California forest fires: Trump Executive Order could share control of the state water system and even endanger the distribution

From rivers to dams to hundreds of kilometers of aqueducts, moving water in California leads a massive system that is constructed over the most part of a century.

With a new arrangement by the executive, President Donald Trump dedicates the federal authorities to essentially claim control over critical sections of this system, and claims mismanagement when he tries to blame the forest fires in Southern California.

“Well, there are a lot of things. It is a very comprehensive implementation regulation that tries to exclude the federal water supply system from the Federal Law and state rights, and also attempts to evidence state control over state water resources,” said Jon Rosenfield, research in the environmental group San Francisco Baykeeper.

Firstly, it helps to understand that the Californian water system has a kind of split personality, starting with a few large insenses, which are conducted by federal authorities, others from the state, together with two massive sewer systems that flow side by side side by side. The state water project delivers a large part of its water in Southern California, while the Federal Project is an important supplier of agricultural areas in Central Valley. They have been working in a delicate balance with coordinated agreements for more than half a century.

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That may be so far.

“And because these systems are connected to each other and they had to coordinate so much, a partner will say that we will no longer play according to the rules,” said Rosenfield.

In the executive regulation, however, Trump indicated that federal authorities provide more water in a section called “overwriting catastrophic California guidelines”. And “to deliver more water and produce additional hydropower, including the increase in storage and promotion and the joint operational institutions of the federal and federal federal and state. Project through the office for the recovery of the project disturbing to maximize the water supply … “

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“This may be unpleasant environmental regulations. Incidentally, these are not only Delta communities, but also municipalities in the Bay Area, which are really dependent on the Delta system of San Francisco Bay for drinking water and other purposes. These protective measures are So in space and on the spot for everyone, ”said John Buse, Senior Counsel with the Center for Biological Diversity

He argues that water management has nothing to do with the forest fires in Southern California. He believes that it will take some time to see which elements of order actually come into force and expects complaints to follow the water quality and the law on endangered species.

“This is one of many rather far -reaching and, as we think, exceed the orders of executives. So we have to keep an eye on things and try to stay solid. See what comes out,” said Buse.

With control over huge amounts of California water, possibly in balance, environmental groups say that a big problem is that the delta flows sufficiently to push back salt water and protect the drinking water supply.