Delta Happenings – Feb. 11, 2025

Lucky Sighting at Port, Freeport Gateway, New DPC Members

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Delta Leadership Program Visits Port of Stockton

The 2025 Class of the Delta Leadership Program at the Port of Stockton on Feb. 7, 2025

STOCKTON, Calif. (Feb. 9, 2025) – The 2025 Class of the Delta Leadership Program spent Friday at the Port of Stockton interacting with state and regional water policy leaders and touring the port.

The tour included a sighting of agricultural wood waste being unloaded from big rigs, not the kind of thing most people see every day, or ever at all, with the entire trucks raised on hydraulics to let material fall out the back (video on Facebook). The port tour was led by Jeff Wingfield, himself an alumni of the first class of the DLP (2016).

The program is a joint effort by the Delta Protection Commission and the Delta Leadership Foundation to support sustained leadership development in the region.

Delta Happenings – Jan. 28, 2025

Tunnel Appeal, Angler Survey, Bridge Work, Big Break All Abilities Day

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Delta Protection Advisory Committee Openings (Deadline: March 14, 2025)

Montage of four men and a woman with text about an application deadlineWEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Jan. 28, 2025) – Applications to fill five seats on the Delta Protection Advisory Committee (DPAC) opened today. The application deadline is 5 p.m. March 14, and the Delta Protection Commission is scheduled to make the appointments May 15.

Five Committee members’ terms expire in May 2025:

  • Delta Business (Seat 1) – Arron Pellarin, Village West Marina
  • Delta General Public (Seat 1) – Anna Swenson – Clarksburg
  • Delta Flood Entity – Chris Elias
  • Delta Conservation/Habitat NGO Entity – Jim Cox, CA Striped Bass Association
  • Delta Water Exporter – Russ Ryan, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California

All are eligible to reapply.

DPAC provides recommendations to the Delta Protection Commission on diverse interests within the Delta. Committee members are expected to attend six meetings per year. DPAC typically meets on the first Tuesday of even-numbered months (February, April, June, August, October, and December), though meeting dates may occasionally shift. Meetings are held in the Delta at rotating locations.

Committee member terms are three years, so these terms will expire in 2028.

Apply for the openings here.

If you have questions, please contact Delta Protection Commission Executive Director Bruce Blodgett at bruce.blodgett@delta.ca.gov.

Delta National Heritage Area Management Plan Approved by Department of Interior

West Sacramento, Calif. (Jan. 16, 2025) The U.S. Department of Interior today approved the Management Plan for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta National Heritage Area (Delta NHA).

“The Delta Protection Commission developed a plan that promotes the continued appreciation and protection of the natural, historic, and cultural resources associated with the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta National Heritage Area, a place important to our nation’s history and heritage,” wrote Charles F. Sams III,  Director of the National Park Service.

“We commend you for completing this well-conceived plan and for involving the interested Tribes, citizens, and organizations in the five counties of the Delta region.”

The Delta NHA, created by Congress in 2019 (PDF), is California’s first and only National Heritage Area. The Delta Protection Commission, a California state agency, was designated the local coordinating entity for the Delta NHA.

“We are grateful to Interior for its approval,” said DPC Executive Director Bruce Blodgett. “The Management Plan is critical for the success of the NHA, because it serves as a guide for the DPC and the NHA partnership network going forward.”

Diane Burgis, Chair of the Delta Protection Commission, also lauded Interior’s action. “The Delta is precious and fragile,” she said. “It is a national treasure, worthy of recognition, celebration, and protection. The approval of the Management Plan acknowledges that and assures us that we are on the right path.”

The NHA

The NHA’s boundary extends from Sacramento to Stockton to Vallejo with the junction of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers at its heart (see map below).

The Management Plan outlines five broad themes that will be celebrated as implementation moves forward:

  1. Water: Precious Lifeblood for the Delta and California – The Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta is California’s oasis, located at the center of the state’s water challenges and opportunities, and a water passage between the Pacific Ocean and inland California.
  2. The Beating Heart of Natural California – The Delta lies at the center of California’s biological and physical environment, supporting numerous biologically diverse species and connecting California’s freshwater resources to the Pacific Ocean.
  3. Abundance, Diversity, Resistance, and Survival – Native Americans in the Delta – Native Americans thrived in the Delta prior to European settlement, developing complex and diverse societies, deeply rooted in the landscape, that have endured despite existential threats such as disease and genocide.
  4. The Delta Becomes California’s Cornucopia – Through capital, human labor, and technology, the Delta became one of the nation’s most productive agricultural regions, with the ability to grow a large variety of crops, farmed by large and small operations.
  5. Cultural Influences of the Delta – Enduring Legacies of American, Asian, European, and Latin American Immigrants: Bringing their own ambition and skills to the Delta, cultural and ethnic communities from Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the United States shaped the region’s agriculture and industry during the late 19th Century and early 20th Century and continue to leave an indelible imprint on the landscape.

Next Steps

The Management Plan will go to the Commission for final approval in March.

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Media contact: Bruce Blodgett, Executive Director, Delta Protection Commission, (530) 650-6811 or bruce.blodgett@delta.ca.gov.

The Management Plan:

 

Map of Delta National Heritage Area

Delta Happenings – Jan. 14, 2025

Delta Leaders, Clarksburg Trail, Ferryboat Master, Boater ID Card

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2025 Delta Leadership Program Kicks Off

A group of men and women standing in front of a mural posing for the camera
The 2025 Class of the Delta Leadership Program. Back row, L-R: Gerry Goodie Jr., Gregg McMillon, Ashley Seufzer, Megan Harrison, Amber McDowell, Ahmad Majid, Jack Cronin, Lea Emmons II, Lacy Berry, Misty Kaltreider, Heather Swinney, and Gerald Strootman. Front row, L-R: Josh McMillon, Kathleen Schaefer, Esther Mburu, Beatriz Portillo, Yuen Lenh, Kirsten Pringle, and LeighAnn Davis.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Jan. 10, 2025) – Nineteen emerging Delta leaders convened Friday at the Nature Conservancy in Sacramento for the kickoff of the 2025 Delta Leadership Program.

Run by the Delta Protection Commission and the Delta Leadership Foundation, the program is designed to build and support leadership within the Delta community. “We’re making you stronger leaders so the Delta is stronger,” Leadership Foundation President Mike Campbell told the group.

The group will gather four more times between now and April for daylong seminars that will provide deep dives into the Delta’s ecology, economy, heritage, regulatory framework, and more. Seminars will also hone participants’ leadership skills and serve as workshops for team projects that will be presented to the Delta Protection Commission on May 15.

This year’s participants are (a text-only list follows the photo gallery):

Lacy Berry (Clarksburg) – Community Volunteer, Town of Clarksburg

Jack Cronin (Rio Vista) – Assistant Engineer, Metropolitan Water District

LeighAnn Davis (Brentwood) – Executive Director, Contra Costa Co. Historical Society

Lea Emmons II (Tracy) – Water Operations Superintendent, City of Tracy

Gerry Goodie Jr. (Walnut Grove) – Manager/Owner, Wimpy’s Marina

Megan Harrison (Livermore) – District Planner, California Department of Parks and Recreation

Misty Kaltreider (Fairfield) – Water & Natural Resources Manager, County of Solano

Yuen Lenh (Sacramento) – Water Rights Engineer, MBK Engineers

Ahmad Majid (Stockton) – Watershed Protection Advocate, Stockton-area community organizations

Esther Mburu (Stockton) – Carbon Policy Analyst, Restore the Delta

Amber McDowell (Walnut Grove) – Executive Director, Sacramento County Farm Bureau

Gregg McMillon (Sacramento) – Water Resources Engineer, California Department of Water Resources

Josh McMillon (Walnut Grove) – Community Volunteer, Town of Walnut Grove

Beatriz Portillo (Martinez) – Senior Emergency Planning Coordinator, Contra Costa County Office of Emergency Services

Kirsten Pringle (Sacramento) – Project Manager, MBK Engineers

Kathleen Schaefer (San Anselmo) – Clerk, Delta Region Geologic Hazard Abatement District

Ashley Seufzer (Sacramento) – Program Manager, Audubon California

Gerald Strootman (Acampo) – Ag and Commercial Lender, F&M Bank

Heather Swinney (Sacramento) – Deputy Project Leader, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, ex officio member of the Delta Protection Advisory Committee

Delta Heritage Courier – January/February 2025

Yolo Bypass History, Port Costa, NHA Committee

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Montage: barn in hills, newsletter heading, Latin dancer, newspaper article screen shot, Delta NHA logoNEWS

  • Historical Landscape of Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area HQ
  • Port Costa Featured on SFGate
  • Delta NHA Advisory Committee Meets
  • Walnut Grove Then & Now: a Storymap
  • Public Comment Period Open for Port Chicago Plan
  • NHA Plays Role in Disaster Recovery

ALSO: AWARDS, GRANTS, MUSEUMS, CLASSES/WEBINARS, and EVENTS

DPC Letter: Ecosystem Rulemaking

The Delta Protection Commission reviews hundreds of local and regional land use projects in the Primary and Secondary zones of the Delta for consistency with the Land Use and Resource Management Plan (PDF) and submits comment letters to ensure projects stay on track with the Plan. Under state law (Public Resources Code Sections 29770-29772), any action taken by a local government or agency in the Primary Zone that is inconsistent with the Plan can be appealed to the Commission. Appeals may be brought by any interested person, or by the Commission itself. Learn more here.


January 7, 2025

Eva Bush, Environmental Program Manager
Delta Stewardship Council
715 P Street, 15-300
Sacramento, CA 95814

Transmitted electronically via email

Dear Ms. Bush,

I am providing comments on the proposed rulemaking the Delta Stewardship Council (Council) is conducting to amend their regulations that govern certifications of consistency with the Delta Plan. The following comments represent my views and the views of my staff and have not been formally endorsed by the Delta Protection Commission itself.

The Delta Protection Commission (Commission) is a California state agency created by the Delta Protection Act of 1992, which declared “the Delta is a natural resource of statewide, national, and international significance, containing irreplaceable resources, and it is the policy of the state to recognize, preserve and protect those resources of the Delta for the use and enjoyment of current and future generations” (California Public Resources Code (PRC) Section 29701). My comments reflect the role of our agency in pursuing that policy directive.

Concerns Regarding Setback Levees

The existing regulations prioritize the consideration of setback levees to increase floodplains and riparian habitat (Cal. Code Regs., Title 23, Section 5008). The proposed change in the rulemaking goes further than the existing regulatory text. The amended regulation for the same section reads as follows: “A certification of consistency for a project subject to this section that is located in the setback levee evaluation areas depicted in Appendix 8A shall evaluate, and the levee project where feasible shall incorporate, alternatives that would increase floodplains and riparian habitats” (emphasis added).

We are concerned with this regulation for a variety of reasons. First, considered in the context of the goal of increasing floodplain and riparian habitat, this requirement will diminish landside agriculture, where it is implemented. Preservation of agriculture is a co-equal goal of the Delta Reform Act (Water Code Section 85020(b)). Preservation of agriculture is also a priority under the Delta Protection Act (PRC Section 28702(b)). To the extent that setback levees will encroach on agricultural land uses and diminish that acreage, this policy will result in the reduction of agricultural land use. We believe this is inconsistent with the policy goal of protection of agriculture while also restoring habitat adopted by the State of California. Agriculture is an important driver of the Delta economy, and the Delta Protection Act also directs the Delta Protection Commission to work to enhance the sustainability of that economy (PRC Section 29759). In addition, the reduction of agricultural land use will diminish the revenues generated from agriculture. This has several associated consequences. First, it reduces the revenues available to local landowners that are subject to special benefit assessments required by reclamation districts and also reduces the tax base of the region. This means the reduction in acreage by necessity diminishes funds available for levee maintenance and other public services that depend on taxes. Second, the reduction in agricultural land use has an adverse impact on the sustainability of the Delta economy. A dollar of agricultural crop revenue generates three to five times greater regional income than other leading revenue sources such as recreation or tourism (Delta Protection Commission 2012:274). Thus, the proposed regulation would contribute to the incremental loss of agricultural land and the reduction of economic sustainability in the Delta.

In stating that the project “where feasible shall incorporate” alternatives using setback levees, the Council may be imposing a substantive duty on covered actions subject to this section to either use setback levees or demonstrate infeasibilty. Levee maintenance and upgrade work is already a highly regulated activity that requires a significant level of expenditure for permitting and environmental review above and beyond capital costs that go directly to physical improvements. A typical levee project in the Delta may be subject to other alternatives analysis requirements such as the duty to consider alternatives under the California Environmental Quality Act (Cal. Code Regs., Title 14, Section 15126.6). In addition, where an individual permit is needed for fill of Waters of the United States, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers also conducts a rigorous screening of alternatives (40 C.F.R. Section 230.10). These processes are, in turn, only a small fraction of the total regulatory burden required for levee maintenance or upgrade projects. The levee maintaining agency thus faces a formidable burden of compliance with a range of laws that may require different and conflicting substantive decisions. Because levee work is typically funded in large part via special benefit assessments imposed by reclamation districts, the cost of the additional regulatory burden of compliance will primarily be borne by local landowners subject to those assessments. Finally, this policy may require reclamation districts or other levee maintaining agencies to acquire relatively expensive landside real estate to accommodate a shift in the levee footprint to the landside to comply with your regulations.

Concerns Regarding Urban Levee Projects

The proposed rulemaking also amends the requirements for certain urban levees (Cal. Code Regs., Title 23, Section 5008). The amended text reads “a certification of consistency for a project subject to this section that is an urban levee improvement project in the cities of Sacramento or West Sacramento shall evaluate alternatives that would modify all or a portion of the original levee prism to physically expand the width of the channel.” For similar reasons, we are concerned with the imposition of additional layers of regulation upon levee maintenance. The regulatory burden faced by levee maintaining agencies is already complex and formidable. In addition, levee projects that increase channel width may require acquisition of relatively expensive landside real estate that imposes additional costs beyond capital expenditures that go directly to the primary goal of providing flood protection.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment. We look forward to providing future input.

Sincerely,

Bruce Blodgett,

Executive Director

CC:   Diane Burgis, Chair

Commissioners

References Cited

Delta Protection Commission. Economic Sustainability Plan for the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. 2012. West Sacramento, California.

Delta Happenings – Dec. 31, 2024

NHA Signs Go Up, Sherman Island Levee Erosion, Antioch Bridge Toll Increase

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