Office of Public Participation Comment

The Oroville Dam 2017 Spillway Incident: Lessons from the Feather River Basin

CSPA Comments on State Water Board’s Response to Climate Change

CSPA, the California Water Impact Network and California Water Research submitted a comment letter on March 31, 2021 to the California State Water Resources Control Board, Division of Water Rights on the Water Board’s Recommendations for an Effective Water Rights Response to Climate Change: Identification of Data Needs and Recommendations to Incorporate Climate Change into […]

CSPA Urges State Water Board to Tap New Melones Now

Following up on the State Water Board’s April 21, 2021 workshop on Sacramento River water temperature management, CSPA has written a letter urging the Board to enforce existing flow requirements for the lower San Joaquin River.  Water Rights Decision 1641 requires the Bureau of Reclamation to release water from New Melones Reservoir to meet seasonal […]

CSPA Comments on FERC’s Additional Information Request for Merced Irrigation District’s Hydro Projects

Crocker Huffman Dam – Merced Fall Hydro Project CSPA and several allied conservation groups[1] filed comments on April 1, 2021 responding to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) staff’s February 19, 2021 Additional Information Request (AIR) for the Merced River Hydroelectric Project and the Merced Falls Hydroelectric Project (collectively, Projects). These two hydroelectric projects are owned […]

CSPA Urges Changes at San Francisco Public Utilities Commission

CSPA joined with 26 other fishing and environmental groups and businesses in a March 9, 2021 joint letter that urges hiring a progressive, experienced outside general manager for the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC or Commission).  The SFPUC is the City of San Francisco’s water agency.  The letter to San Francisco Mayor London Breed […]

CSPA Defends Cold Water for North Fork Feather River & Lake Almanor

By Cindy Charles The California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA) and American Whitewater (AW) submitted comments to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on January 5, 2021 in support of two “must-have” license conditions for the Upper North Fork Feather Hydroelectric Project (Project 2105).  If these conditions are left out of the project’s new license, summer […]

FERC Denies Waiver of Clean Water Act for Tuolumne River Hydropower Projects

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has denied a petition to waive water quality certification for the Don Pedro and La Grange Hydroelectric Projects on the Tuolumne River.  The January 19, 2021 denial is a rebuke to Turlock Irrigation District and Modesto Irrigation District (Districts), who jointly own and operate the projects.  The Districts had sought […]

California’s “Voluntary Agreements” with Water Agencies and Irrigation Districts Are an Attack on the State Water Board and Foundational Environmental Law

Summary Both Yuba Water Agency (YWA) and the Turlock and Modesto Irrigation Districts (Districts) allege that the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) has unlawfully delayed decisions concerning their respective hydroelectric projects.  Both YWA and the Districts have mounted aggressive legal attacks on the State Water Board and on the laws that give […]

CSPA Opposes Turlock and Modesto Irrigation Districts’ Petition for Waiver of Clean Water Act

Joining a growing list, Turlock and Modesto Irrigation Districts (Districts) filed a Petition for Declaratory Order with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) on October 2, 2020 asking that the Commission find that the State of California has waived certification under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act (CWA).  CWA Section 401 allows […]

CSPA Asks San Francisco Water Agency to Withdraw Voluntary Agreement

CSPA and thirteen other conservation and fishing organizations wrote a letter to the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission on September 9, 2020 requesting that the Commission withdraw its support for a proposed Tuolumne River Voluntary Agreement.  CSPA and others also presented the request to the SFPUC meeting the same day. The request follows a scientific […]

CSPA Sues FERC over Waiver of Clean Water Act

CSPA and three other non-profit groups have sued the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in the Federal Appeals Court 9th Circuit in defense of the State of California’s authority to protect the Yuba and Bear Rivers.  The lawsuit is the latest chapter in CSPA’s concerted opposition to FERC’s serial “waivers” of the application of Clean […]