Nation’s largest irrigation district announces support of Delta Conveyance Project fast-track

The IID Board of Directors adopted a resolution this week in support of the project. This endorsement is notable as the district receives no water from the State Water Project, but underscores the importance of preparing for water scarcity and acknowledging that improving the state’s water systems benefits all users.

This is why the project has received widespread support, including from water users and stakeholders from throughout the state. 

A project Californians depend on

No infrastructure is more fundamental to California’s water supply and economic success than the State Water Project, which is operated by the Department of Water Resources and captures, moves, and stores water used by 27 million people and 750,000 acres of farmland. Built starting in the 1960s, the SWP stretches from Oroville to Riverside and its canals, hydroelectric generators, and pumping plants move water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to 29 public water agencies, largely based in the South Bay, Central Coast, South Coast, Inland Empire, and Kern County. The local public water agencies cover the costs of operating the SWP. 

Preparing California’s water infrastructure 

Over the last few decades, the California climate has warmed, with the effects felt strongly in water resources. The state has already experienced a marked increase in precipitation variability, with significant swings between drought and flood conditions. 

Without action, the ability of the State Water Project to reliably deliver water to homes, farms and businesses will decline. The Delta Conveyance Project is the single most effective strategy to ensure that California can maintain a sustainable water future. The Delta Conveyance Project will help offset and recover these future climate-driven water losses, and yet, it has been plagued by delays and red tape.

The Delta Conveyance Project would expand the state’s ability to improve water supply reliability, while also maintaining fishery and water quality protections. During atmospheric rivers last year, the Delta Conveyance Project could have captured enough water for 9.8 million people’s yearly usage. And while the state has implemented a number of other strategies, including restoring groundwater, it is simply not enough to prevent the future water shortages. 

Removing unnecessary red tape

Governor Newsom first announced his commitment to new delta conveyance infrastructure during his first State of the State, modernizing the previous administration’s plans to address seismic and reliability issues and ensure that this critical piece of infrastructure could be built quickly and without delay. The Governor has led efforts to move the DCP forward—including DWR’s certification of a final environmental impact report in December 2023 and securing financial support from water agencies throughout the state serving a majority of Californians. And while the project has received some necessary permits, its path forward is burdened by complicated regulatory frameworks and bureaucratic delays.  The Governor is proposing to streamline and strengthen the project’s path forward, to protect the state’s water supply for future generations. 

The importance of protecting the reliability of the State Water Project is too great to allow the Delta Conveyance Project to be mired by unnecessary and extensive delays. The Governor’s proposal would streamline the project by simplifying permitting, confirming funding authority, preventing unnecessary delays, and supporting construction.