Small Populations in Jeopardy: A Delta Smelt Case Study

Social Science Research Network (SSRN) | February 21st, 2021

Under §7 of the federal Endangered Species Act, federal agencies must ensure that actions they authorize, fund, or carry out are “not likely to jeopardize the continue

Under §7 of the federal Endangered Species Act, federal agencies must ensure that actions they authorize, fund, or carry out are “not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of any endangered species or threatened species or result in the destruction or adverse modification of habitat of such species.” For species with low and declining populations, applying this standard is legally and scientifically difficult. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) faced this problem in its recent biological opinion (BiOp) analyzing impacts to threatened Delta smelt from water project operations in the California Delta. FWS concluded the “species’ recent abundance trends strongly suggest it is in the midst of demographic collapse,” and most recent surveys to locate smelt have failed to find them. Nevertheless, FWS approved agency actions that will likely increase extinction risk for Delta smelt. This Comment illustrates, through a case study of the Delta smelt BiOp, the difficulties in making ESA jeopardy determinations for species on the brink of extinction. We conclude that the myriad challenges inherent in conservation of some small and declining populations make reasoned §7 analysis difficult, bordering on impossible.

Sociodemographic predictors of PFAS exposure among a combined sample of U.S. pregnant women: an Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) public-use dataset analysis

Nature Portfolio (Springer Nature) | December 15th, 2025

Compared with White mothers, Black mothers had lower levels of PFOA (−23%; 95% CI −29%, −16%), PFOS (−9%; 95% CI −16%, −1%), and PFHxS (−23%; 95% CI −29%,

Compared with White mothers, Black mothers had lower levels of PFOA (−23%; 95% CI −29%, −16%), PFOS (−9%; 95% CI −16%, −1%), and PFHxS (−23%; 95% CI −29%, −14%) based on linear analysis, and lower detection of PFOSA, EtFOSAA, PFDoDA, and PFPeA and higher detection of PFBS and PFHxA based on logistic analysis. Compared with White mothers, Asian mothers had higher levels of PFNA ( + 26%; 95% CI 13%, 40%), PFDA ( + 60%, 95% CI 36%, 89%), and PFUnDA (+95%; 95% CI 63%, 134%) based on linear analysis and higher detection of PFPeA based on logistic regression. Greater weekly fish consumption was found to be a significant predictor of PFAS concentrations but did not attenuate associations with Asian race. Compared with non-Hispanic mothers, Hispanic mothers had lower levels of most of PFAS analytes studied. Higher levels of maternal education were associated with increased levels of most PFAS analytes.

State of California Department of Natural Resources Division of Fish and Game Thirtieth Biennial Report 1926-1928

State of California | September 30th, 1928

State of California Department of Natural Resources Fortieth Biennial Report of the Division of Fish and Game for the Years 1946-1948

State of California | July 1st, 1948

State of California Fish & Game Commission Twenty-Fourth Biennial Report for the Years 1914-1916

State of California | June 30th, 1916

State of the Estuary 2019 Update

San Francisco Estuary Partnership (SFEP) | October 22nd, 2019

The San Francisco Estuary is a large and diverse system. Hundreds of miles of coastline stretch from the wide valleys of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers to the stee

The San Francisco Estuary is a large and diverse system. Hundreds of miles of coastline stretch from the wide valleys of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers to the steep headlands of the Golden Gate, with vast agricultural fields in the Delta and urbanized shorelines in Silicon Valley and many of the region’s cities. The complexity and scale of this system means it can take years to detect and assess changes. This interim State of the Estuary Report checks in on a few indicators of health and explores where the assessment should head over time. In the four years since the 2015 State of the Estuary Report, two issues have emerged as critical to how we assess the health of the estuarine ecosystem at the heart of the Bay Area and the Delta. First, the health of the Estuary and of the people who live near it and depend on it are inextricably linked. We need a healthy Bay and Delta to protect our shorelines from sea level rise, help keep our waters clean, provide food and habitat for fish and wildlife, and give people a place to enjoy nature. We also need to think more about human communities as we assess the health of natural communities. This focus means addressing environmental injustices that are deeply embedded in our culture and patterns of development. The second critical issue to emerge is the need for a greater focus on landscape resilience—how well the Bay and the Delta are equipped to respond to change—so that people and wildlife can thrive as climate change progresses. Taking these two ideas together, this report focuses on the nexus of social and ecological resilience as we look toward the future. The first section of the Report updates indicators of ecological health that span the entire extent of the San Francisco Estuary (Bay and Delta). Recent data show continued progress along the trajectories of the past decade. Tidal marsh restoration is proceeding at a brisk pace in the Bay and gaining traction in the Delta, while urban water conservation continues to meet mandated benchmarks, even during the drought. On the other hand, flows through the Estuary and across its floodplains continue to be well below levels that could increase and restore ecosystem health. Freshwater flows are a lynchpin of ecosystem processes that sustain physical habitats, fuel the food web, and regulate water quality. Creative approaches to using and re-using fresh water for environmental purposes are needed. Long-term trend analysis shows that fish communities in the Bay are declining. This analysis scores an index of 10 attributes of a healthy fish community. The index focuses on fish in offshore areas, and may not capture benefits to fish from near-shore wetland restoration projects. Despite this slow decline, fish communities in the saltier parts of the Estuary remain in good condition, while those in the brackish and freshwater areas are in poor condition. The next section of the report discusses three emerging indicators of Estuary health, offering options for how to assess resilience in future reports. Here, for the first time, the resilience of the Estuary’s shores is evaluated through the lens of subsidence and nature-based features. Elevation relative to sea level is a basic currency that must be tracked as the Pacific Ocean rises into the Estuary. The potential for the Estuary shore to be resilient to climate change and continue to provide benefits to people is related to how much of the shore zone is nature-based. The final emerging indicator, urban green space, is a first attempt to assess how access to nature is distributed across more and less advantaged communities. More work is needed to finalize all these emerging indicators before they can be included in any future quantitative assessment of the State of the Estuary. These emerging and updated indicators will help focus efforts to restore the Estuary’s health. In addition to continuing the successful aspects of restoration and conservation that this report describes, we need more investment in creative ways to use and restore flows for environmental health, to expand and build resilient shorelines and to weave considerations of social equity more strongly into efforts to improve environmental health. - J. Letitia Grenier, Lead Scientist

State of the Salmonids: Status of California’s Emblematic Fishes 2017

University of California, Davis (UC Davis) | August 1st, 2017

California has, or had, 32 distinct kinds of salmonid fishes. They are either endemic to California or at the southern end of their ranges. Most are in serious decline:

California has, or had, 32 distinct kinds of salmonid fishes. They are either endemic to California or at the southern end of their ranges. Most are in serious decline: 45% and 74% of all salmonids will likely become extirpated from California in the next 50 and 100 years, respectively, if present trends continue. Our results suggest that California will lose more than half (52%) of its native anadromous salmonids and nearly a third (30%) of its inland taxa in just 50 years under current conditions. Climate change is a major overarching threat driving population declines throughout California and strongly affects the status of 84% of all salmonids reviewed. In addition, dams, agricultural operations, estuary alteration, non-native species, production hatcheries, and myriad other human-induced threats have contributed to declines. 81% of salmonids in California are now worse off than they were in 2007, when the previous version of this report was prepared. The changes in species status are the result of the 2012-2016 historic drought, improved data collection and review, and an improved understanding of climate change impacts. Returning these iconic species to sustainable levels requires access to productive and diverse habitats which promote the full range of life history diversity necessary to weather change. We recommend (i) protecting and investing in fully functioning watersheds such as the Smith River and Blue Creek, (ii) protecting and restoring source waters such as Sierra meadow systems, groundwater, and springs so that the impacts of climate change are reduced, (iii) restoring function and access to once productive and diverse habitats such as Central Valley floodplains, coastal lagoons, and estuaries, (iv) adopting reconciliation ecology as a basis for management in human dominated landscapes, (v) improving habitat connectivity and passage to historical spawning and rearing habitat, and (vi) improving salmonid genetic management throughout California.

State of the Salton Sea: A Science and Monitoring Meeting of Scientists for the Salton Sea

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | January 19th, 2017

The Salton Sea (Sea) is an ecosystem facing large systemic changes in the near future. Managers and stakeholders are seeking solutions to the decline of the Sea and have

The Salton Sea (Sea) is an ecosystem facing large systemic changes in the near future. Managers and stakeholders are seeking solutions to the decline of the Sea and have turned to the scientific community for answers. In response, scientists gathered in Irvine, California, to review existing science and propose scientific studies and monitoring needs required for understanding how to retain the Sea as a functional ecosystem. This document summarizes the proceedings of this gathering of approximately 50 scientists at a September 8–10, 2014, workshop on the State of the Salton Sea (SoSS).  In 1997, a similar gathering of nearly 100 scientists and others in Palm Springs, Calif., yielded a number of scientific proposals establishing a foundation for a program of integrated science investigations. The 1997 workshop results were combined with recommendations from a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Tiger Team (Shipley and others, 1999), resulting in the eventual creation of a Strategic Science Plan (SSP) for the Salton Sea (Salton Sea Science Subcommittee, 2000). The vision from the 1997 workshop of an integrated and coordinated program of scientific investigations, embraced by the SSP, was implemented through the SSC and the USGS Salton Sea Science Office (Science Office). The integrated science program, mandated by the Salton Sea Reclamation Act of 1998 (Public Law 105–372) and spelled out in the SSP, directly led to an increased scientific understanding of the Salton Sea ecosystem. The workshop concluded that “rehabilitation of the Sea is essential and requires that current ills be rectified in a manner that allows the Sea to sustain social values of importance to the human populations of the Imperial and Coachella Valleys, as well as society in general” (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1997). The 2014 SoSS workshop built upon the foundations of the 1997 workshop, with particular emphasis on changes in the condition of the Sea and its environment in the intervening years. Over the past five decades, investigations of the Salton Sea have addressed water quality, biological, recreation, and (or) economic issues at the Salton Sea (California Resources Agency, 2006, chap. 8). Many stakeholders believe that the Salton Sea has been “studied to death” (Claiborne, 1996). Although it is true that a great deal of research has been completed at the Salton Sea, much of it has been short term and focused on specific topics with little or no integration across science disciplines, time, and space. Additionally, there have been numerous attempts at resource management of the Salton Sea (previously referred to as restoration planning).  Study objectives have differed, but the main focus has generally been on methods to control the salinity and elevation of the Salton Sea (California Resources Agency, 2006, chaps. 1 and 4). Most investigations resulted in proposed plans to preserve the Salton Sea as a thriving fishery and recreational destination, and most of these plans addressed methods to preserve the “whole Sea.” More recently, however, studies have recognized that maintaining a smaller Salton Sea should be considered, owing to declining inflows to the Salton Sea (California Resources Agency, 2006).  Prior investigations considered hundreds of alternatives for managing Salton Sea salinity, nutrients, and water elevation. Some alternatives generated revenue to help pay for rehabilitating the Sea. These alternatives have been addressed in multiple studies, as summarized in chapters 1 and 4 of the “Salton Sea Ecosystem Restoration Program Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Report” (California Resources Agency, 2006).  Although there have been multiple efforts to characterize the Salton Sea ecosystem and develop management plans, it was not until 1996 that a comprehensive and integrated research needs assessment was developed (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1997). The 1997 report captured the combined thinking of scientists and managers and identified several areas of scientific research that would be required for a fuller, more complete understanding of the Salton Sea necessary to undertake any management project. The report defined these broad categories of science as physical environment, biological environment, cultural resources, pathogens and diseases, and contaminants. These categories form the basic framework for all scientific investigations at the Salton Sea. Some science categories continue to receive greater emphasis because limited funding has required the prioritization of projects.  A Salton Sea Science Subcommittee (SSC) authorized by Public Law 105–372, representing a broad range of Federal, State, local, and other stakeholder interests, endorsed a long-range Strategic Science Plan for the Salton Sea (Salton Sea Science Subcommittee, 2000). Whereas the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 1997 report established the types of science needed, the SSP further established the governing processes and expectations of how this science program should be conducted. The SSP provided the framework for scientific investigations and remains the source for identifying how scientific studies should be undertaken to better understand the Salton Sea ecosystem. Based substantially on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (1997) analysis of science needs, and in consultation with many stakeholders, the SSC authorized and funded a number of initial reconnaissance-level projects. The structure of this SoSS document follows the basic framework of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 1997 report, placing emphasis on physical environment (air and water quality), biological environment (birds, fish, invertebrates, carbon, and algae), contaminants, and socioeconomics.  The SoSS meeting in 2014 was convened to build upon previous scientific efforts and to provide guidance to managers on what experts believe are the most critical science needs going forward. Experts were invited to participate in the SoSS meeting based on a review by the organizing committee of individuals with subject area expertise and experience working at the Salton Sea or in similar environments. The SoSS organizing committee presented a synopsis of known science to the gathered scientists, who were then tasked to evaluate the completeness of that science and make recommendations for science needs to fill information gaps. Participants were challenged to think and act independently of their organizational affiliation in order to generate conceptual proposals designed to address scientific and monitoring concerns identified by the managerial meeting participants.

State Water Project and Central Valley Project Drought Contingency Plan May 1, 2021 – September 30, 2021

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | May 28th, 2021

This Drought Contingency Plan (Drought Plan) is prepared by the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) in an effo

This Drought Contingency Plan (Drought Plan) is prepared by the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation) in an effort to provide updated information about areas of potential concern given the current dry hydrology of 2021. DWR and Reclamation operate the State Water Project (SWP) and the Central Valley Project (CVP), respectively, to the 2020 Record of Decision (ROD) as analyzed in the 2019 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Biological Opinion and 2019 National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Biological Opinion on the Coordinated Long-Term Operation of the Central Valley Project and the State Water Project (Collectively the 2019 Biological Opinions), and DWR also operates the SWP to the 2020 California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) Incidental Take Permit (ITP). This updated Drought Plan will be submitted by DWR to CDFW in response to Condition 8.21 of CDFW’s ITP. Concurrently, this plan will be shared with the Water Operations Management Team (WOMT) which includes representatives from DWR, Reclamation, USFWS, NMFS, CDFW, and the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) (collectively referred to as Agencies). This report was first drafted in February and subsequently updated in March, April, and May 2021.

State Water Project Long-Term Drought Plan

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | May 21st, 2024

The 2024 State Water Project (SWP) Long-Term Drought Plan consolidates information and actions taken during past droughts along with descriptions of the actions taken by

The 2024 State Water Project (SWP) Long-Term Drought Plan consolidates information and actions taken during past droughts along with descriptions of the actions taken by the SWP to plan for and prepare for future droughts.