Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Available On Air Stations
Watch Live

California Water Supplies Face More Challenges

Further restrictions on water supplies for the Central Valley and Southern California could result from a court hearing that starts today (Friday) in Fresno.

Further restrictions on water supplies for the Central Valley and Southern California could result from a court hearing that starts today (Friday) in Fresno.

A federal judge will hear arguments about what remedies may be needed to benefit protected salmon.

The judge ruled in April that an existing "biological opinion" does not do enough to protect salmon during operation of state and federal water projects.

Advertisement

An earlier case involving delta smelt has already led to water cuts.

The court ordered restrictions require more Northern California water be left in the troubled Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to help declining fish populations.

Those court restrictions, a drought in the Colorado River Basin and two dry winters in California prompted Governor Schwarzenegger to declare a statewide drought this week.