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Trump Rule Would Exclude Climate Change in Infrastructure Planning

/in , /by /The New York Times by Lisa Friedman

Federal agencies would no longer have to take climate change into account when they assess the environmental impacts of highways, pipelines and other major infrastructure projects, according to a Trump administration plan that would weaken the nation’s benchmark environmental law.

The proposed changes to the 50-year-old National Environmental Policy Act could sharply reduce obstacles to the Keystone XL oil pipeline and other fossil fuel projects that have been stymied when courts ruled that the Trump administration did not properly consider climate change when analyzing the environmental effects of the projects.

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New Federal Guidelines for Diverting California Water to Take Effect Soon

/in , /by /KSRO Sonomaby News Staff

The war over California’s water between Governor Gavin Newsom and the Trump administration is at a crossroads, with new federal guidelines loosening the restrictions on water pumping set to take effect soon. The new guidelines call for diverting more water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta to agribusiness and urban areas further south. Barbara Barrigan-Parilla with the group Restore the Delta, says despite Newsom indicating he was going to sue over the new federal guidelines, that hasn’t happened yet.

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Opinion: Newsom Can’t Have It Both Ways On California Water

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Times by Editorial Board

It’s been a month since Gov. Gavin Newsom promised to sue the Trump administration to block stepped-up federal water diversions from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta to agribusiness and urban areas further south.

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Conservation Groups Sue Feds Over California Water Projects Opinion

/in , , /by /Courthouse News Service by Carson McCullough

Several fishing and conservation organizations brought a federal complaint Monday over the harm they expect to befall an already threatened species of fish from the Trump administration’s efforts to set new rules for the operation of major California water projects.

Led by the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, the groups claim that the government’s biological assessments of the Central Valley Project and State Water Project were politically motivated and failed to consider proper environmental protection standards. They filed their suit in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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Opinion: Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Muddy Water Policy

/in , , /by /San Francisco Chronicle

The governor was for the water grab before he was against it.

Last week, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced his intention to launch the latest of dozens of legal battles between California and the Trump administration over a plan to boost water deliveries to Central Valley farmers, promising a lawsuit challenging further depletion of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta and the vulnerable wildlife that depends on it.

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Trump Plan Could Bring Growers More Water. But Will It Harm California’s Rare Salmon?

/in , /by /Cal Mattersby Alastair Bland

The Trump administration this week declared that pumping more water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to supply farms will not jeopardize the endangered salmon and smelt that live in the estuary. This clears the way for the federal government to deliver more water, possibly as soon as next year.

The decision is a big and controversial step toward providing more water for people and less for fish. But the battle, yet another in a decades-long struggle for California’s water, has only just begun.

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Editorial: California Governor Newsom Must Defend Delta

/in , , /by /San Francisco Chronicle by Chronicle Editorial Board

Gov. Gavin Newsom hasn’t flinched in fighting President Trump when it comes to loosening pollution rules in a smoggy state or punishing immigrants seeking protection. But he’s oddly noncommittal when it comes to a federal water grab that rewards thirsty farmers and Southern California cities.

Last week, federal rule makers followed White House dictates and issued looser restrictions on diversions from the state’s prime water faucet, the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.

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Trump Administration Opens California to New Oil Drilling; Possibly Bay Area, Too

/in , /by /San Francisco Chronicleby Kurtis Alexander

The Trump administration’s latest effort to dramatically boost oil and gas production is landing in California, with the Interior Department on Friday opening up 720,000 acres between the Bay Area and Fresno to potential drilling.

The move gives an immediate go-ahead to 14 drilling leases in San Benito, Monterey and Fresno counties, mostly projects near existing drill sites, projects that have been pursued for years by fossil fuel companies looking to expand.

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California Must Defend Its Environmental Protection Laws

/in , /by /Capitol Weeklyby Garry Brown

The governor of California delivered a blow to the environmental community recently by vetoing a bill that would have ensured that laws protecting water, as well as air, climate, worker safety and endangered species, could not be weakened by future federal government rollbacks.

At Orange County Coastkeeper, we are disappointed that Gov. Gavin Newsom chose to veto SB 1 because of pressure from water interests, particularly in the San Joaquin Valley.

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The Next Big California vs. Trump Fight is Over Water and Endangered Species

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Bettina Boxall

Just how far will Gov. Gavin Newsom go in his high-profile fight with the Trump administration over environmental protections?

The next few months will provide an answer, as Newsom is forced to take a stand on Trump rollbacks in a long-contested battleground — the Northern California delta that helps supply more than half the state’s population with drinking water and fills irrigation canals on millions of acres of farmland.

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