After years of delay, the Water Board has released the final Draft of the Bay Delta Plan. This long overdue update of the draft is critical for managing water in the region, but it continues to ignore strong critical feedback from Tribes and environmental groups. The Water Board will be holding a hybrid meeting October 28-39 in Sacramento and online via Zoom. This is your opportunity to make an impact and tell the Water Board that we need real protection for water, fish, and people. 

 

Background

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The State Water Board has released a final draft of updates to the Water Quality Control Plan for the San Francisco Bay/Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Watershed (Bay Delta Plan). Water Quality Control Plans provide important guidelines for protecting water throughout the state, and  the Bay Delta Plan guides how water will be managed in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and connected waters. This Plan covers a large range of rivers and streams, reaching as far north as the Trinity River. One of the main purposes of the Bay Delta Plan is to determine how much water can be diverted from rivers and streams without causing harm to fish, wildlife, Tribes, local communities, and more. 

 

To ensure these plans are following the most recent science, they are supposed to be updated regularly. The Bay Delta Plan has been in need of an update for a very long time and does not currently provide necessary protections for endangered species, Tribal uses, and water quality in our current times of climate crisis and species declines. However, this update revolves around the Voluntary Agreements (VAs), or the deceptively named Healthy Rivers and Landscapes Program. The VAs were created privately with the largest water diverters in the region to allow them to take excessive amounts of water while evading the regulations they would normally be held accountable to. Major decisions like these are required to include Tribal engagement and outreach, yet Tribes have been excluded from the conversation. As a result, this inequitable and inadequate plan will cause immense harm to the communities and ecosystems that rely on these waters.

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How to Make Your Voices Heard

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Over the last few years, the Water Board has been releasing updated drafts of the Bay Delta Plan with opportunities for the public (that's you!) to provide feedback. During previous comments, we successfully pushed the Water Board to add Tribal Beneficial Uses to the Plan. At the last public hearing in January 2026, over 150 community members showed up to speak out against the Voluntary Agreements. Now, we have another opportunity to gather our communities and demand real protections for water, fish and people. 

 

The Water Board will be hosting a hybrid hearing on October 28th and 29th in Sacramento and online via Zoom, with October 30th as an optional additional day to finish hearing public comments if needed. The hearing will include presentations from the Water Board on updates to the Bay Delta Plan, panel presentations, and time for public comment. After hearing comments and presentations, the Water Board will discuss any new information and potentially vote on whether or not to adopt, or accept, the final Draft of the Bay Delta Plan. 

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Providing Public Comment

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Anyone can provide comments to the Water Board during the hearing either remotely or in person. To do so, you must register and fill out a short speaker card by October 27 and answer whether you plan on speaking in person or virtually. Comments will be limited to 3 minutes per speaker, though this time may be updated depending on how many people intend to comment.

 

In-person

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The hearing will take place in person in Sacramento at the CalEPA building beginning at 9:00 am each day. It will be held at:

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Joe Serna Jr. CalEPA Building

Coastal Hearing Room

1001 I Street, Second Floor

Sacramento, CA 95814

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Virtual

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The hearing will also be live-streamed via Zoom and you will be able to give your comment online through Zoom or by calling in. When you register from the above speaker card, Water Board staff will email you with information on how to join the meeting one business day before. If you plan on participating remotely, it is strongly recommended to log on with a stable internet network.

 

What to Expect

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It can be intimidating to join a hearing and give public comment if you haven't done it before, or even if you have! But there will be many of us showing up to support each other in speaking up for our communities.

 

For those attending and speaking in person, the Board will let everyone know when they are about to begin public comment. The Board will provide a short list of upcoming speakers from those who registered. When your name is called, you will walk up to the podium and give your comment. Staff will start a timer for each speaker so you know how much time you have left and if you go over time they will ask you to wrap up your comment so others can speak. Once you're done, you are free to return to your seat or stay to watch other comments if you'd like. 

 

For those attending and speaking virtually, you will follow a similar process and will want to watch for when your name shows up on the list of upcoming speakers to get ready. When it is your turn, the Board will call your name and Board staff will unmute you so that you can speak. You will then have the same amount of time as those in person and they will start a timer for your comment in the same way.

 

Talking Points

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• The draft does not provide adequate and enforceable water protections for water in the region.

• The draft is built from an inequitable process that excludes Tribes (VAs). 

• Continue working with Tribes and Tribal community members to identify Tribal Beneficial Uses (TBUs).

• The VAs will NOT work and need to be removed; all parties should be held to the same regulatory standards.