SACRAMENTO, California — California water regulators Friday advanced a proposal backed by Gov. Gavin Newsom to overhaul water quality rules in the sensitive Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.
What happened: The State Water Resources Control Board released a new version of its Bay-Delta plan, which would largely replace traditional minimum flow requirements meant to protect endangered species like chinook salmon and Delta smelt with a 2022 deal Newsom struck with cities and farmers to conserve water and restore habitat.
The proposal makes only minor changes from a previous version released in July and tees up possible final adoption in 2026, Newsom’s last year as governor. It also includes new environmental and economic analyses.
Why this matters: The board has been working on updating its water quality rules for the Bay-Delta region since 2012 but has been slowed by lawsuits and heated debate over how to balance water deliveries to cities and farms with protections for endangered species. Environmental groups and tribes have long criticized the Newsom-backed deal, once known as the “voluntary agreements” and rebranded as “healthy rivers and landscapes,” as too lenient and lacking accountability. But the water districts who’ve opted in, including heavyweights like the Westlands Water District and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, say it enables more flexible water management and ecosystem improvements.
