Friday September 18, 2026
KQED —
California’s current plan for making sure the water flowing through the San Francisco Bay-Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta is clean and abundant enough to protect threatened and endangered wildlife is old and not working. This nexus of waterways, so crucial to the functioning of the state, has been long fought over and will be fought over long into the future.
At the moment, however, the fight However, looks particularly chaotic.
Gov. Gavin Newsom first proposed major changes to rules governing the Bay-Delta in 2020, arguing his proposal strikes a balance for use of the water for cities, growers and fish. The framework for managing the Sacramento River was last meaningfully updated in 1995, despite the fact that it is supposed to be reviewed and updated if needed every three years. The regulations were refined over years and backed by $1.5 billion in state funds.
The state water board announced the release of its final draft update to the document known as the Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan in late August. It is now in the public comment period. Written comments are due Sept. 18. Oral comments will be accepted during an upcoming public meeting in Sacramento on Oct. 28 and 29. After that, the board is supposed to consider input, alter as needed and adopt the plan by the end of the month.