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Amazing Flood Pix: CA Delta Feb. 11, 2017

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We took JD-Force 1 up today to get a bird’s eye view of the flooding in California. There’s been a lot of talk about the spillway at Oroville Dam lately, but I also wanted to see how the lower end of the system was faring. What we saw was amazing!

Starting with Liberty Island in the North Delta. Look at the debris and the whitewater…

The Rio Vista Bridge looks like it doesn’t have much clearance right now. Lots of homes and businesses on the shore either flooded or getting very close…

Looking down Cache Slough towards Rio Vista. The current speed and amount of debris in the water is staggering…

Hidden Harbor where Steamboat and Cache Sloughs meet..

A closer look at the bottom end of the Liberty Island area, where Prospect and Cache slough meet…

The Wimpy’s and New Hope area of the Mokelumne River, where the houseboats broke loose on Friday. All the house trailers are gone…I hope everybody was able to get out in time…

Apparently, the Deep Water Channel is the only clear water in the state…

 Looking north towards the Causeway. The bypass looks like the Amazon…

Unfortunately, there are lots of homes and farms either flooded or getting very close…

Sadly, there will be lots more structures inundated I’m afraid by the time this is all over. Look at the rapids caused by the road…

More properly and structures underwater…

Willow Berm Marina on the Mokelumne River seems to be hanging in there…

A wide, bird’s eye view of Liberty Island. So much junk down there it’s insane…

Why YOU should care about the Delta Smelt!

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  It’s just a stupid 3-inch fish that has no sporting attributes or importance from a food standpoint, right?

The Delta smelt is a rarely-encountered critter, and though it currently resides on the Endangered Species list, who the heck is gonna care if it disappears for good?

Well, you should! Everyone who enjoys catching salmon, sturgeon, steelhead, stripers, bass and a whole host of other species should.

You see, the little ol’ Delta smelt is very much the canary in the coal mine of the Delta. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife service says that three of the primary threats to the Delta smelt include: Direct entrainments by State and Federal water export facilities;summer and fall increases in salinity; and summer and fall increases in water clarity.

In case you haven’t already guessed, all three of those are direct results of exporting too much water out of the Delta complex. 

And guess what folks, those aren’t just threats to the smelt. Those same factors affect all of your beloved species too!Click here to read more…

$60 Million allocated for fish & wildlife allegedly spent on Delta Tunnels plan instead!

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Just when you thought things couldn’t possibly get more corrupt, comes this: 

The US Department of the Interior is going to investigate California’s spending of $60 million on planning for the Governor’s proposed Twin Tunnels plan. The funds were originally designated for fish & wildlife studies…not water diversion plans. 

The decision to investigate, made public Monday, came after a nonprofit called Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility filed a complaint. 

It’s clear that Gov. Brown and his cronies will stop at nothing to get the tunnels built. Things will get very interesting if the Feds do find that the money was misspent. Stay tuned!

Read the whole story here

In other Tunnels news, the Mertopolitan Water District of Southern California signed a $175 million contract today to purchase islands in the Delta. 

Read more here
Go to www.stopthetunnels.org for more info. 

LA looking to purchase 4 Delta Islands

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  Paving the way for Gov. Brown’s flawed Delta Tunnels project, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California recently voted to pursue the purchase of four islands in the Delta. 
Under the guise of environmental protection, the purchase would actually give the giant water district control of 20,000 acres of land through which the proposed tunnels would run. 
I’m smelling a big fat, stinking rat on this one, folks. Read more HERE and see what you think…

Anti Striper, Bass, Catfish, Panfish Legislation Making Headway in the HOUSE

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stripers
Here we go again! The water mongers are trying to pin the blame of the Delta’s woes on striped bass instead of the real issue!

This time around, U.S. Representative Jeff Denham (R-Turlock) today offered an amendment to the Commerce, Justice and Science Appropriations Act for 2016 which would “ensure an appropriate focus on predation control efforts” in an attempt to recover fish listed as protected under the Endangered Species Act.

“In the Central Valley, predator fish represent a constant threat to native populations such as steelhead and salmon,” said Rep. Denham. “While we’re spending millions trying to save the lives of these fish, which play a huge role in the allocation of water, we must also be working to eliminate the threat that predator fish pose. My amendment would require the NOAA to prioritize controlling non-native predators so we can save salmon and steelhead.”

This, of course, is simply a way to divert attention from the fact that a lack of water and poor water quality are the number one reasons all the fish on that list are Endangered.

All you have to do is take a look at a graph of Delta fish populations. Fish like salmon, steelhead…and Striped Bass are all in a nosedive. The common denominator? Water…not predation!

You can read the whole story here

This, of course, isn’t the first time Republican lawmakers have tried to eradicate striped bass from California. Jean Fuller (R-Bakersfield) introduced anti-striper Bills in 2009 and 2010, both of which got smashed. I’ve been saying all along, however, this fight is far from over…