Bay-Delta Plan Update: Amendments and Substitute Environmental Document (SED) for Lower San Joaquin River and Southern Delta

Adoption and Approval of Plan Amendments and Final SED

On December 12, 2018, through State Water Board Resolution 2018-0059, the State Water Board amended the Water Quality Control Plan for the San Francisco Bay/Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Estuary (Bay-Delta Plan).  It adopted the amendments to the Bay-Delta Plan and the Final SED establishing the Lower San Joaquin River flow objectives and revised southern Delta salinity objectives. On February 25, 2019, the Office of Administrative Law approved the Bay-Delta Plan amendments, which are now in effect.

 

Fact Sheets

Final Amendments and SED - July 6, 2018

On July 6, 2018, the State Water Board released a final proposal to amend the Bay-Delta Plan (Proposed Final Amendments) and a Final SED. The Proposed Final Amendments and Final SED include State Water Board responses to public comments on the 2016 draft proposal to amend the Bay-Delta plan and draft SED.
Proposed changes to the Bay-Delta Plan include

    1. New narrative February through June Lower San Joaquin River (LSJR) flow objective applicable to the San Joaquin River and its salmon-bearing tributaries – the Stanislaus, Tuolumne, and Merced rivers – and an associated program of implementation to support and maintain the natural production of viable native LSJR Watershed fish populations migrating through the Delta; and
    2. Revised numeric southern Delta salinity objectives and an associated program of implementation to protect agricultural beneficial uses in the southern Delta.

The SED and associated appendices were prepared in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, and other applicable State and federal requirements and include analysis of the expected environmental, water supply, economic, and hydropower effects of the San Joaquin Proposal.

Previous Drafts

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Chris Carr
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Chris.Carr@waterboards.ca.gov

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