Monday Top of the Scroll: As fish deaths increase at pumps, critics urge California agencies to improve protections
Powerful pumps that supply much of California’s population with water have killed several thousand threatened and endangered fish this year, prompting a coalition of environmental groups to demand that state and federal agencies take immediate steps to limit “alarming levels” of deaths. In a letter to state and federal water managers, leaders of five fishing and environmental groups said the estimated losses of threatened steelhead trout and endangered winter-run Chinook salmon have exceeded maximum annual limits for water intakes in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.
Related articles:
- Sacramento Bee: California water agencies broke own rules, possibly killing thousands of endangered fish
- NBC Bay Area: California’s salmon fishing season could face second year of total closure
- Oroville Mercury-Register: Opinion – State’s water supply (and water fights) reach modern-day peaks
- CA Department of Fish and Wildlife – News release: Federal Funding Allocated for California 2023 Salmon Fishery Disaster; CDFW Seeks Public Input on Spending Plan
- California WaterBlog: Blog – Spinning salmon in the classroom