Calif. water officials study building delta tunnel

August 2009

U.S. Water News Online

FRESNO, Calif. — State engineers are studying a proposal to send water supplies to Southern California through a tunnel under the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, rather than through a peripheral canal.

The Department of Water Resources is considering the tunnel option as part of a broader, long-term effort to lower pressure on the beleaguered estuary.

Proponents say routing water underground could help protect endangered fish species while securing supplies for San Joaquin Valley farmers and southern cities.

But opponents fear diverting water would turn the delta into a swamp.

By year's end, officials with the Bay Delta Conservation Plan are expected to release a draft conservation plan that could include options both above and below ground.