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New York Times: Water Compromise Elusive in Calif. Debate Over ‘Broken’ Ecosystem


Wednesday, August 19, 2009

The Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta ecosystem is busted. That view prevails on all sides of a raging fight over the delta’s coveted water supply. [...]

On one side of the fight are farmers who want to eliminate the Endangered Species Act’s pumping restrictions. On the other are environmentalists who want to restore the delta’s water flows and encourage strict conservation. In the middle are commercial fishers, recreation advocates, urban water users and water districts.

To Simitian, all sides risk toppling the state’s economy by not compromising. That is why he is pushing a bill that would establish a seven-member council that would be tasked with putting the state’s interest above those of individual parties.

Noting that polls give lawmakers here an 11 percent approval rating, Simitian is placing a bet that a council with four members appointed by the governor, one by the Assembly and one by the Senate, and an expert chairman at the helm, might be able to unite the 200-odd agencies that run the water system.

A council placed above local or constituent interest, he argued, might be able to implement the Delta Vision’s entire set of recommendations, which range from earmarking land for restoration and building new storage facilities to mandating recycling programs.

Voters, he said, “are not convinced we can actually solve the problems that affect their daily lives. I would like to prove them wrong.”

Read the full story on the New York Times website.