California Attorney General Xavier Becerra sued President Donald Trump’s administration in federal court in San Francisco Thursday to challenge biological reports justifying increased water diversions from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta to Central California.
Becerra filed the lawsuit on the day after Trump at a ceremony in Bakersfield signed a presidential memorandum supporting the development and delivery of more water supplies in the Central Valley.
The memorandum and a related operations plan by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation rely on biological opinions in which two federal agencies concluded that increased water diversion from the delta would not harm three
endangered or threatened fish species: the Delta smelt, Chinook salmon and Central Valley steelhead trout.
Becerra filed the suit on behalf of the California Natural Resources Agency, the California Environmental Protection Agency and the people of California.
It claims the biological opinions issued last year by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service “run counter to the scientific evidence that was before the agencies” and failed
to analyze the potential harm to the species.
The lawsuit asks for court orders setting aside the biological opinions and prohibiting the administration from taking any action in reliance on the opinions until a new environmental analysis is completed.
Becerra said in a statement, “California won’t silently spectate as the Trump Administration adopts scientifically challenged biological opinions that push species to extinction and harm our natural resources and waterways.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom said, “Our goal continues to be to realize enforceable voluntary agreements that provide the best immediate protection for species, reliable and safe drinking water, and dependable water sources
for our farmers for economic prosperity.”
In a news release announcing Trump’s action Wednesday, U.S. Interior Secretary David Bernhardt said, “President Trump gave the Department of the Interior and the Department of Commerce clear direction to move forward and provide water to California’s communities and farms.
“This action furthers President Trump’s commitment to America’s hardworking farmers who need water to feed our nation,” Bernhardt said.
43 comments
Beccera your a joke and I’m pretty sure all the farmers and their families that need that water are not going to vote for your party. This is the ultimate hippie move/petulant child defiant moment of this guy who only got there because of demographic change because the Democrats wanted votes and power no wonder the roads don’t get repaired we have people like this running the state stopping actual progress for three fish that you know will be fine it’s not like you can’t restock fish Pal
Bill, you got that right, The democrat’s knowledge of farming is limited to first grade picture books – or maybe Mr. Greenjeans..
The problem with trump and science is that empirical data gets in the way.
He said he’s filing on behalf of the people in California. Well, I’m a California native and he’s certainly not filing this on MY behalf. He’s just another lying lib needing to get involved in the anti-Trump movement.
Well, my family are Californian and we support this filing so he’s doing it on our behalf. Sorry if we don’t want to destroy the environment just so some farmers can grow some almonds. Keep diverting more and more water to the central valley and you’ll end up hurting delta farmers as the salinity goes up with the water supply. Not to mention hurting wildlife including fish.
How about farmers start being more efficient with their water use and plant crops that aren’t water intensive?
Ah, Pyrrhus. Let’s see how loud you holler when the farmers pack up and leave. You’ll holler loudest.
We not only have a shortage of water, but of workers, to bring these crops to us. A lawsuit now? Really?
Can you say Pyrrhic Victory? (couldn’t resist)
Pyrrhus: You probably need a little more education on the water issue. Let’s not forget it’s the Democrats who are trying to build a couple of tunnels to divert tons of water to Southern California! What about that! That will have way more impact on the wildlife then diverting a little bit more water to Central and Southern California farmers. Lest you forget, the canals are already carrying water down to Southern California for use by the cities down there.
Mr. Pyrrhus sounds a little bit like Mr. Bloomberg does, thinking he knows more about farming than actual farmers do.
You do realize that many of these farmers earn degrees in their respective fields of study? So when they need water to manage their irrigation systems we probably should pay more attention.
I will use the Democrats term, they are obstructing the Feds by going to court.
Unfortunately there is only so much water to go around. Everyone has an opinion on how it should be distributed. The Farmers want more for their crops and water thirsty nut groves. The environmentalists want to destroy the dams and keep more in the rivers and deltas to save the fish and yellow legged frogs. The people want more to take long showers and water their lawns and so on and so on. It’s a limited resource in the best of years and a very rare resource in drought years. Since the State can’t limit the population needs or find a way to limit agricultural needs or appease the environmentalists then what we need is a method to provide more water to this dry State. Maybe spend the money to build a pipeline from the Pacific Northwest or Midwest where they consistently have too much water instead of building the high speed train to nowhere.
MoJo… maybe we could use the money they’re funneling into the train to nowhere boondoggle and build more dams to capture the water rather than letting it just flow out to the ocean!
@MoJo
Your post is the first reasonable proposal I have read. Every year when I read about the floods in the midwest I wonder why the dry states don’t band together and build a pipeline. Surely the engineering sector can come up with bold ideas, especially in this time of global warming.
“Our scientists disagree with your scientists, so we’re suing.” Got it.
Silly Rollo. Trump doesn’t have actual scientists. The word has three syllables.
Trump uses no scientists. He has people who told him and he’s heard from others.
@Jay – You’ve spent way too much time on the mountain. Time to come down and see how the real world lives.
Right Jay, because California bureaucrats always have much better sources than federal bureaucrats. They’re all the same. If it was Obama’s name on the federal memorandum you’d be all for it.
After California dumps millions of dollars for free healthcare for non tax payers, instead of building much needed water storage and infrastructure.
CAG wants everyone to starve. My guess he is waiting for valley real estate prices to go down so he and his backers can buy it up. You never know about politicians.
For all of you who oppose giving water to farmers, I hope you like the taste of Delta Smelt, because that’s going to be the only thing left to eat in this state.
How many pounds of almonds do you eat? They’re growing crops for export not for us. It would be different if 90% of what they grew stayed here.
You really think the only thing California farmers grow is almonds? Most of those are in Northern California, anyway.
Ozzie,youre a brit,you like to complain,but you would never pay the cost for almonds,I was raised by brits,they do what you do.Make suggestions that they themselves would never let themselves afford
James if you only made sense some of the time.
Ozzie almonds are way to expensive for you to buy cor blimey its “too dear”
Agriculture in California currently gets around 85% of the states developed water. Industry gets roughly eight and residential around seven. Agriculture gets a ridiculous amount of water in proportion to what they actually contribute contribute to the economy. Also it’s very highly subsidized by us the taxpayers and more frequently as the Family Farms disappear they are owned by large agriculture business. We are subsidizing these large corporations such as Archer Daniel Midland. Yes the Democrats want to save some frogs but more importantly the salmon Fisheries which employ potentially thousands of people, many small mom-and-pop operations that service recreational and Commercial Fishing. Dams are a short-term solution as they silt up and eventually become worthless. A massive waste of water is caused by the large reservoirs that evaporate millions of gallons daily into the atmosphere and the Antiquated conveyance system of open of uncovered Earthen ditches worth as much as half the water is lost due to seepage and evaporation. There’s plenty of water to go around California, Agriculture is taking the Lion’s Share of it and not using it very well.
When you grow cotton and almonds you need more water than any other crop. Change crops and they would have plenty of water.
Numbers matter,
🎯
And another of Trump’s campaign “promises” is that if anything goes wrong for the farmers because of his international flailing, they will get Federal subsidies anyway.
Within the past 12 months, the soy-farming conglomerates heard the first rumor of tariff increases to certain Asian countries, so the farmers vindictively plowed their soy crop under! i.e. “Noooooo….. we won’t lower the prices to the US markets and therefore adher to the supply-and-demand policies which used to help our own citizens.”
Obviously Ozzie and plenty of other liberals know nothing about farming.
Your food doesn’t magically appear in the cans and drop onto the store shelves. You libs wouldn’t last a week working on a farm….
Ozzie you don’t just “change crops”when its worked for hundreds of years,just to adapt to water theft.You are full of radical never going to happen child like suggestion..change crops????to what?and whats it worth per year,and how to you change billions of acres growing the same thing and re seed to a completely other crop?You don’t…..you need fresh farm land…this is California 1 acre 1 million dollars.,what you suggest is making food cost ten times as much and also everyone eating something else….,why do you bother?If you only made sense……….
wow the fish ….no one eats fish from the delta ….
the dems polluted that place years ago
I really like the baby Pelosi newscum chant of blah blah im better than you blah blah I know more than you balh blah oh yes I am a slave to Pelosi but he best one as my career depended on it ….blah blah vote dem or else we will sick Hillary on you …blah blah I am newscum hear me hiss
I mean what else do you get from his quote ….
“Our goal (continues to be) (to realize enforceable voluntary agreements)
(that provide the best immediate) protection for species, reliable and safe drinking water, and dependable water sources
for our farmers for economic prosperity.”
what I see is a pouting newscum saying the south has not administered enough bribes ….errrr donations to Pelosi or newscum or rainbow warriors for any water to be sent VOLUNTARILY.
as he is the king of the north and the rest of the state had better bow to his ice queen
where are the new repaired roads …oh that’s right your diverting that money to high priced union huge kickback highway projects to increase the flow of illegals and drugs
keep voting in the family that always works out right
by the way we need more taxes for road repair
how about a age tax your taxed 2% based on each years earnings for that year …..and double on leap years ….and thrice on odd years
that sound about right newpelosiscum
I agree mojo they should at the very least be piping water in from the Midwest where it does flood a lot. This water problem has been going on in the state for quite some time I blame both parties especially the left but both. Amongst my own family we wonder why they don’t just build another dam? Especially after the Oroville dam leaking problem. It’s like the people in charge in the state are so inept they can’t get anything done and everything they do seems to cost us more money or over budget. Meanwhile they Galavant about acting like they’re so great. And whoever said it above me is correct this is some sort of anti-trump thing that’s been going on here it’s really petty I think these guys need to stop it and work with the president this is an important issue water is life.
Did you consider the fact that there are no more “main stem” dam sites left? Are mad because the “Dems” don’t make more rivers and valleys to put dams in? This great President of yours wants to give more water to the almond farmers so they can sell more almonds to China. Does that help anyone except Devin Nune’s friends? And he’s not even a farmer in this state anymore. Moved his farm to Iowa where he can more easily screw over his illegal workers to keep the dairy business going.
This lame Attorney General is not doing it because of the species of fish that might be endangered, but probably won’t be, they’re simply doing it because it’s President Trump!
I agree, Becerra, you are a joke. Just keep wasting the taxpayers $’s that you along with your cronies is endless. Do something worthwhile for a change. Feel free to relay this message to Newsom and by the way, while you are at it repeal #47 so law enforcement can do their jobs again.
If Trump is FOR it, it MUST be bad. His record of signing orders that are detrimental to the environment is long.
And that is the AXIS of liberal thinking,thank you for reminding us all,that “if Trump is for it,it must be bad”.You listened well in training.Now what is it’s practical purpose or application?
maga DUMP TRUMP!!!!!!!!
Water is a proxy issue. This is and always has been about politics.
There ARE small family farms, but most of the Ag in California and the US is corporate. I know because my family farmed for generations until corporate economic efficiencies of scale made family farming unsustainable.
This is another payoff by the Trump administration in order to gain corporate campaign donations.
The corruption of this administration at our expense continues.
Trump’s water plans also help his buddy Nunes. The one who lied his way through the impeachment. Now he’s getting his payback.
Arrogant leaders of our beloved state continue to ignore the needs of farmers in the central valley who know a little more about farming and agriculture than they do.
But please continue to support ignorant morons like Bloomberg who claims that he could teach anyone how to plant crops. So sad that these elected degenerates continue to turn their backs on farmers.
I am sure that the farmers running their business in the central valley know more about irrigation and water needs than Xavier does.
So this fraud AG is suing our president because he actually listens to the needs of farmers? Makes total sense.
At least Xavier will be able to say that he tried to sue Trump back in 2020 when he tries (and fails) to get the Dems nomination in 2024.
You can ask Bloomberg how well he did by challenging farmers about crop growing back in 2016. But that is Bloomberg. Challenging everybody in his 5 inch platform shoes.
Outstanding, did exactly what FEDs wanted them to.
Now issue can work it’s way up thru the court system and perhaps result in a Supreme Court decision where CA doesn’t win.
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