If you are still working on your Sound bites...

Check out these documents:

California Department of Food & Agriculture (Tons of current statistics about CA agriculture!!!)

• For example on the Left hand side of the page check out the California Ag Highlights 2010 Brochure (page 2). Amazing stats!

California Fact Sheets (Demographic stats!!)

1) CA WATER PLAN 2009

Specifically look at these areas:

• Multiple Water Uses Section 2-7
• Box 2-1 "Lester Snow's Perspective on Challenges & Way Forward"

2) Water Plan: BAY AREA 2009

• Environmental Water pg. 12 last paragraph (The coho salmon...)

3) Current Trends

• Economic & Financial (pg 1) & Institutional & Political (pg 1) & Technology (pg 1) & Social Practices (pg 1)

4) CA Water Transfer

• Definition pg. 5, Great overview of current water transfers in California pg 6 & 7 (pg 7 details restrictions due to biological opinions & cost conflicts).
• Potential Benefits of Water Transfers (improve economic stability & environmental conditions pg. 8)
• Economic Concerns (Due to "crop idling" pg. 10)

5) Water Storage

• Impacts of water storage pg. 8

6) Restoration

• Overview pg. 5 "California has lost more than 90% of the wetlands & riparian forests that existed before the Gold Rush."
• Current California water plan (government) restoration activities: pg. 6 (Delta plan), success stories about state helping to restore Chinook salmon populations on Battle & Clear creeks of the Sacramento River pg. 6
• Central Valley Project Improvement Act (CVPIA) of 1992 (mandated changes in management of project for protection, restoration & enhancement of fish & wildlife). One component is the AFRP (Anadromous Fish Restoration Program). Check out this program - Very positive! pg. 7
• Environmental Water Use Efficiency pg. 12 "Study on the Shasta River, tributary to the Klamath River, examined how to improve the productivity & survival of coho salmon through habitat & other improvements aimed at reducing water temperature." (Check this out...related to our field trip!)
• Potential Costs of Ecosystem Restoration pg. 13 (The California Bay-Delta Authority's ecosystem restoration program (ERP) has funded about 800 projects for restoration, including planning, monitoring, and education, at a total cost of over $950 million!
• Several Recent bond measures (Props 204, 13, 50) have provided money for restoration.
• The largest current initiative is in Prop 84. $1.4 billion is set aside for protection & restoration of rivers, lakes and streams and to protect, conserve, and restore forests and wildlife habitat.
• The Department of Fish & Game (DFG) has legal mandates to determine flows that will assure the viability of fish & wildlife resources, identify the watercourses to evaluate first, initiate flow studies & develop recommendations to State Water Board for use in allocating water. In turn the State Water Board is responsible for allocating water to protect habitat for fish & wildlife. (pg. 15)

7) Watershed Management

• Costs & Benefits of Watershed Management (pg 9)
• Life Cycles & Migration Patterns of Animals (pg 14) (Interesting perspective prior to NEPA & CEQA laws)

8) "California Constitution Article 10 Water (pg 1): It is hereby declared that because of the conditions prevailing in this State the general welfare requires that the water resources of the State be put to beneficial use to the fullest extent of which they are capable..."

9) Water Contracts: Both the SWP & CVP have contracts to deliver water to water agencies pg. 5

10) Releases of water for environmental uses. Fish & Game Code Section 5937 provides protection for fisheries... pg. 5 (link above)

11) Federal Endangered Species Act pg. 9 & California Endangered Species Act

12) Release of Water for Fish (Fish & Game Code Section 5937) pg. 10 & Streambed Alteration Agreements (Fish & Game Code Sections 1601 & 1603) pg. 11

13) CVPIA: 1992 Amended the Central Valley project's purposes to place fish & wildlife mitigation and restoration on par with water supply, and to place fish & wildlife enhancement on par with power generation! (pg 11) (Check out the major provisions of CVPIA on pg 12)

14) State & Federal Wild & Scenic Rivers System Act pg. 13 (same link above) Federal 1968, State 1972

15) NEPA: National Environmental Policy Act: Directs Federal Agencies to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for all major federal actions that may have a significant efffect on the human environment. (pg 14 - same link)

16) Agricultural Water Suppliers Efficient Management Practices Act pg. 16 -same link above. 1990. Required that DWR establish an advisory committee to review efficient agricultural water management practices!

17) Federal Power Act: Federal licensing system administered by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and required that a license be obtained for nonfederal hydroelectric projects proposing to use navigable waters on federal lands! pg. 16