My God. This is… this is intelligent.
The California Republican delegation, along with other key Western lawmakers, today introduced a bill that would loosen environmental restrictions on water being pumped to farms and cities in the drought-ridden Central Valley. The bill, officially introduced by David Valadao, also would free up major water storage projects in the west, offering more flexibility for the construction of dams and reservoirs.
[snip]
The bill would sidestep a Fish and Wildlife Service order that restricted the amount of water pumped to farms and cities, instead letting it flow to sea in order to protect the Delta smelt, a threatened fish species. The bill would reopen those spigots and allow water to flow from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to the agriculture-rich Central Valley until regulators can prove that the smelt and other species, such as the salmonid (a family of fish including various types of salmon), are being harmed by the pumping. Should they find the fish are being harmed, regulators would then have to undertake a study of viable alternatives before against imposing the limit. It also requires federal regulators to consider different surveys and monitoring techniques in evaluating the fish population.
Putting the burden of proof on the environmentalists (who, by the way, have probably protected the delta smelt into extinction by now) before we just let them play with the mechanisms of policy? What a refreshing change of pace! …It’s also going to drive all those Greenie religious fanatics absolutely bonkers, but what the heck. Let the Democrats be the ones to explain why they’re shutting off the pipes in the middle of a drought. I like the idea of picking up more Californian seats in the next election.
Moe Lane
I like the theory behind it, but it assumes the left wing media, (which is more interested in sleeping with Obama, than reporting the news), would actually cover this in a remotely honest manner.
they don’t have to explain, because Gaia. and evil rapacious farmers.
I like it. I hope it succeeds. But this is California we’re talking about.
You actually expect evidence and reason to prevail ?? One of the emerging tropes , generalizations , is the inability of the Left to see reality a it confronts them : Obamacare is working : Premiums and deductibles are up , way up . Employment and hiring are down , way down . The # of uninsured is not down , but up . Health Care spending is up , not down . Obamacare is working !! Evidence and reason , flat out reality , does not work with this crowd .
It doesn’t have to work with the Greenies (you can’t reason with a religious fanatic outside of tying them to a stake and breaking out the kindling) it has to work with the people who are being cut off from the water by the Greenies. Thirst is a heck of a motivator.