A North-South Get-Together

This is one of those ideas that, at first blush, sounds too good to be true. A group of Northern California county supervisors have come up with a plan that could provide a more stable water supply for Southern California and improve the environment along hundreds of miles of rivers and streams in the north. But the proposal of the Regional Council of Rural Counties has real merit and should receive strong consideration from the state and federal officials seeking to correct a panoply of water and environmental problems under the aegis of the Cal-Fed program.

The council is made up of officials from 22 counties that encompass the entire watershed of the Sacramento and Feather rivers. These streams provide water for the Central Valley agriculture industry and about one-fourth of Southern California’s domestic supplies.

If the country folk wanted, they could make a water grab through “area of origin” laws that say they can reclaim the water whenever they need it. But the officials know they do not have the political clout to pull that off.

The group proposes a plan that could enhance water supplies by as much as 1 million acre-feet a year, perhaps eliminating the need for the proposed new reservoirs that have become the most controversial part of the draft Cal-Fed plan. This would involve some form of takeover, possibly by the counties or other public agencies, of some or all of the vast hydroelectric power system of Pacific Gas & Electric Co. It would also involve pursuing a system that is friendlier to the environment and provides water to the rest of California when it is most needed. With electric power deregulation, PG&E; is seeking to sell off its hydro system, which includes 99 reservoirs on 33 major rivers and streams, 68 powerhouses and many miles of canals and tunnels.

At present, water is released primarily to meet electric power generation needs. With so-called re-operation, the releases would be scheduled to stabilize stream flow and to meet demands of water users to the south.

The second step would involve considerable investment in rehabilitating the watersheds along the streams feeding the giant federal and state projects that pump water south from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. Cal-Fed officials already are exploring the option of watershed restoration.

What do the counties get out of this? Additional water to meet their own growth needs, for one thing. The program would also enhance the appeal of the streams and reservoirs for fishing and recreation. New tourism dollars would appear throughout the region.

Some would call this a win-win situation. We call it good sense, and a chance to stabilize Southern California’s water future while also making our northern neighbors happy, for a change.