Delta Tunnels Aren’t the “Fix” California Needs

The Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta is in crisis. It is not alarmist to state that the Delta-wide ecosystem—and, by extension, San Francisco Bay is in collapse and that its damaged condition may spell doom for many important species and habitats. Scientific evidence has shown that the Delta  is starving for freshwater, with repercussions for the entire estuary.

While there are no quick or easy solutions to increase freshwater flows, what is clear is that the Governor’s current proposal, known as WaterFix, would authorize further water diversions from this already crippled system without first establishing a path to recovery and sustainability. WaterFix proposes to build large tunnels to take more freshwater from the Delta without substantially addressing the urgent environmental issues facing these river systems. The tunnels would harm the rivers, harm the Delta, and harm San Francisco Bay.