Monday June 8, 2026
Local News Matters —
THE CONSTRUCTION, though not the long-term operation, of a proposed 45-mile extension to the State Water Project, backed by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, has received permission from two key federal wildlife agencies.
On Friday, the California Department of Water Resources received permits known as biological opinions from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service concluding that construction can proceed under conditions designed to protect endangered species and sensitive habitat.
“We are closer than ever to seeing this vital piece of infrastructure completed and benefiting all Californians,” Newsom said in a statement. “Let’s get this built.”
The proposed 36-foot-diameter tunnel is intended to move excess rain and flood water beneath the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta and deliver it directly into the State Water Project at the Bethany Pump Station near the city of Tracy.
The water project is a 700-mile network of canals, hydroelectric generators and pumping plants that moves and stores water used by 27 million people and on 750,000 acres of farmland. It is used and supported by 29 public water agencies, largely based in the South Bay, Central Coast, South Coast, Inland Empire and Kern County.