Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed an executive order that he says is intended to “maximize” the capture of water during winter storms.
Newsom issued the order Friday, saying it will make it easier to divert and store water as storms bring rain and snow in the coming days.
“It is more important than ever that we maximize every opportunity to recharge our groundwater supplies,” Newsom said. “As we anticipate rain and snow in Northern California, we are also preparing to use every last drop to boost our water supply for communities and farms throughout the state.”
Environmental and fishing groups, however, denounced Newsom’s order as being alarmingly similar to federal directives from President Trump, saying the governor’s approach threatens to harm vulnerable fish species and the deteriorating ecosystem of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.
“This order reads as though it was written by President Trump,” said Barry Nelson, a policy representative for the fishing group Golden State Salmon Assn.
He said Newsom’s measure appears to mimic an executive order that Trump announced five days earlier in which he directed federal agencies to “maximize” water deliveries in California and “override” state policies if necessary.
“This reads as almost a carbon copy of that order,” Nelson said. “We call on the governor to stand up to protect California’s environment, not to assist in federal attacks.”
Representatives of water suppliers supported Newsom’s order.
The measures “empower California water managers to blunt the destructive impact of flooding while quickly diverting excess water to recharge groundwater supplies,” said Cathy Green, president of the Assn. of California Water Agencies.
Green said the order underlines the need to modernize “our permitting process to better reflect the state’s ability to remain flexible in the face of climate change.”
Newsom announced the order as the first of three atmospheric river storms reached the state, bringing rain and snow after an unusually dry January.
Newsom ordered the state Department of Water Resources to “maximize diversions of excess flows” during winter storms to store more water in reservoirs such as San Luis Reservoir, located south of the Delta near Los Banos. The order also calls for state agencies to “identify any obstacles that would hinder efforts to maximize diversions” and to promptly report on any “statutory or regulatory barriers that should be considered for suspension.”
State officials said Newsom’s order will make it easier for local agencies to capture more storm runoff to recharge groundwater, which has been depleted by overpumping in many areas. They said the order builds on previous directives by the governor in 2023 that helped increase the amount of water used to replenish groundwater.
By capturing more stormwater, Newsom said, “we are creating a literal rainy day fund to help us recover from a multi-year drought and prepare for our hotter, drier future.” His administration’s water supply strategy calls for preparing for a projected 10% decrease in the state’s supplies by 2040 because of climate change.
Trump has criticized California for what he calls “disastrous” policies and water “mismanagement.”
Conservation advocates said Newsom’s order reveals a similar approach to the president’s directives that they fear could lead to weaker protections for fish and clean water in the Delta and San Francisco Bay.
“This is a capitulation by Gov. Newsom to Donald Trump’s lawlessness and disdain for California, Californians and our environment,” said Jon Rosenfield, science director for the group San Francisco Baykeeper.
While Trump’s order sought to eviscerate federal environmental protections and undermine state law, Rosenfield said, Newsom similarly chose to “waive state laws that require protection of the Bay’s clean water and fish. As a result, we can expect the Bay’s fish and wildlife to continue to spiral towards oblivion.”
California’s two main water delivery systems in the Delta, the State Water Project and the Central Valley Project, deliver water to farmlands and about 30 million people.
Pumping has contributed to the ecological degradation of the Delta, where the fish species that are listed as threatened or endangered include steelhead trout, two types of Chinook salmon, longfin smelt, Delta smelt and green sturgeon.
Because of declining salmon populations, fisheries authorities have shut down the salmon fishing season on the California coast for the last two years, leaving commercial fishermen and charter boat captains out of work.
Another sign of the Delta’s ecological deterioration in recent years has been worsening toxic algae blooms.
Rosenfield said that the state’s existing rules would provide for diverting ample water during the upcoming storms, and the state’s water supplies in reservoirs are in relatively good shape.
“The only explanation for this move at this time is that Newsom is feeling the political need to prove that he supports diverting as much water or more than Donald Trump,” Rosenfield said.
Westlands Water District, the largest agricultural water agency in the Central Valley, said it supports “streamlining the process to divert and store excess flows, such as from storm events.”
“This flexibility helps with overall water management in California and is an important step to maximize our water supply,” said Elizabeth Jonasson, a spokesperson for Westlands.
The debate that erupted over Newsom’s order is the latest in a series of disagreements that have pitted the governor’s administration against environmental and fishing groups in the Delta. Environmental groups, tribes and local agencies have been fighting Newsom’s plan to build a $20-billion water tunnel beneath the Delta.
They have also argued against a state-supported proposal for an alternative to regulatory flow requirements in the Delta that would involve negotiated agreements with water agencies.
Gary Bobker, program director for the group Friends of the River, said Californians have been looking to Newsom to “defend them from the Trump administration’s misguided attempt to force bad policy down the state’s throat.”
Instead, he argued, the order goes against Californians’ interests in preserving healthy rivers, fisheries and clean water.
Nelson, of the Golden State Salmon Assn., said policies like the governor’s order “have led to the collapse of the Bay-Delta environment, and to pushing salmon to the brink of extinction.”
Nelson said he’s concerned the order appears “open-ended,” and could allow for waiving environmental standards even when there is no drought or flooding emergency.
“This order isn’t even pretending that there’s a drought emergency. It’s not pretending there’s a flood emergency,” Nelson said. “It’s simply saying, ‘Let’s suspend environmental laws because it’s raining.’”
