Thursday, February 28, 2008

 

Oppose the Peripheral Canal - Delta Conveyance plan for the California Delta

California's water supply crisis is a fraud - we need a smarter water management policy.



Submitted to: Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger - Interact.
Subject: Water issues/concerns.

Dear Governor Schwarzenegger:

I oppose the Peripheral Canal (Delta Conveyance) plan. Our bankrupt state budget should not be further bankrupted by construction of foolish water projects. A water management policy that kills a part of northern California to serve special interests in southern California would be wrong. Any plan to make the necessary changes in our California Delta must be part of a comprehensive strategy that protects agriculture and fisheries in the California Delta together with providing water supplies to southern California.

In fact, most of the water exported south from the California Delta is used for irrigation of the selenium heavy metal poisoned soils of the western San Joaquin Valley. The Fresno Bee, Jim Crenshaw (president of the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance), Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility and BRT Insights are all on the record advocating the end of selenium-poisoned irrigation in the western San Joaquin Valley. It is doubly dumb to destroy the California Delta and export our precious water resources to perpetuate this horrid, highly-polluting agriculture. California's water supply crisis is a fraud - what we have is a crisis of water management intelligence. These highly polluting farms must be bought out and retired from production, and then suddenly there will be plenty of water for everybody else in southern California.

It's time to mop up west side's water debacle - FresnoBee 17march2003.

• Jim Crenshaw, president of the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance.
Farmers sue in fight over water - sacbee 31jan2008.

Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility 20aug2007.

BRT Insights - Conservation alone CAN be a big help to fix the water crisis in California 31oct2007.

Contaminated valley drain water a problem yet unsolved - SF Chronicle 19july2005.

For more information:
Water Supply Policy and River Conservation in California - BRT Insights.
California Delta Directory - Conservation, Recreation & Water Policy. (75 sites).
Selenium Directory - toxic waste in irrigation drainage from the western San Joaquin Valley of California (25 sites).

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Will Gov. Schwarzenegger build the Peripheral Canal by executive order? - by Joe Canciamilla

Don't let the California Delta be destroyed for the benefit of special interests in southern California.


Dear Stop the Canal Friends:

We have a new development in Sacramento on the Governor's plan to fund and build a new peripheral canal or bypass to the Delta. See the news article "Delta canal alive again?" (Recordnet.com 26feb2008). There is some thought in Sacramento that the Governor feels so strongly about his support for a canal that he may be planning to make his decision by executive order, bypassing the Legislature altogether. This would be devastating for the residents of Contra Costa County and for all of Northern California.

Please e-mail the Governor and express your opposition to an executive order approving the funding and building of a new canal, which would send our water south and be devastating to the delta fish environment.

In addition, please send this web page to your family and friends and ask them to send an e-mail in opposition. They can also sign up to help at www.stopthecanal.org.

Thanks again for your continued support.

Regards, Joe Canciamilla www.StoptheCanal.org

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Guest Author Joe Canciamilla lives in Pittsburg, a city on the California Delta. Joe is a former California State Assemblyman and Chair of the Water, Parks & Wildlife Committee. Joe is forming stopthecanal.org to fight the California Governor's plan to build a peripheral canal to carry water around the California Delta.

For more information:
Peripheral Canal - California Delta Update by Joe Canciamilla 26feb2008.
Water supply crisis in the Sacramento - San Joaquin River Delta, California 26dec2007.
Stop the peripheral canal again - the California Delta crisis needs a better solution 19dec2007.
Water Supply Policy and California River Conservation.
California Delta Directory - Conservation, Recreation & Water Policy. (59 sites).

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Tuesday, February 26, 2008

 

Peripheral Canal - California Delta Update by Joe Canciamilla

Sacramento - San Joaquin River Delta must not be destroyed just to send more water to southern California.

Dear Stop the Canal Friends,

Thought you might be interested in the latest news on the water wars as called to my attention by the group, Restore the Delta. Senator Dianne Feinstein, Governor Schwarzenegger, a number of state lawmakers and water interests met in Sacramento last week for a two-hour private meeting to discuss the future of water policy in California.

For a more detailed article, try visiting Water war foes have discussion - Recordnet 22feb2008.

While the Legislature is regrouping after the defeat of Proposition 93, the Term Limits Initiative, the issue of a water bond and the need for a canal or bypass still percolates in Sacramento. In fact, the Southern California water interests are gearing up for a big fight. Water bond supporters call themselves Californians for Clean & Reliable Water. You have probably seen some of their commercials on television.

There’s a new group just formed to help fight the prospects of a new Delta bypass or canal. It’s “Californians for Clean, Safe Drinking Water.” You can see their new ad at Stop the Governor's Water Give-Away - YouTube.

We need to stay on top of what is happening in Sacramento, so that we are ready to fight any last-minute water deal that could come along. If you have any comments or thoughts to add as we work together to protect our water supply, please contact me via my website stopthecanal.org. Thanks.

Sincerely, Joe Canciamilla

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California needs a water policy that serves the entire state. The solutions to California's water supply crisis must serve the needs of all residents, not just the greedy special interests in southern California.


Guest Author Joe Canciamilla lives in the California Delta, is a former State Assemblyman and Chair of the Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee. Joe is forming stopthecanal.org to fight the California Governor's plan to build a peripheral canal to carry water around the California Delta.

For more information:
Water supply crisis in the Sacramento - San Joaquin River Delta, California 26dec2007.
Stop the peripheral canal again - the California Delta crisis needs a better solution 19dec2007.
Water Supply Policy and California River Conservation.
California Delta Directory - Conservation, Recreation & Water Policy. (42 sites).

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Sunday, February 24, 2008

 

Shirttail Run, NF American River, kayaking class II+, 22feb2008

Back among the living - how great to get back out on the whitewater!!

After three weeks of hacking, coughing and snorkeling with a cold I finally felt almost back to normal. Very little rain fell on the northern Coast Range this past week, so those rivers were not running. Fortunately, the Sierra got lots of rain and the NF American was running, so BillJ and I went for it.


Additional pictures from this whitewater river run.
Pictures were taken with a water-resistant Olympus 720SW camera.

Kayaking on a whitewater river is a great way to spend a rainy winter day in California!!

Shirttail Run on NF American River (Placer County, California, United States) is a great classII+ run with a short winter/spring season, so you have to jump on it whenver you find it with a good flow. The unpaved roads to put-in and take-out are mostly gravel, so they were still driveable on a very rainy day like today. Class II+ boaters should have a great day on this run as long as they stay out of a few boat-eating holes. Experienced boaters should find lots of great playspots. Everybody should enjoy the pretty canyon and great water quality.

BillJ & I eddy-hopped and surfed our way down the run pretty rapidly. We didn't stop for lunch. Paddling downstream in the mild sections was a good way to keep up our body heat. The flow was a little low for the surf spots at Surf City, but we found a great wave a little ways downstream and spent a lot of time there. I'm not sure exactly where it was, but I'll have no trouble recognizing the old metal bridge wreckage that was on river-left in the background of my pictures.

We got to take-out at 3PM. The gauge is quite a ways downstream, so we are estimating that the white water flow we boated on all day passed the gauge at ~6PM (1100 cfs.)

On the way home we stopped at the local whitewater shop - Sierra Outdoor Center, Auburn, CA.

More about:
Shirttail Run, American River NF Guide Page.
Whitewater Kayaking Trip Reports.

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Friday, February 22, 2008

 

Dashboard GPS Map - Garmin StreetPilot c530 - Equipment Review

A great new 21st century tool for driving to your whitewater river trips and other travel adventures.


This portable GPS unit sits on the dashboard of your vehicle and shows your map position constantly updated as you drive to your destination. If you enter your destination (street addresses in cities or towns), then the StreetPilot can estimate the driving time and arrival time at your destination. The built-in map of North America has great coverage for paved roads, but only partial coverage for unpaved roads. Most importantly, at that critical moment when you need to exit or make a turn the StreetPilot gives you the information to confidently make the right decision that gets you directly to your destination. Or if you decide to take a side-trip or an alternate route the StreetPilot adjusts smoothly and continues guiding you. The tiny screen of the StreetPilot cannot give a good overview of a long journey, so we will continue to need paper maps and/or online maps as part of our trip planning process.

Garmin StreetPilot c530 3.5-Inch Portable GPS Navigator.

Many new cars are now sold with GPS mapping units built into the dashboard and maybe in the future all cars will have GPS map units. Newer dashboard GPS models have even more features than the c530 model, but at twice the price. With the price of last year's model StreetPilot c530 units dropped down to $200 its a great opportunity to have an affordable GPS in your older vehicle. (My rating *** 3 stars out of 5)

More about:
Reviews - Equipment and Supplies for Whitewater River Kayaking.

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Monday, February 11, 2008

 

Restore the Klamath River - Feb 2008 Update

Does the draft agreement provide enough protection for the fish?

The chairman of the Hoopa Valley Tribe is critical of the draft agreement for Klamath River restoration. "Water rights are upside down in the agreement. The agreement guarantees water for Bureau of Reclamation project irrigators and refuge users, while Hoopa and Yurok senior fishing rights, dating back to 1855 and 1864, are not guaranteed. The agreement puts all the drought-year risks on the fish." (Fish are key to deal on Klamath - Sacramento Bee 10feb2008)

PacifiCorp has not yet agreed to remove their obsolete Klamath River dams

PacifiCorp's failure to participate in the last two years of Klamath River restoration negotiations is an obstacle to progress.

For more information:
Klamath River restoration blocked by Warren Buffet's PacifiCorp 28jan2008.
Klamath River Conservation Directory - environment, commercial fishermen, Native Americans, agriculture, & news. All of the organizations involved in the Klamath River restoration (72 sites described).
Klamath River Basin Recreation Directory - Siskiyou, Humboldt & Del Norte Counties in California, Klamath County in Oregon. Kayaking, rafting, canoeing, birding, hiking, camping (48 sites described).
California River Conservation and Water Supply Policy Sacramento CA.
Salmon for Savings on the Klamath River.

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