News Release Archive

Reclamation Releases Environmental Documents for Meridian Farms Water Company Phase 2 Fish Screen Project

Media Contact: Pete Lucero, 916-978-5100, plucero@usbr.gov

For Release: August 09, 2012

MERIDIAN, Calif. – The Bureau of Reclamation and California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG) have released a joint Draft Environmental Assessment/Initial Study (EA/IS) for the Meridian Farms Water Company (MFWC) Phase 2 Fish Screen Project (Project).

Reclamation proposes to provide cost-share funding to MFWC through its Anadromous Fish Screen Program (AFSP) for replacing and consolidating their two existing unscreened diversion structures on the Sacramento River (Drexler and Meridian diversions) with a new 135-cubic-feet-per-second screened intake and pumping facility. This meets the CDFG and National Marine Fisheries Service anadromous fish screen criteria.

MFWC’s Proposed Project/Action is to remove their existing Drexler and Meridian diversions and pumping plants along the Sacramento River in the vicinity of the town of Meridian, Sutter County, Calif., and replace them with a new consolidated intake facility equipped with retractable cylindrical fish screens to prevent entrainment of migrating, at-risk, native fish species.

The new intake facility would be located immediately adjacent to MFWC’s existing Meridian diversion structure. The Proposed Project/Action also includes improvements to the Main Canal to provide needed flow capacity to the Drexler Service Area, extension of the Drexler Pipeline and construction of a new Drexler re-lift pump station on the Main Canal east of the Sacramento River. The Proposed Project/Action would not increase MFWC’s overall diversion capacity from the Sacramento River.

Reclamation is the federal lead agency under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Reclamation’s AFSP involvement is limited to contributing up to 50 percent of the cost of the fish screen intake and pumping facility of the Proposed Project/Action. This funding will be provided by Reclamation under Section 3406(b)(21) of the Central Valley Project Improvement Act which authorizes the Department of the Interior to develop and implement measures to avoid losses of juvenile anadromous fish resulting from unscreened diversions on the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers and their tributaries.

The Draft EA/IS and Finding of No Significant Impact/Mitigated Negative Declaration (FONSI/MND) were prepared in accordance with the NEPA and California Environmental Quality Act and are available online at http://www.usbr.gov/mp/nepa/nepa_project_details.php?Project_ID=10330. If you encounter problems accessing the documents, please call 916-978-5100 or email mppublicaffairs@usbr.gov.

Please send written comments to Shelly Hatleberg, Bureau of Reclamation, 2800 Cottage Way, MP-410, Sacramento, CA 95825, by close of business, Friday, September 7, 2012. Comments may also be faxed to Ms. Hatleberg at 916-978-5290 or emailed to shatleberg@usbr.gov. For additional information or to request a copy of the Draft EA/FONSI, please contact Ms. Hatleberg at 916-978-5050. Copies of the Draft EA/FONSI may also be viewed at Reclamation’s Sacramento office at the above address.

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Relevant Link:

Environmental Documents for Meridian Farms Water Company