Gavin Newsom's Delta Tunnel Project Receives Incidental Take Permit

SACRAMENTO — On the afternoon of Valentine’s Day, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that the controversial Delta Conveyance Project has received an Incidental Take Permit, a “critical milestone” in the advancement of the embattled Delta Tunnel.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) issued the permit to the California Department of Water Resources. Under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA), DWR is required to obtain an ITP to “minimize, avoid, and fully mitigate impacts to threatened or endangered species” as a result of the construction, operation, and maintenance of the Delta Conveyance Project.  

The Delta Tunnel project is opposed by a broad coalition of Tribes, fishing groups, environmental justice organizations, conservation groups, Southern California ratepayers, five Delta Counties, scientists and elected officials. They say the project will hasten the extinction of Sacramento River winter-run and spring-run Chinook salmon, Delta and longfin smelt, green sturgeon and other fish species, as well as wreak havoc on Delta Tribal and environmental justice communities.

The Governor’s Office claimed the Delta Conveyance Project will “upgrade” the State Water Project, enabling California’s water managers to capture and move more water during high-flow atmospheric rivers to better endure dry seasons.

“The tunnel, a modernization of the infrastructure system that delivers water to millions of people, would improve California’s ability to take advantage of intense periods of rain and excess flows in the Sacramento River,” the Governor’s Office stated.

“California doesn’t have to choose between safeguarding endangered species and protecting our water supply — this permit demonstrates we can do both,” gushed Governor Newsom.

“We are proceeding with confidence towards implementing this critical project to protect our state’s primary supply of clean, affordable water,” echoed Karla Nemeth, Director of California's Department of Water Resources.

The State Water Contractors lauded the issuing of the permit by the CDFW.

“The State Water Contractors welcome the forward momentum by the Department of Fish and Wildlife and Department of Water Resources in completing this ITP, a foundational step towards realizing the Delta Conveyance Project and ensuring California is prepared for a future shaped by climate change,” said Jennifer Pierre, General Manager for the State Water Contractors. “As the Department of Water Resources continues to pursue the few remaining permits, the State Water Contractors look forward to working on behalf of our participating member agencies to advance the maximum benefits of this project.”  

Delta Tunnel opponents slammed the project for failing to actually provide protection of endangered species while posing a dire threat to the town of Hood and adversely impacting other Delta communities.

The 45-mile long tunnel will divert water from the Sacramento River at two intakes at Hood and Courtland to facilitate the export of water to San Joaquin Valley corporate agribusiness interests and Southern California water agencies — rather than letting the water flow through the Delta.

“I cannot think of a worse Valentine’s Day present to the species of California than this ITP,” said Osha Meserve, the lawyer representing several local agencies and community groups in the fight against the Delta Tunnel. “Notably this ITP does not and cannot provide take coverage for fully protected species under California law, such as the Greater sandhill crane and the White-tailed kite.  These species are within the massive project area.”

“Diverting the Sacramento River around the Delta is an obsolete idea,” said Bill Wells, Executive Director of the California Delta Chambers & Visitor's Bureau. “The Department of Water Resources destroying the Sacramento River town of Hood in the process is totally unacceptable.”

“The DWR needs to create new fresh water to solve California's water problems.  They have already squandered close to $1 billion on this boondoggle. The final tab will be in the $75 billion to $100 billion range,  debt that will be piled on our children and grandchildren,” he argued.

Restore the Delta also weighed in on the DWR’s issuing of the take permit, accusing the Governor of cutting a deal with President Trump.

”Governor Newsom is pushing forward with the DCP at the expense of the Delta’s communities, all while cutting a deal with President Trump to pump the Delta dry,” said Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, Executive Director of Restore the Delta. “The Bay Delta’s economy and environment will be completely destroyed by this apparent Newsom-Trump alliance.”

“Why is Newsom hastening the destruction of the Bay Delta estuary while Trump is federalizing California water management?  Restore the Delta remains committed to fighting to protect the Delta and the people that depend on it,” she concluded.

Delta Tunnel opponents have challenged the Governor and other state officials many times to provide one example in U.S. or world history where a project that takes more water out of a river or estuary has restored that river or estuary. No Delta Tunnel advocate has ever been able to provide an answer to that question.

CDFW’s issuing of the take permit comes as zero Delta Smelt, an indicator species that has been villainized by Donald Trump and his corporate agribusiness allies for supposedly being a “worthless fish,” have been caught in the CDFW’s Fall Midwater Trawl Survey in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta for the seventh year in a row.

Meanwhile, salmon fishing on California’s ocean and river waters has been closed for the past two years and may be closed again this year, due to the collapse of Sacramento River and Klamath River fall-run Chinook salmon populations. Likewise, Sacramento River winter-run and spring-run Chinook salmon are moving closer and closer to extinction, due to massive water exports from the Delta and other factors.

Conservationists and scientists say the Delta Tunnel, by diverting more water from the Sacramento River before it flows through the Delta, will only further exacerbate the critical situation that Delta fish species and Central Valley salmon populations are now in.

About incidental take permits from the Governor’s Office:

Incidental take permits are most commonly issued for construction, utility, transportation, and other infrastructure-related projects. Permittees must implement species-specific minimization and avoidance measures and fully mitigate the impacts of the project including:  

- Erecting protective fencing around sensitive habitat within construction sites.
- Limited operating periods to avoid species breeding, migration, etc.
- Pre-construction surveys to identify and mark sensitive or suitable habitat features.
- Onsite construction personnel education programs covering species identification, protected status, and measures to take if one is found.