clearly on the defensive, used the debate to tout the false claim that the Delta is uniquely threatened by an earthquake or other disaster, even though the exported Delta water goes through hundreds of miles of aqueducts and canals in earthquake and disaster prone areas to reach its destination.

"We have a Delta system that protects the fresh water that goes to the farms, not just to Southern California but to Alameda County and Santa Clara County, and that salt water is only protected by dirt levees. We have to find a way to make sure the conveyance through the Delta will withstand an earthquake or rising sea levels or extreme weather events. That’s why for 50 years people have been trying for either a peripheral canal or tunnels or some other kind of conveyance," Brown contended.

Consulting Engineer Dr. Robert Pyke strongly disagrees with Brown’s claim that a peripheral canal or tunnels are needed to “protect” fresh water in the Delta. In a letter to the State Water Resources Control Board on November 23, 2013, Pyke wrote, “The ‘earthquake bogey’ is a red herring that has been used for some years by the Metropolitan Water District and others to try to scare people into supporting what is now the curiously named Bay Delta Conservation Plan (BDCP).” (http:// nodeltagates.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/pyke_comments_on_cwap.pdf)

He also noted, “In the unlikely but nonetheless possible event of the failure of one or more Delta levees in a major flood, the Delta will be awash with fresh water and, while the demand for exports would likely be small at that time, there would be no reason for exports to be interrupted because of salinity intrusion."

Brown also made the false contention that the Delta tunnels would somehow prevent saltwater intrusion into the Delta when a myriad of scientific studies and reports, including the recent EPA letter slamming the tunnel proposal for potential violations of the Clean Water Act, demonstrate that the Delta salinity would increase - and freshwater outflows to the estuary would actually decrease - if the tunnels were in place.

"If that salt water intrudes, half the water to Silicon Valley will disappear in a matter of days. That would be a catastrophe for the economy of California and I don’t think this man really understands," opined Brown.

Actually, the EPA diagnosis pointed out that operating the proposed conveyance facilities “would contribute to increased and persistent violations of water quality standards in the Delta, set under the Clean Water Act,” and that the tunnels “would not protect beneficial uses for aquatic life, thereby violating the Clean Water Act." (http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2014/08/29/18760890.php)

The EPA also criticized the failure to analyze upstream/downstream impacts and observed that there is broad scientific agreement that “existing freshwater flow conditions in the San Francisco Estuary are insufficient to protect the aquatic ecosystem and multiple fish species, and that both increased freshwater flows and aquatic habitat restoration are needed to restore ecosystem processes in the Bay Delta and protect native and migratory fish populations.”

Brown also used the discussion of the tunnels during the debate to promote the water bond, Proposition 1, a measure that is strongly opposed by a broad coalition of fishing groups, environmental and consumer organizations and the Winnemem Wintu Tribe.

Brown stated, "But I’m telling you the way we protect the water in the middle of California and in the south while balancing what is right for the north and the water rights of the Northern California rights-holders, it’s going to take something like the Proposition 1 that will be on your ballot (in November) and, by the way, I hope people will vote for Proposition 1, the water bond.”

The California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA) and other environmental and fishing groups strongly disagree with Brown's contention that Proposition 1 would "protect the water in the middle of California and in the south while balancing what is right for the north and the water rights of the Northern California rights-holders."

On September 2, the CSPA released a 14-Point Statement of Opposition to Proposition 1. After reviewing the provisions of the Water Quality, Supply and Infrastructure Improvement Act of 2014, the group concluded that Proposition 1 "represents a grave and insidious threat to core environmental values and principles buttressing protection for fisheries and the environment."

"Among the numerous reasons the water bond is bad for California is that Proposition 1 undermines: the public trust doctrine by purchasing water the public already owns, at inflated prices, to protect the public’s rivers and environment; the principle of beneficiary pays by subsidizing projects that benefit special interests and the core principle that projects should be responsible for mitigating their adverse impacts," according to CSPA.

Furthermore, CSPA says Proposition 1 paves the way for a new era of big dam building; is a pork-filled barrel of special interest subsidies, including BDCP; provides little near-term drought relief; eliminates public oversight; crowds out other critically needed investments in roads, schools and public health and safety; is fiscally irresponsible and sabotages efforts to meaningfully address California’s continuing water crisis.

“Proposition 1 is a poster-child of why California is in a water crisis; it enriches water speculators but accomplishes little in addressing the drought, solving California’s long-term water needs, reducing reliance on the Delta or protecting our rivers and fisheries," said CSPA Executive Director Bill Jennings. "When the public focuses a critical eye on Prop. 1, they’ll realize that it’s just another expensive pork-filled gift basket to special interests.”

Opponents of Proposition 1 include the CSPA, the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, San Francisco Crab Boat Association, Restore the Delta, Center for Biological Diversity, California Water Impact Network, Food & Water Watch, Southern California Watershed Alliance, South Delta Water Agency, Central Delta Water Agency, Concerned Citizens Coalition of Stockton, Winnemem Wintu Tribe, Small Boat Commercial Salmon Fisherman’s Association and numerous other fishing, environmental, water and civic organizations.

As the November election draws closer and closer, you can expect Jerry Brown, a strong supporter of the environmentally destructive practice of fracking, to deliver more Pinocchio lines about the budget-busting peripheral tunnels and Proposition 1.

To read the complete 14-Point Statement, go to: http://www.calsport.org

Here is the transcript of the section of the debate focusing on the peripheral tunnels, courtesy of Alex Breitler of the Stockton Record (http://blogs.esanjoaquin.com/san-joaquin-river-delta/#sthash.8zSY2UDw.dpuf)

Brown: “I’ve lived in Southern California and I have a ranch in Northern California. I was born in San Francisco. It is true a lot of our water is in the north, and a lot of the people are in the south. That’s why my father passed Proposition 1 on the 1960 ballot and that’s been a marvel for California. It has created jobs and abundant agriculture, ranking California No. 1 in fruits and vegetables. But we have a problem here. We have a Delta system that protects the fresh water that goes to the farms, not just to Southern California but to Alameda County and Santa Clara County, and that salt water is only protected by dirt levees. We have to find a way to make sure the conveyance through the Delta will withstand an earthquake or rising sea levels or extreme weather events. That’s why for 50 years people have been trying for either a peripheral canal or tunnels or some other kind of conveyance. We now have a plan and the plan is going through the environmental impact process. Very extensive. 75,000 pages of analysis. It’s not cooked yet. We’re still taking comments. So over the next year we will go over that and look for if anyone else has another suggestion. But I’m telling you the way we protect the water in the middle of California and in the south while balancing what is right for the north and the water rights of the Northern California rights-holders, it’s going to take something like the Proposition 1 that will be on your ballot (in November) and, by the way, I hope people will vote for Proposition 1, the water bond.”

Kashkari: “I’m very concerned about the tunnels. $25 billion for these tunnels and the Obama administration has serious concerns. Look, if you look at Gov. Brown’s legacy of infrastructure projects — take the Bay Bridge, many billion dollars over budget, many years late — if that’s the track record this thing is going to cost $50 or $75 billion by the time we’re done with it. I’m an aerospace engineer. When I look at a big engineering project that’s way over budget and way over-delayed I have real concerns about mismanagement. I’m not going to plow ahead with $25 to $50 billion into the tunnels. We’re going to put a brake on it, study it and make sure we get it right.”

Moderator John Myers: “So no tunnels?”
Kashkari: “No tunnels.”

Myers: “And no tunnels, then, governor?”

Brown: “This has been on the table for 50 years. If that salt water intrudes, half the water to Silicon Valley will disappear in a matter of days. That would be a catastrophe for the economy of California and I don’t think this man really understands — ”

Kashkari: “The Obama EPA is saying your tunnel program is fundamentally flawed. That’s your own president, President Obama saying that, not me.”

Brown: “That doesn’t make it right, by the way.”