"Key Federal Agencies Clear Way For Proposed Delta Tunnel Project"

"WASHINGTON — The Trump administration took a big step Monday toward clearing the way for construction of two giant tunnels that would siphon water from the Sacramento River and send it south to farms and cities.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service determined that the tunnel project, officially known as California Water Fix, would harm several endangered fish in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, but that an extra 1,800 acres of habitat restoration, on top of the 30,000 acres the project calls for, would offset the damage.

Paul Souza, Pacific Southwest regional director of the Fish and Wildlife Service, said the additional habitat was “without question the biggest change” from earlier drafts that determined that fish would be harmed. Souza said agency biologists would monitor fish and make changes to the project if necessary to protect them once construction starts."

Carolyn Lochhead reports for the San Francisco Chronicle June 26, 2017.