San Francisco Bay

Central Valley Project Documents, Part One, Authorizing Documents

U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) | March 27th, 1956

Central Valley Project Improvement Act Implementation Plan For Fish Programs

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) | July 20th, 2015

The purpose of this Plan is to describe the approach for prioritizing and implementing the anadromous fish-related provisions under the CVPIA over the next 5-10 years. Th

The purpose of this Plan is to describe the approach for prioritizing and implementing the anadromous fish-related provisions under the CVPIA over the next 5-10 years. This Plan will build upon the Final Restoration Plan (FRP, USFWS 2001) to integrate a decision-making framework across all programs with the goal of making all reasonable efforts to at least double natural production of anadromous fish in California’s Central Valley on a long-term, sustainable basis. The Plan develops an annual process for setting priorities and funding projects across CVPIA fish-related provisions and watersheds in the Central Valley. The new process uses an Adaptive Resource Management (ARM) approach with support from Decision-Support Models (DSMs) to prioritize implementation of management actions that have the highest probability of achieving biological objectives for wild populations of native anadromous fish. The ARM approach will also guide plans for monitoring and research by synthesizing existing monitoring data, annually updating DSMs using new information, and estimating the value of new information to the decision making process.

Central Valley Project Operations, Total Water Management Study, Central Valley Basin, California

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) | January 1st, 1975

Central Valley Project: Issues and Legislation

Congressional Research Service (CRS) | November 25th, 2019

Central Valley Project: Issues and Legislation

Congressional Research Service (CRS) | June 23rd, 2021

The Central Valley Project (CVP), a federal water project owned and operated by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), is one of the world’s largest water supply

The Central Valley Project (CVP), a federal water project owned and operated by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), is one of the world’s largest water supply projects. The CVP covers approximately 400 miles in California, from Redding to Bakersfield, and draws from two large river basins: the Sacramento and the San Joaquin. It is composed of 20 dams and reservoirs and numerous pieces of water storage and conveyance infrastructure. In an average year, the CVP delivers more than 7 million acre-feet of water to support irrigated agriculture, municipalities, and fish and wildlife needs, among other purposes. About 75% of CVP water is used for agricultural irrigation, including 7 of California’s top 10 agricultural counties. The CVP is operated jointly with the State Water Project (SWP), which provides much of its water to municipal users in Southern California. CVP water is delivered to users that have contracts with Reclamation, which is part of the Department of the Interior. These contractors receive varying levels of priority for water deliveries based on several factors, including hydrology, water rights, prior agreements with Reclamation, and regulatory requirements. The Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers’ confluence with the San Francisco Bay (Bay-Delta or Delta) is a hub for CVP water deliveries; many CVP contractors south of the Delta receive water that is “exported” from north of the Delta. Development of the CVP resulted in significant changes to the area’s natural hydrology. However, construction of most CVP facilities predated major federal natural resources and environmental protection laws. Much of the current debate related to the CVP revolves around how to deal with changes to the hydrologic system that were not significantly mitigated for when the project was constructed. Dry conditions since the onset of these requirements—including a prolonged drought from 2012 to 2016 and dry conditions in 2020 and 2021—have once again led to curtailment of water supplies and increased the stakes of these debates. Various state and federal proposals are currently under consideration and have generated controversy for their potential to affect CVP operations and allocations. In late 2018, the State of California finalized revisions to its Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan that would require that more flows from the San Joaquin and Sacramento Rivers reach the Bay-Delta for water quality and fish and wildlife enhancement (i.e., reduced water supplies for other users). “Voluntary agreements” that might replace some or all of these requirements are currently being negotiated but have yet to be finalized. Concurrently, the Trump Administration attempted to increase CVP water supplies for users and made changes to long-term operations of the CVP in a 2019 biological opinion created under the Endangered Species Act (ESA; 87 Stat. 884. 16 U.S.C. §§1531-1544). California and environmental nongovernmental organizations have opposed these efforts and filed lawsuits to prevent implementation of the changes. The court issued a preliminary injunction on May 11, 2020, temporarily prohibiting Reclamation from implementing the operational changes through May 31, 2020; on June 24, 2020, the court declined to extend the preliminary injunction further. Efforts to add or supplement CVP storage and conveyance also are being considered and are under study by federal and state entities. Congress has engaged in CVP issues through oversight and legislation, most recently in the form of provisions enacted under the 2016 Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation (WIIN Act; P.L. 114-322). Among other things, this act authorized changes to CVP operations that attempt to provide increased water supplies for agricultural and municipal contractors under certain circumstances. In the same legislation, Congress also authorized funding for new water storage projects that are expected to benefit CVP operations. In the 117th Congress, legislators may consider bills and conduct oversight on efforts to increase CVP water exports compared to current baselines. Some in Congress have also weighed in on disagreements between state and federal project operators and the status of coordinated operations of the CVP and SWP. Congress is also considering whether to approve funding for new water storage projects and may consider legislation to extend or amend CVP authorities. R45342 June 3, 2021 Charles V. Stern Specialist in Natural Resources Policy Pervaze A. Sheikh Specialist in Natural Resources

Central Valley Project: Issues and Legislation

Congressional Research Service (CRS) | March 8th, 2022

The Central Valley Project (CVP), a federal water project owned and operated by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), is one of the world’s largest water supply

The Central Valley Project (CVP), a federal water project owned and operated by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), is one of the world’s largest water supply projects. The CVP covers approximately 400 miles in California, from Redding to Bakersfield, and draws from two large river basins: the Sacramento and the San Joaquin. It is composed of 20 dams and reservoirs and numerous pieces of water storage and conveyance infrastructure. In an average year, the CVP delivers more than 7 million acre-feet of water to support irrigated agriculture, municipalities, and fish and wildlife needs, among other purposes. About 75% of CVP water is used for agricultural irrigation, including 7 of California’s top 10 agricultural counties. The CVP is operated jointly with the State Water Project (SWP), which provides much of its water to municipal users in Southern California.

Challenges Facing the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta: Complex, Chaotic, or Simply Cantankerous?

Delta Stewardship Council (Delta Council) | April 9th, 2015

In 2014, the California Natural Resources Agency and the U.S. Department of the Interior asked the authors of this paper, as four former leaders of The Delta Science Prog

In 2014, the California Natural Resources Agency and the U.S. Department of the Interior asked the authors of this paper, as four former leaders of The Delta Science Program, to summarize the challenges faced by water supply and ecological resource managers in this critically important region of Northern California. They concluded that the challenges are so complex as to meet the definition of a “wicked” problem. Such problems can’t be ignored, defy straightforward characterization, and have no simple solutions. Yet they must be actively managed to maximize beneficial and minimize adverse outcomes. In this context, the following paper calls for Delta management to become more nimble and better coordinated.

Changes in abundance and distribution of native and alien fishes of Suisun Marsh

American Fisheries Society (AFS) | July 29th, 1994

Overall fish abundance, abundance of introduced, native, and seasonal fish groups, and species diversity declined over a 14‐year period in Suisun Marsh, a portion of th

Overall fish abundance, abundance of introduced, native, and seasonal fish groups, and species diversity declined over a 14‐year period in Suisun Marsh, a portion of the San Francisco Bay estuary, and were associated with decreases in freshwater outflow and increases in salinity. Fish groups showed different patterns of abundance; large fluctuations in introduced and seasonal fish groups contrasted with a steady decline in native fish. Native species were found more often in small, dead‐end sloughs, seasonal species were found in larger sloughs, and introduced species were found in both habitats. Fish assemblage structure was less predictable than in an earlier (and shorter) study of the same community. Mixed groups of native and introduced species with similar freshwater and seasonal needs reflected effects of drought and increasing water diversions from the estuary. Chameleon goby Tridentiger trigonocephalus and yellowfin goby Acanthogobius flavimanus, two introduced species, fluctuated greatly in abundance in recent years, whereas other species declined steadily. Changes in fish abundance in the marsh reflect estuary‐wide changes and suggest that environmental disturbances coupled with introduced species are altering fish communities and hastening native fish declines.

Changes in the productivity of US West Coast fish stocks

Fisheries Research (Elsevier) | April 21st, 2023

The California Current ecosystem is highly dynamic at interannual to interdecadal time scales. Variability has been documented in pelagic and other fish species, but clim

The California Current ecosystem is highly dynamic at interannual to interdecadal time scales. Variability has been documented in pelagic and other fish species, but climate change may be altering the historical models of variation. This study investigates changes in productivity of 31 fish stocks in the California Current ecosystem. Productivity was measured from recent stock assessments, as the per-capita recruitment rate, estimated with a dynamic stock-recruitment model. Contrary to expectations, the dynamic stock-recruitment model fit better than the corresponding stationary model for only seven of the 31 stocks. There was little evidence of linear drift in productivity that might be expected to result from climate change. Climate variables improved forecast accuracy for a few stocks, but there was no common climate signal in productivity. One explanation of these results is that most of the west coast stocks are above their biomass levels for maximum sustainable yield, making them less susceptible to environmental variation. On the other hand, the dynamic recruitment models improved short-term forecasts for all stocks, which may be useful for quota setting. Finally, results for the subset of stocks with dynamic recruitment models could be used to establish dynamic biological reference points.

Changing Channels: Regional Information for Developing Multi-benefit Flood Control Channels at the Bay Interface

San Francisco Estuary Institute (SFEI) | May 26th, 2017

Over the past 200 years, many of the channels that drain to San Francisco Bay have been modified for land reclamation and flood management. The local agencies that overse

Over the past 200 years, many of the channels that drain to San Francisco Bay have been modified for land reclamation and flood management. The local agencies that oversee these channels are seeking new management approaches that provide multiple benefits and promote landscape resilience. This includes channel redesign to improve natural sediment transport to downstream bayland habitats and beneficial re-use of dredged sediment for building and sustaining baylands as sea level continues to rise under a changing climate. Flood Control 2.0 is a regional project that was created to help develop innovative approaches for integrating habitat improvement and resilience into flood risk management at the Bay interface. Through a series of technical, economic, and regulatory analyses, the project addresses some of the major elements associated with multi-benefit channel design and management at the Bay interface and provides critical information that can be used by the management and restoration communities to develop long-term solutions that benefit people and wildlife. This Flood Control 2.0 report provides a regional analysis of morphologic change and sediment dynamics in flood control channels at the Bay interface, and multi-benefit management concepts aimed at bringing habitat restoration into flood risk management. The findings presented here are built on a synthesis of historical and contemporary data that included input from Flood Control 2.0 project scientists, project partners, and science advisors. The results and recommendations, summarized below, will help operationalize many of the recommendations put forth in the Baylands Ecosystem Habitat Goals Science Update (Goals Project 2015) and support better alignment of management and restoration communities on multi-benefit bayland management approaches.