(February 10, 2011) A newly appointed water official has overstepped his authority in recommendations for agricultural water use, the California Chamber of Commerce and agricultural and water groups have told the state water board.
In a January 31 letter to the State Water Resources Control Board, the groups point out that Delta Watermaster Craig Wilson also is proposing actions that duplicate existing processes.
The CalChamber and other organizations signing the letter “have long supported the efficient use of water and strive to improve these efficiencies and beneficial uses as new practices and technologies become available,” the letter states.
“The Delta Watermaster’s report does disservice to this reality, ventures beyond limiting statutory authority and proposes expansion of government when downsizing is the order of the day,” the letter continues.
Background
Special session legislation passed in 2009 and taking effect on February 3, 2010 created the Delta Watermaster position as part of a framework for governance in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (SBX7 1; Simitian; D-Palo Alto).
Made up of more than 1,100 miles of levees, the Delta provides two-thirds of California’s population with drinking water and irrigation water for millions of acres of crops. It also offers vital flood protection for the flood plains of California’s Central Valley.
SBX7 1 aimed to achieve “co-equal goals of providing a more reliable water supply for California and protecting, restoring and enhancing the Delta ecosystem” in a way that “protects and enhances the unique cultural, recreational, natural resource and agricultural values of the Delta as an evolving place.”
Limited Authority
The CalChamber and other organizations noted that the law limits the watermaster’s authority to “diversions in the Delta, and for the monitoring and enforcement of the [water] board’s orders and license and permit terms and conditions that apply to conditions in the Delta.”
The state water board appointed Wilson last summer. An attorney, Wilson was chief counsel to the water board from 2000 until 2005 and has 30 years of experience dealing with the state’s water issues.
In a January 19 report to the state water board and the Delta Stewardship Council (also established by the 2009 special session legislation), Wilson zeroes in on agricultural water use efficiency and proposes creating a unit within the water board to police waste or “unreasonable use” of water.
Duplicative Efforts
Creation of the reasonable use water unit is not authorized by law and is redundant to laws on the issue, the letter from CalChamber and other organizations noted.
Also duplicative, the groups pointed out, are the watermaster’s proposal for pilot studies of water savings from changed irrigation practices or cropping patterns. Ample data is available in the California State University and University of California systems, the groups noted.
Moreover, regulations on agricultural water use efficiency are being developed as part of the implementation of SBX7 7 (Steinberg; D-Sacramento).
Central to the watermaster’s recommendations was use of the so-called “reasonable and beneficial use doctrine” of California water law to promote efficient water use.
The CalChamber and other groups commented, “The presumption is that water is being unreasonably used without documentation and the proposal seriously jeopardizes due process.”
They added that the reasonable use doctrine “was not intended and should not be used to assess individual farm cropping decisions or the adequacy of irrigation systems.”
The groups will be meeting with members of the state water board to discuss concerns and “receive reassurance that the Delta Watermaster will conduct himself in the future consistent with statutory authority and legislative history that gave rise” to the position.
For background information on California water, see the CalChamber 2011 water issue report.
Staff Contact: Valerie Nera