Delta Gates - Update Sept

Thanks for this info Mitch. yzer had posted info a few month's ago about this. Now we know when there will be public meetings! Also, go to this website to sign up for email updates: http://www.water.ca.gov/frankstract/involvement.cfm

1. attend a meeting if you possibly can; we need to have Delta boaters' input counted!
2. send an email with your comments at the website I listed.
3. send an email to RBOC who has the know how to lobby in Sacramento on our behalf. http://www.rboc.org/
4. Stay informed!

I am going to the Stockton meeting on Oct 9th. I hope to see lots of other boaters there too! Spread the word to all of your boating friends and attend a meeting!

Thanks, folks
 
These gates were in the planning stage long before the Delta Smelt became an issue. By the look of the DWR handout with all the pretty illustrations of the Delta Smelt, you would think the gates are all about saving this endangered fish.

DWR doesn't care about the Delta Smelt. To them, it's just another pest that gets in the way of increasing water exports. They have almost succeeded in their goal of wiping it out entirely.

Don't be fooled. The primary purpose of these gates is to improve saliniy issues so water exports can be increased. If you want these gates to be used to benefit fish and wildlife too then you must force the state and feds to do so. Otherwise, they won't do it for you.

That being said, the gates have the potential of improving Delta habitat. No one (state or federal) has the modeling capability to predict how useful these gates may be controlling salt water intrusion and benefitting species.

The gates will have the ability to fine tune water flows in the Delta. That could benefit fish and water exports or benefit one over the other. Only experimentation, research and time will provide the results.

The actual closure times for these gates could be minimal. The gates will have to be run on an experimental basis first. A few years down the road they will establish an operating plan for closures.

Everyone who uses the Delta should attend one of these meetings. I'll be going.

Some questions worth asking:

1. What are the closure schedules likely to look like?

2. What impairments do these gates present for boating?

3. Temporary or permanent engineering? Can these gates be easily pulled out if they don't work?

4. What specific environmental research science programs are involved with this program? How much money will go into these science programs and how many scientists will be hired for the job? Who will be responsible for maintaining scientific objectivity for the science programs?

Don't rely on email alone. Attend one of the meetings and send letters.
 
Meeting schedule:

Which one are folks going to?

Meetings requesting Public input:

October 6, 2008
10 a.m. - noon
Federal Building
Cafeteria Conf. Rooms
C-1001 & C-1002
2800 Cottage Way
Sacramento, CA 94236

October 7, 2008
6 - 8:30 p.m.
Memorial Building
610 St. Francis Way
Rio Vista, CA 94571

October 8, 2008
6 - 8:30 p.m.
Contra Costa Library
501 W. 18th Street
Antioch, CA 94509

October 9, 2008
6 - 8:30 p.m.
Stockton Memorial Civic
Auditorium, North Hall
525 North Center Street
Stockton, CA 95202
 
I'm going to the Stockton one on Oct 9th. Will anybody else be there????

I also sent an inquiry to RBOC and received this press release which is pertinent to this:

"Sacramento [August 13] – The boater advocacy organization Recreational Boaters of
California is encouraged by and applauds the California Department of Water Resources
statement that it will be considering important boater policies regarding access to
navigable waterways as the department develops projects for the Sacramento-San Joaquin
Delta.

Stated RBOC President Walt Kadyk: “This positive announcement by Director Lester
Snow is an important step in our efforts to ensure continued navigation by recreational
boats wherever any control structure is planned for placement across a navigable Delta
waterway.”

The Delta Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force is working to identify and evaluate alternative
measures and management practices that will be necessary to implement the Delta
Vision’s recommendations. RBOC is participating in this process and is guided by the
following policy that has been developed by its Board:

Recreational Boaters of California (RBOC) will advocate to protect the rights
of recreational boaters to assure access for continued navigation by
recreational boats on the waters of the California Delta where ever any
“control structure” (such as, but not limited to gates or barriers whether
temporary or permanent) is planned for placement across a navigable Delta
waterway. RBOC will seek assurances that as any changes are contemplated
which further alter Delta navigable waterways that alternatives are identified
and implemented to the satisfaction of RBOC that will best preserve and
sustain recreational boat passage at each location. RBOC will seek to have
operable boat locks installed as an integral design component to mitigate for
the placement of any control structure across any navigable Delta waterway.
All control structures and boat locks or other alternatives satisfactory to
RBOC for recreational boat passage are to be installed, maintained and
operated without cost or expense to recreational boaters.

Recreational Boaters of California [RBOC] is celebrating its 40th anniversary as the
nonprofit governmental advocacy organization that works to protect and enhance the
interests of the state’s recreational boaters before the legislative and executive branches of
state and local government.

RBOC was formed as a statewide organization in 1968 and from that date forward has
continued its commitment to promoting the enjoyment, protection, and responsible use
of our waterways."

The bolding is mine.......
 
I am familiar with the gates on Montezuma Slu [which never seem to be operational?]. Access is available for both large cruisers and small fish and water ski boats.

Then there are the "dams" made of rock down in the south area of Old River near Tracy. They block off the slu entirely and the only boat access is small boat access by being hauled out and back in on a trailer. This has essentially stopped almost all boating except for a few fishermen.

Is this what they plan for 3 Mile Slu?????
 
It will likely be a gate/lock that is only manned during business hours. It may be in the open position during the water "offseason".
Montezuma is this way.
 
Thanks, Phil. Can you define what you [th] mean by "offseason"? The time of the year or the water conditions which would trigger the gate/lock to be closed?
 
I believe it is a water conditions guideline, but I'm not certain.
 
I sent an email to RBOC to see if they are on top these proposed gates, etc. Today I received a very nice response from Dave Breninger, a director of RBOC with lots of information. Here is part of his email:

"RBOC’s volunteer Directors have for many years attended innumerable all-day meetings, workshops and conferences as a wide variety of state and federal governmental agencies have advanced methods for what they term “saving or fixing” the Delta ecosystem. As time has gone by in recent years, it has become more and more evident that the “fixing” of the Delta means they plan to modify many existing Delta waterways, specifying a series of others for becoming what is termed a “through-Delta” facility or conveyance system and also re-vamping and adding a peripheral canal system as well. Much of this thinking is also dependent upon placement of some gates and/or barriers across specified, adjacent waterways.

Through the years, RBOC has been very diligent and aggressive in having RBOC Directors attend meetings and speak on behalf of recreational boaters. For example, RBOC Directors Lenora Clark (resides in Discovery Bay) and Linda Bendsen (resides in Suisun City) were appointed to the Delta Vision Task Force several years ago to advocate for boaters’ rights and access to waterways as this governmental group studied “fixes” for the Delta system. In addition to this and at the same time, there have been other RBOC Directors attending a ceaseless number of Cal-Fed Bay Delta Planning meetings as well as (the more recent) Bay-Delta Conservation Plan Steering Committee and Technical meetings where boaters’ interests are advocated.

Through the years, the RBOC Board, the PICYA Board and PICYA Delegates (at monthly meetings and at Leadership and Management Conferences) have consistently received updates and reports from RBOC Directors on the many proposed activities important to boaters’ interests related to the studies and projects to modify Delta waterways.

Now, this past spring we noticed that activities were greatly increasing at the state and federal levels to pursue options for placement of gates/barriers across several Delta waterways as well as to re-configure the Delta Cross Channel Gates (located between Locke and Walnut Grove).

Accordingly, on May 23, 2008, via email communication, I sent an inquiry to the Department of Water Resources about what we knew-then about such proposed projects. And, at the RBOC June Board meeting, the Directors adopted a policy statement relevant to keeping Delta’s waterways navigable to recreational boats as state/federal authorities are advanced was “block” them. A copy of the May 23 email and the RBOC June 13 Delta policy statement is attached. The policy statement was also sent to both to Delta Vision and as well as to the Secretary of Resources (which includes the Department of Water Resources and the Boating and Waterways Department) in mid-June. These letters were identical and included the RBOC Delta policy statement. I have attached the RBOC letter date June 17 which corresponds to the reply letter date July 29 (attached) to RBOC as sent by Lester Snow, Director of the Department of Water Resources. Based upon this reply, RBOC issued the news release of August 13.

There is no doubt that the west area of the Delta is being pursued much more aggressively than the south Delta area - at this time - for placement of permanent gates/barriers. And, among the location receiving the most attention is the consideration to place such gates/barriers across 3-Mile Slough and also at the northwest area of Franks Track. Public meetings are set by the Department of Water Resources for this project in early October.

With the above very brief overview, you can be assured that RBOC is actively pursuing all avenues to meet the interests of recreational boaters as state and federal officials pursue altering the Delta waterway system."

I am relieved to see that an effective organization such as RBOC is staying on top of these issues and looking out for us boaters!

Here is a website to keep an eye on: http://www.water.ca.gov/deltainit/

just remember the source for the website!!!!
 
I'm going to the Stockton one on Oct 9th. Will anybody else be there???? Let me know so I can look for you. I can think of better ways to spend a Thursday evening, but I also feel "they" will take advantage of us boaters if we do not make our concerns known!

October 9, 2008
6 - 8:30 p.m.
Stockton Memorial Civic
Auditorium, North Hall
525 North Center Street
Stockton, CA 95202

Here's a map. Scroll down to see it:

http://www.mapquest.com/maps?city=Stockton&state=CA&address=525+North+Center&zipcode=95202
 
Liz is right. I think that your participation can bring about some more thinking about this project. From what I have seen, there are some considerations that need to be made
 
quote:
Originally posted by Flutterby

I'm going to the Stockton one on Oct 9th. Will anybody else be there????
Click to expand...

Liz,

I was originally planning on going, these issues are very important to me. But I have been having bad back pain, and will not make it.

I had looked forward to meeting you, and anyone else that might have made it.

I wish I could make it, my apologies... :(
 
Unfortunately, I didn't make it either! A family emergency demanded my attention instead. Sorry I didn't get to meet you Mitch! I hope your back gets better soon.

Did anyone attend any of these meetings last week? If so, can you please post your impressions/thoughts?
 
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