Federal officials have unveiled plans to change water deliveries to agriculture operations in California, and opponents say the move could divert billions of gallons of water annually to serve farming needs while putting salmon, sturgeon, and other imperiled species at risk.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service on Oct. 21 released assessments to revise operations of the Central Valley Project, which provides water to nearly 75% of the state’s irrigated lands through a complex system of dams, reservoirs, canals, and aqueducts.
The federal Central Valley Protect, overseen by the Bureau of Reclamation, and California’s State ...