Posted on 07/13/2007 10:39:27 PM PDT by BenLurkin
Water woes in California awakened some elected officials to the need for a peripheral canal, an alternative to the state's existing water delivery system, where the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta pumps can be shut down at any time for any number of reasons.
Congressman Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield, has become a proponent and has called for construction of an alternate water conveyance system - a peripheral canal - that would transport water supplies from Northern California to the southern regions of the state. Their unified stance intensified after the Department of Water Resources voluntarily shut down the pumps for 10 days beginning May 31 to prevent smelt from being sucked into and killed by the equipment.
"California is reaching a water crisis," McCarthy recently said.
"We can take action so that our Central California does not dry up," he said, emphasizing the need for "a stable flow of water" in agricultural areas and urban communities. The congressman also reinforced his support of the governor's position.
In response to the water resources shutdown, McCarthy drafted a letter to Dirk Kempthorne, secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior, and to Schwarzenegger urging that pumps be restored to normal flow rather than the 20% maximum. His letter contained signatures from approximately 20 of his congressional colleagues, including Howard P. "Buck" McKeon, R-Santa Clarita; Elton Gallegly, R-Simi Valley; and Mary Bono, R-Palm Springs.
"Only if California constructs conveyance around the Delta (along with) new water storage, can we prevent future water crises and ensure that farmers have enough water for their crops," McCarthy wrote.
McCarthy said farmers, ranchers and families "rely on a stable supply of water throughout the state."
More than 25 million Californians and millions of acres of farmland receive water from the Delta, he said.
(Excerpt) Read more at avpress.com ...
How many times do we have to vote NO on this? Once wasn’t enough?
I think we need to look at all the options for saving the Delta. The peripheral canal is just one of them.
I don’t see how sending more water to LA is going to save the Delta.
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