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<p class=MsoNormal><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on"><span
class=articletitle><b><font size=4 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:14.0pt;font-weight:bold'>Trinity</span></font></b></span></st1:PlaceName><span
class=articletitle><b><font size=4><span style='font-size:14.0pt;font-weight:
bold'> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">County</st1:PlaceType></span></font></b></span></st1:place><span
class=articletitle><b><font size=4><span style='font-size:14.0pt;font-weight:
bold'> wades back into water fight</span></span></font></b></span><b><font
size=4><span style='font-size:14.0pt;font-weight:bold'> <o:p></o:p></span></font></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><b><font size=4 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:14.0pt;font-weight:bold'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><a href="http://www.times-standard.com/local/ci_3424722">http://www.times-standard.com/local/ci_3424722</a>
<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Arial><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Arial'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><span class=articlebyline><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'>John Driscoll</span></span></font></span> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Trinity
County supervisors on Wednesday weighed in on the state and federal
government's proposal to pump more water from the Sacramento River Delta, a
plan, they wrote, that could hurt fish in the Trinity and Klamath rivers. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>The
comments on the South Delta Improvements Program register complaints that
CalFed -- the state and federal plan to restore the delta and boost water
supplies -- ignores <st1:place w:st="on">Northern California</st1:place>'s
salmon plight. Billions of gallons of Trinity River water are sent to the <st1:place
w:st="on">Sacramento River</st1:place> each year, and pumps in the delta send
water on to farms and cities. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>The program
would draw down <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Trinity</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Lake</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> too far in dry
years, the letter reads, reducing the amount of cold water available for salmon
in the Trinity and Klamath rivers. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>”In
particular, the analysis of impacts to Trinity Lake, Trinity River fisheries
and Trinity County recreation are not only inadequate, but grossly
misleading,” the board of supervisors wrote. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>The
environmental document for the program does not consider reducing exports from
the delta, the letter reads. That could be done by retiring land in the <st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">San Joaquin</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Valley</st1:PlaceType>,
the board wrote, saving water to increase storage in <st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Trinity</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Lake</st1:PlaceType> to use for the <st1:place w:st="on">Trinity
River</st1:place>'s restoration. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>The U.S.
Bureau of Reclamation has also in recent years used Trinity River water to cool
and raise the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">lower Klamath</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">River</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>. That's where up to
68,000 chinook salmon died in 2002, the result of low flows, high water
temperatures and stress-related diseases. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p><st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on"><font size=3
face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Trinity</span></font></st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">County</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> planner <st1:PersonName
w:st="on">Tom Stokely</st1:PersonName> said with both the delta's fish in
trouble and the Klamath and Trinity woes, it's irresponsible not to consider
reducing demand on the delta pumps. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:
12.0pt'>”This is a plan to basically drain <st1:place w:st="on">Northern California</st1:place>
of its water based on the false assumption that there's extra water up
north,” Stokely said. “This is the beginning of the north-south
water wars again.” <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Kathy Kelly, chief
of the state Department of Water Resources Bay-Delta Office, said computer
simulations show there would be no big affect to <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName
w:st="on">Trinity</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">Lake</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>.
They also show that water temperature increases won't harm coho salmon or
steelhead, she said. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>But <st1:place
w:st="on">Trinity River</st1:place> chinook salmon -- the main commercial and
recreational species -- weren't specifically considered. Those salmon migrate
into the river in the early fall when water temperatures are highest, like when
the 2002 fish kill occurred. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>”From what I
can see we don't have the chinook on the Trinity evaluated here,” Kelly
said. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Kelly also said
that the program initially looked at reducing exports from the delta, but
“it was screened out” before the environmental analysis got
underway. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>”The South
Delta Improvements Program is not going to solve all the issues we have out
there,” Kelly said. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on"><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span
style='font-size:12.0pt'>Humboldt</span></font></st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">County</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> supervisors are considering
drafting a similar letter to the state and federal governments. <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><font
size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>John Driscoll
covers natural resources/industry. He can be reached at 441-0504 or <a
href="mailto:jdriscoll@times-sta">jdriscoll@times-sta</a>ndard.com. <o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p><font size=3 face="Times New Roman"><span style='font-size:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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font-family:Arial;font-weight:bold'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></b></p>
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