Assembly approves Wolk bill to protect Delta’s declining fisheries: Fishing groups back legislation prompted by Prospect Island fish kill incident

by Dan Bacher
May 29, 2008. SACRAMENTO–The State Assembly voted 43-36 today to approve Assembly Bill 1806 by Assemblywoman Lois Wolk (D-Davis) to protect the declining fisheries in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

The legislation requires the development of protocols to guide preparation and implementation of emergency fish rescue plans for Delta fisheries. Wolk introduced the bill in response to a massive fish kill on Prospect Island that resulted when the Bureau of Reclamation drained water from the area to conduct levee repairs.

“The Prospect Island fish kill resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of fish, including striped bass and other sportfish. The incident outraged the sportfishing community, which plays a sizeable role in the local and state economy. This could have been avoided with a modicum of planning,” said Wolk. “My bill seeks to prevent such another situation like this from occurring in the future, and requires that the State Water Board review the incident and determine how the Bureau must mitigate for the resulting destruction of fish.”

The bill’s supporters greeted news of the bill’s passage from the Assembly.

“It’s about time the public trust was paid attention to,” said Gary Adams with the California Striped Bass Association. “The public trust is an important issue to the states’ thousands of fisherman, to all Californians, and future generation. I'm glad to see this bill move forward.”

AB 1806 also requires the board to enforce reasonable mitigation requirements for adverse impacts on Delta fisheries arising from operation of the large water export pumping facilities of the state and federal water projects.

“While there have been a number of efforts over the years to restore habitat for fish, millions of salmon and other species continue to die annually as a result of both the direct and indirect impacts of the state and federal water project pumps,” said Wolk. “My bill requires the state and federal projects that pump water out of the Delta to mitigate for these losses, which have huge negative impacts on our state's fisheries, as well as the commercial and sport fishing industries that contribute billions of dollars to our economy.”

Additionally, AB 1806 helps cut through the bureaucratic red tape that stalled anglers’ efforts to save fish. Hundreds of anglers anxiously waited to aid in rescue efforts, but were forced to wait weeks until the state could resolve liability concerns, permit requests, and other bureaucratic delays.

In answer to this problem, the bill mandates DFG to establish a network of volunteers to assist with implementation of fish rescue plans, and to expedite approval of any permits needed for fish rescue in the event of an emergency.

AB 1806 is supported by sport and commercial fishery groups from around the state including American Sportfishing Association, Water for Fish, the California Striped Bass Association, the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations, and Allied Fishing Groups, which includes 37 sport and commercial fishing organizations.

On a related note, this past week Congress overrode the President's veto to approve $170 million in disaster assistance for salmon fishing families and businesses, which could be available as early as this summer.