Sacramento San Joaquin Delta Issue

San Joaquin Delta Pollution

Throughout the annals of American history the development of California from a parched desert to thriving center of agriculture and commerce remains one of the nation's most incredible achievements. In order to supply continual supplies of fresh water for farming, drinking and municipal uses massive bodies of running water were diverted, channeled and harnessed so that California may one day be hospitable for millions of American citizens. Perhaps no other place showcases the tremendous feats of engineering and ingenuity which gave rise to California than the Sacramento/San Joaquin River Delta, the largest estuary in the country and one of the world's only inverted river deltas. Through a gradual process of constructing earthen levees the early residents of the state diverted the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers to form a network of small irrigation channels which watered individual ranches and tracts of farmland. These lifelines connected settlers with the precious commodity of water and enabled Californians in the late 19th century to take full advantage of the fertile land and ideal climate of the region. By utilizing the power of levees to tame a pair of mighty rivers, farmers and developers managed to drain and reclaim nearly 500,000 acres of tidal marshlands. While the spread of agriculture throughout the region has proved to be highly beneficial for man, disturbing the balance of ancient natural systems has proven to carry unintended consequences. Levee failures and breaches routinely result in widespread flooding, property damage and loss of crops, while the salt-heavy runoff and pollution from industrial farms continues to threaten the area's fragile ecology.

The land which once housed endless tidal marshes has since sunk into a quagmire of underfunding, maladministration and willful destruction. With the state government of California crippled by unsustainable debt and an exponentially mounting population, the issue of water management has moved to the forefront of political and social discussion. Despite this renewed focus on water conservation, the Sacramento/San Joaquin River Delta has fallen victim to neglect and remains besieged by threats on all fronts. After an extensive study of the circumstances the nation's leading water conservation organization American Rivers concluded that "the Sacramento-San Joaquin River System, the largest watershed in California, is on the verge of collapse, threatening the water supply for 25 million people, placing the capital of the nation's most populous state at high risk of flooding, and damaging a once productive and healthy ecosystem" (Rothert, 2009). As a result of these findings the delta was named America's most endangered river system in 2009 and, for a brief moment at least, the plight of this essential waterway entered the national spotlight. Due to the irrefutable fact that "the population of the six counties adjoining the Delta (Alameda, Contra Costa, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Solano and Yolo) is expected to dramatically increase over the next few years" ("Keep the delta clean," 2011), there is no doubt that this looming environmental, political and social catastrophe will remain there unless it is promptly and properly addressed.

As has always been the case when it comes to water in the American southwest, the stakes are high in the debate over the Sacramento/San Joaquin River Delta's future. Millions of residents depend on the boundless supply of freshwater which the delta's channels and waterways provide for drinking, plumbing and other essentials. Unless the proverbial tap remains flowing from the delta countless homes across the state will be left high and dry and the foundation of California's centuries-long prosperity will forever be weakened. In a throwback to the golden era of state politics the fate of Californian's access to freshwater is being haggled over by a select class of political elite, and as has been the case throughout much of the state's history, the common man has borne the brunt of the suffering. While politicians continue to wrangle over budgetary minutiae, family-owned farms across California continue to fail in the face of torturous water shortages.