Water for people, water for all life

Water is essential to all life, is central to the functioning of every ecosystem - and is at the heart of the work of the Sierra Club Bay Chapter to protect the environment in the Bay Area and beyond.

The articles in this Yodeler only begin to ripple the surface of our deep concerns with water. Any time that we think of wildlife habitat, water is a central concern, and habitat issues form a wide portion of our work. Any time that we think of human development, water supply is involved, and also the effects of development on water flows; these concerns help shape all our efforts to stop sprawl and to build healthy cities - healthy human habitat. Our creek and forest and wilderness activists all focus on watersheds, as well.

Our articles begin with the Bay/Delta ecosystem, which forms the flowing backbone of the Bay Area and the keystone of the whole state's water supply. A pair of articles tells of the Delta's current situation - with greatly altered water flows and catastrophically crashing fish populations - and of the ideas of the governor's Delta Vision Task Force for doing something about the problems. Finally, we give the latest news about the dickering between the governor and the legislature over a potential water bond for November's ballot.

Also at the larger geographic scale is an article about how forests and forest management affect our water supply.

Locally, each of our major water districts is facing major decisions, especially about how to make water supplies more secure against the inevitable droughts (likely to come more often because of global warming). Each has to choose between bringing in outside water - further stressing remote ecosystems - or finding ways to make do with the quantities of water that they are already using.

We have articles by two Sierra Club activists who have been elected to the boards of local water districts. Alex Forman tells of the choices faced by the Marin Municipal Water District, which is considering building a desalination plant. Andy Katz tells of the choices at the East Bay Municipal Utility District between finding and storing more water from the outside, versus expanded conservation and water reuse.

The Yodeler has been running a series of articles about the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission's proposal to increase its diversions from the Tuolumne River. We do not have an article in this issue, but we expect that the following Yodeler will include an urgent action alert of steps you can take to help protect the Tuolumne. At the other end of water use, we have an article about San Francisco's work towards a Sewage System Master Plan, which could greatly reduce the city's pollution of the Bay.

WhatYouCanDo

The Chapter also brings you things to do with water. We are strong supporters of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area Big Year, which is focusing our attention on the tremendous biodiversity in our region - and our local endangered species. This month's article is about the California freshwater shrimp. The article offers ideas on how to see this little-known endemic species - and on actions we can all take to conserve water and thereby protect these shrimp and a whole range of other species.

The Chapter is also inviting you to our Sierra Club Week at Aquarium of the Bay, where you can observe an immense range of the creatures that live in our local waters. We conclude our water section with an article about the Chapter's River Touring Section, which gives you opportunities to experience and enjoy first-hand California's rivers and the life around them.

Several of our articles offer actions you can take to help protect our water and environment. In addition, the Chapter is seeking volunteers who care about water issues and would like to help organize a Chapter Water Committee. The committee would meet monthly to discuss current water concerns and plan Sierra Club positions and responses. To join in, or for more information, contact Matt Morrison at mattmorrisonus -at- yahoo.com or (925) 413-6213.

Donald Forman