Congress Narrowly Defeats Nunes Salmon Extinction Amendment

Congress Narrowly Defeats Nunes Salmon Extinction Amendment

by Dan Bacher

The Nunes amendment to HR 2847, a measure that would have removed funding for court-mandated protections for Central Valley salmon, was defeated in a close vote of 208 ayes to 218 nos in Congress on June 19.

Over 40 Democrats voted for the amendment despite the probable extinction of salmon runs, green sturgeon and the southern resident population of killer whales if the recently released federal biological opinion was not funded, reported Jerry Neuburger of the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance. The amendment was strongly supported by Representatives Jim Costa and Dennis Cardoza, both Central Valley Democrats who virtually always side with corporate agribusiness on environmental and other issues issues.

"The operational impacts on the state and federal water projects are vastly underestimated," claimed Costa and Cardoza in a support letter for the Nunes amendment. "Additionally, there are substantial biological assessments that have been performed on the Delta, but NMFS has confirmed that these were not taken into account in the biological opinion."

Representative Jerry McNerney (D-Pleasanton) inexplicably voted for the amendment, despite his reputation as a "green" representative, noted Jeff Miller, executive director of the Alameda Creek Alliance.

Representatives George Miller (D-Martinez) and Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena) spoke at the podium in strong defense of the biological opinion, stating that passing the amendment would put the entire process of restoration back at square one and cause several years delay in any attempt to restore California's collapsed salmon and steelhead runs.

Representative Devin Nunes (R-Visalia) responded to the defeat of his amendment by yet again repeating the "Big Lie" that the movement to restore the Delta and Central Valley fish populations is an issue of "fish versus people," completely ignoring the thousands of people employed in recreational and commercial fishing businesses and coastal and Central Valley communities that have been devastated by recent salmon and Delta fish collapses.

“Environmentalists are tripping over themselves to preserve every species that crawls, squirms, swims or flys (sic) but they are content to let humans die," claimed Nunes. " And now they have a government that agrees with them. This Congress and our President have chosen fish over people in my state."

NMFS’s June 6 biological opinion found that the pumping operations of the Central Valley Project jeopardize long-term survival of winter and spring-run Chinook salmon, green sturgeon, Central Valley steelhead, and southern resident killer whales. The opinion called for reductions amounting to only approximately 330,000 acre-feet, or 5 to 7 percent of Central Valley and State Water Project water exports.

A broad coalition of recreational fishing groups, commercial fishing organizations, environmental organizations and others rallied against the last minute Nunes amendment and, at least for the time being, stopped Westlands Water District and their collaborators in Congress from making sure that salmon, green sturgeon and killer whales go extinct. Representatives George Miller and Mike Thompson deserve kudos for the leadership role they played in defeating the amendment. To see the roll call vote, go to http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2009/roll366.

Expect Westlands Water District and corporate agribusiness to launch more attacks on the biological opinion in the coming weeks and months.

On the same day the amendment was defeated, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger amped up his war on fish and campaign to construct a peripheral canal and more dams at a meeting and press conference with local officials in Mendota to discuss the statewide "drought" and its effects on the region. True to his role as the "Fish Terminator," Schwarzenegger blasted the biological opinion, parrotting the "Big Lie" of "fish versus people" that Nunes and agribusiness keep repeating.

“I think the judge’s decision is wrong," claimed Schwarzenegger. "If you start choosing species, and the smelt and salmon over people, I think you’re wrong. I think it’s a mistake when you see the impacts that it has.”

For more information and action alerts regarding the battle to save our imperiled fish populations and the California Delta, go to: http://www.calsport.org.