The Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, recently announced $50 million in funding for water infrastructure projects in the West, including over $11 million in funding for the Central Valley Project (CVP).
The 2012 Spending Plan for the Bureau of Reclamation, which manages and operates the CVP, allocates over $11 million in funding to the CVP for fish screens and fish passage facilities ($4.3 million); water conservation and water delivery activities ($4 million); environmental restoration and compliance ($1.75 million); and facility operation and maintenance ($1.044 million). The remaining funds will be spent on a variety of projects throughout the West, with $30 million allocated to rural water construction projects in North Dakota, Montana, New Mexico, and elsewhere. The Bureau's 2012 budget may be found here.
Notably, the 2012 Spending Plan states that the funds for CVP-related environmental restoration and compliance will “support the completion of the National Environmental Policy Act and Endangered Species Act environmental compliance processes to comply with federal district court rulings on both the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service Biological Opinions.” As we previously reported, a federal district court concluded that the 2009 Salmonid Biological Opinion prepared by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) was arbitrary, capricious, and unlawful and remanded the Biological Opinion back to NMFS. The same court concluded that the 2008 Delta Smelt Biological Opinion prepared by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) was arbitrary, capricious, and unlawful and remanded that Biological Opinion back to FWS. (See related stories here and here.)
For more information regarding this matter, please contact Elizabeth Leeper or the KMTG attorney with whom you normally consult.
Related stories:
Showing posts with label Salmon Biop. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Salmon Biop. Show all posts
Friday, February 10, 2012
Thursday, January 19, 2012
Court Approves Stipulation Regarding CVP and SWP Operations in 2012
We recently reported that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), the California Department of Water Resources (DWR), and public water agencies filed a stipulation with the United States Eastern District Court that proposed modified Central Valley Project (CVP) and State Water Project (SWP) operations for the period of April 1 to May 31, 2012.
Today, the parties received notice that the Court has approved the stipulation, and adopted it as an order of the Court. A copy of the signed order may be found here.
For more information regarding this matter, please contact Rebecca R. Akroyd or K. Eric Adair, or the KMTG attorney with whom you normally consult.
Related story:
Today, the parties received notice that the Court has approved the stipulation, and adopted it as an order of the Court. A copy of the signed order may be found here.
For more information regarding this matter, please contact Rebecca R. Akroyd or K. Eric Adair, or the KMTG attorney with whom you normally consult.
Related story:
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Parties in Salmon Litigation File Stipulation Regarding CVP and SWP Operations in 2012
On January 12, 2012, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), the California Department of Water Resources (DWR), and public water agencies filed a stipulation with the United States Eastern District Court that proposes modified Central Valley Project (CVP) and State Water Project (SWP) operations for the period of April 1 to May 31, 2012.
The stipulation describes the state and federal agencies' agreement to install a seasonal rock barrier at the head of Old River, near Lathrop, designed to keep salmonids from entering Old River, in the direction of the export pumps. The stipulation also includes more flexible guidelines governing permissible flows in Old and Middle Rivers and an increased commitment to acoustic tagging of listed fish to gather information on migratory patterns.
The parties filed the Joint Stipulation Regarding CVP and SWP Operations in 2012 (available here) in the Consolidated Salmonid Cases, Case No. 1:09-cv-1053, the case challenging the biological opinion that governs long-term operations of the CVP and SWP. In September 2011, the district court issued a memorandum decision finding the so-called 2009 Salmonid BiOp and its Reasonable and Prudent Alternative (RPA) arbitrary, capricious, and unlawful. A later order by the court indicated that parties to the case could present stipulations on project operations in 2012.
Because the judgment entered in the Consolidated Salmonid Cases remanded the 2009 Salmonid BiOp and RPA, without vacatur, it had the effect of leaving RPA actions in place, notwithstanding the court's finding that they were unlawful. Had the parties not agreed on modified operations for April 1 to May 31 of this year, RPA Action IV.2.1, which sets a San Joaquin River inflow-to-export ratio requirement for the same period, would likely have severely restricted CVP and SWP operations.
Concurrent with a press release announcing the stipulation (available here), NMFS also made public its "Summary of the Expected Benefits to Salmonid Survival of a Rock Barrier at the Head of Old River & Preferential Use of the Central Valley Project Export Facility" (available here). The summary describes the expected benefits of placing a rock barrier at the head of Old River, as well as an explanation of the adaptive range of Old and Middle River flows included in the plan for 2012 operations and the rationale for preferential diversion of water through the CVP facility rather than the SWP facility.
For more information regarding this matter, please contact Rebecca R. Akroyd or K. Eric Adair, or the KMTG attorney with whom you normally consult.
Related story:
The stipulation describes the state and federal agencies' agreement to install a seasonal rock barrier at the head of Old River, near Lathrop, designed to keep salmonids from entering Old River, in the direction of the export pumps. The stipulation also includes more flexible guidelines governing permissible flows in Old and Middle Rivers and an increased commitment to acoustic tagging of listed fish to gather information on migratory patterns.
The parties filed the Joint Stipulation Regarding CVP and SWP Operations in 2012 (available here) in the Consolidated Salmonid Cases, Case No. 1:09-cv-1053, the case challenging the biological opinion that governs long-term operations of the CVP and SWP. In September 2011, the district court issued a memorandum decision finding the so-called 2009 Salmonid BiOp and its Reasonable and Prudent Alternative (RPA) arbitrary, capricious, and unlawful. A later order by the court indicated that parties to the case could present stipulations on project operations in 2012.
Because the judgment entered in the Consolidated Salmonid Cases remanded the 2009 Salmonid BiOp and RPA, without vacatur, it had the effect of leaving RPA actions in place, notwithstanding the court's finding that they were unlawful. Had the parties not agreed on modified operations for April 1 to May 31 of this year, RPA Action IV.2.1, which sets a San Joaquin River inflow-to-export ratio requirement for the same period, would likely have severely restricted CVP and SWP operations.
Concurrent with a press release announcing the stipulation (available here), NMFS also made public its "Summary of the Expected Benefits to Salmonid Survival of a Rock Barrier at the Head of Old River & Preferential Use of the Central Valley Project Export Facility" (available here). The summary describes the expected benefits of placing a rock barrier at the head of Old River, as well as an explanation of the adaptive range of Old and Middle River flows included in the plan for 2012 operations and the rationale for preferential diversion of water through the CVP facility rather than the SWP facility.
For more information regarding this matter, please contact Rebecca R. Akroyd or K. Eric Adair, or the KMTG attorney with whom you normally consult.
Related story:
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Court Finds 2009 Salmonid Biological Opinion Arbitrary and Capricious and Remands to National Marine Fisheries Services
On September 20, 2011, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California issued a memorandum decision that finds the 2009 Salmonid Biological Opinion ("BiOp") and Reasonable and Prudent Alternative ("RPA") arbitrary, capricious, and unlawful.
In a 279-page decision by Honorable Judge Oliver Wanger, the court found several scientific and legal errors in the BiOp and RPA that warranted remand. On multiple occasions, the court found "clear error" or a failure to use the "best available science." The court concluded:
Some of NMFS's analyses rely upon equivocal or bad science to impose RPA Actions without clearly explaining or otherwise demonstrating why specific measures imposed are essential to avoid jeopardy and/or adverse modification. Given the potential serious impacts of these measures, the agency must do more to comply with the law.
The district court's opinion in the case, San Luis & Delta-Mendota Water Authority et al. v. Locke et al., Case No. 1:09-CV-1053, may be found here. A KMTG Legal Alert with a detailed analysis of the court's ruling will be posted in the near future.
If you have any questions concerning this decision, please contact Rebecca R. Akroyd, K. Eric Adair, Daniel J. O'Hanlon, or Hanspeter Walter, or the KMTG attorney with whom you normally consult.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)