Mono @20 continued from page 43
The symposium speakers and panelists addressed why the Mono Basin story is unique and has been so hard to replicate in other major water disputes. Richard Roos-Collins, legal counsel for CalTrout, talked about some of the factors that made the Mono Basin more narrowly focused than other state water disputes. There was only one defendant (LADWP); only the water rights to the headwaters of a watershed were in dispute; and no migratory fish (such as salmon) were involved. Contrast that situation with the San Joaquin River, for example, which has a myriad of water right licenses, multiple water districts, recreational uses on reservoirs, historic runs of salmon and steelhead, and other competing "beneficial uses" that need to be reconciled.
Several legal experts pointed out that it is not the responsibility of the courts to dictate how or when a water system should be restored. The courts act when plaintiffs bring a case to trial, but the judge will always refer the parties to an agency such as the SWRCB to work out the detailed restoration plan. Another challenge is that the SWRCB is inadequately funded to hire scientists and consultants to conduct the studies that form the basis for a detailed restoration plan. As in the Mono Basin case, the board will require one of the parties (LADWP, in this instance) to pay for the scientific analysis and report.
At the conclusion of the symposium, Mark Drew offered his perspective, "The process that has taken place in the Mono Basin is a model that can be replicated in other places. It's true that in the Mono Basin there is only one water right holder (LADWP), and that is fairly unique. But in terms of how we went about it, using law initially (upwards of 30 years ago) to set a course that resulted in a restoration plan for the ecosystem, that model is replicable."
Mark continued, "We had a choice in 2010 when the Synthesis Report came out: the LADWP could have rejected the recommendations in the report, and then the parties would have gone down a court battle path. At that point, CalTrout partnered with the LADWP and jointly went before the SWRCB and asked to be granted an opportunity to see if we could resolve our differences. I'm very proud of the role CalTrout played in these negotiations. CalTrout was pivotal in bringing the parties together to find that middle ground."
Looking Forward
Happily, here at the 20-year mark, we can celebrate that we are turning that scientific knowledge into the next wave of on-the-ground stream restoration. Last year’s landmark Mono Basin Stream Restoration Agreement is a turning point in restoring Rush, Lee Vining, Parker, and Walker creeks to good health. Construction of the new outlet in Grant Dam and the implementation of stream flows that mimic natural snowmelt patterns will be a huge restoration advance. In the coming years, fly fishermen can look forward to fishing for large brown trout that have been missing for the past 75 years.
UC Davis Partnership continued from page 21
In addition to this valuable project work, California Trout and the Center for Watershed Sciences have recently extended the partnership by establishing two key positions. The Peter B. Moyle and California Trout Endowed Chair in Coldwater Fishes and the CalTrout-UC Davis Wild and Coldwater Fish Partnership Lead were established to ensure that water resource issues with major policy and management implications continue to be informed by robust science. The findings from these collaborations have and will continue to inform broad-scale coldwater fish conservation strategies throughout California.
The Peter B. Moyle and California Trout Endowed Chair in Coldwater Fishes was established in honor of Dr. Peter Moyle and the historical working relationship between CalTrout and UC Davis. Dr. Moyle, a professor at UC Davis and former Chair of the Department of Wildlife Fish and Conservation Biology, is the author or co-author of more than 170 publications and has dedicated his career to the ecology and conservation of freshwater fish. Dr. Moyle’s enthusiasm, experience, and vision are reflected in his profound and unparalleled contributions to ecology and conservation of California fishes. His research, teachings, and outreach are tied to California’s coldwater aquatic ecosystems, especially salmon, trout, and steelhead. These elements are fundamental to the mission of the endowment, and will ensure that Dr. Moyle’s essential work to recover California salmonids and other fishes will carry on for decades to come, greatly influencing CalTrout’s work.
In addition to the endowed chair, CalTrout also helped establish the CalTrout/UC Davis Wild and Coldwater Fish Partnership Lead. This position establishes the basis for long-term science specific to CalTrout’s wild and coldwater fish initiatives. This joint appointment between CalTrout and the Center for Watershed Sciences further strengthens the relationship between the two organizations and ensures that CalTrout has a dedicated full-time researcher at UC Davis working on issues important to their mission. Recognized for his recent work on volcanic spring-fed rivers and coldwater fish habitat in northern California, Robert Lusardi recently accepted the joint position and will be working closely with the Mt. Shasta Regional office on Shasta River coho issues. Dr. Lusardi’s research on coho growth and bioenergetics not only challenges conventional thinking on salmonid conservation, but introduces a range of new opportunities to manage salmonids in ways that allow sustainable and viable long-term land use in the Shasta Basin and elsewhere. As the Wild and Coldwater Fish Partnership Lead, Dr. Lusardi will not only aide CalTrout in their scientific strategy throughout California, but also help identify regional priorities and link current Watershed Center researchers to CalTrout projects.
CalTrout’s Executive Director, Curtis Knight, sums up the partnership this way, ”CalTrout's work is based on a foundation of science to inform our restoration, policy and legal work. Our partnership with UC Davis
is a great example of how we put science into action.”
Ann Willis is a staff researcher at the Center for Watershed Sciences. Her work focuses on water temperature management of streams to support cold water fish conservation. Dr. Robert Lusardi is the CalTrout/UC Davis Wild and Coldwater Fish Partnership Lead.
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