Welcome to the summer edition of Valley Ventures, an issue devoted to a resource vital to the Central Valley Joint Venture mission: Water. Ensuring reliable and affordable water supplies for existing private, state and federal wetlands is the Central Valley Joint Venture’s greatest and most difficult challenge. Over 90% of the historical wetlands within the Central Valley have been eliminated, so the habitat that remains must be intensively managed throughout the year to provide sufficient wintering and brood habitat, resting areas, and to promote hunting and wildlife viewing opportunities. Wetland managers need to know early in the year what the quantity and timing of deliveries to their properties will be, so they can plan accordingly to optimize the habitat they can provide.
Water is a vital resource for wildlife and people in the Central Valley of California but is becoming increasingly scarce and supplies are unreliable; problems potentially exacerbated by climate change. Finding solutions to water management challenges that will optimize among competing interests (wetland management, human consumption, agriculture, etc.) will require innovative strategies and partnerships. At the most basic level, conservation solutions will require knowing where the water is now and where it will be in the future.
As everyone is painfully aware, California is in the grips of a serious drought, which is continuing to have a major impact upon wildlife habitat throughout the state. The examples are numerous – staff at Lower Klamath National Wildlife Refuge project being able to maintain just 33% of their typical fall seasonal wetland acreage this year; 33,000 acre-feet of Incremental Level 4 water acquired this year for the 19 state, federal and private refuges (refuges) that come under the auspices of the Central Valley Project Improvement Act of 1992 (CVPIA), was the worst since the mid-1990's.
In June, several of the Central Valley Joint Venture (CVJV) partners, including California Waterfowl, Ducks Unlimited, Audubon California and the Tulare Basin Wildlife Partners, expressed concerns to the Semitropic Water Storage District regarding a proposed water rate increase for wetlands and agricultural properties. The issue was brought to the CVJV partners’ attention by the Tulare Basin Wetlands Association (TBWA), which represents many of the private duck clubs within the District.
Dan Chapin was one of the great champions of the Central Valley Joint Venture and the waterfowl of the Pacific Flyway. Dan was a leader, mentor, advocate, and visionary in the history of wetlands conservation in California.
Most wetland habitats in the Central Valley of California rely on managed surface water supplies stored in reservoirs and delivered via a complex system to a wide array of competing water users. Water supplies vary with snow pack, temperature, and precipitation, all of which are projected to change substantially under some climate projections; land use and water management decisions can also greatly impact water supplies. Work is underway to help the Central Valley Joint Venture (CVJV) adapt its habitat conservation planning to account for potential changes in water supplies related to these factors.
The North American Waterfowl Management Plan (Plan) lays out a strategy among the United States, Canadian and Mexican governments to restore waterfowl habitat continentally.
