Press Release
Posted:
Washington, D.C. – On May 20, 2025, Representatives Mike Thompson (CA-04), Doris Matsui (CA-07), John Garamendi (CA-08), Mark DeSaulnier (CA-10), and Josh Harder (CA-09) issued a formal letter to Governor Newsom and California state legislature leadership reaffirming their strong opposition to the Delta Conveyance Project, also known as the Delta Tunnel. This letter comes in response to recent efforts by the Governor to fast-track approval and construction of the controversial project.
“The Delta Tunnel poses a grave threat to the environmental, economic, and cultural well-being of communities in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta region,” the Representatives said. “From exacerbating water quality issues for our local agriculture and wildlife to creating water scarcity, this project’s unintended consequences will be a calamity in our communities.”
In the letter, the lawmakers also pointed to alternative, less expensive and more sustainable water management strategies to the Delta Tunnel, which is estimated to cost more than $20 billion.
“Instead of revising a decades-old proposal such as the Delta Tunnel, we must invest in forward-thinking alternatives that cost less and can be completed faster,” the Members added. “This includes increasing our water storage capacity, modernizing our existing conveyance infrastructure to limit evaporation, increasing our water use efficiency, and more, which have all seen significant federal interest and investment.”
The Representatives reiterated their commitment to working collaboratively with state leadership to secure federal resources and advance effective solutions that address California’s water management challenges.
The full text of the letter is available here.