U.S. agency's smelt plan 'arbitrary,' judge rules

[alp227]

(12-14) 21:05 PST FRESNO -- A federal judge has ruled that a landmark 2008 environmental study laying the groundwork for controversial water cutbacks from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta relied on faulty science.

In his much-anticipated decision released Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Oliver Wanger ordered the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to re-examine and rewrite its plan for the threatened delta smelt.

The agency's solution for shoring up the collapsing species - namely cutting water exports to California cities and farms - is "arbitrary" and "capricious," the Fresno judge wrote in his 225-page decision.

"Despite the harm visited on California water users, (the Fish and Wildlife Service) has failed to provide lawful explanations for the apparent over-appropriation of project water supplies for species protection," Wanger wrote. "The public cannot afford sloppy science and uni-directional prescriptions that ignore California's water needs."

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/12/14/BAKO1GQMTH.DTL

Judge Wanger=GHW Bush nominee

[XemaSab]

1. Judge Wanger is great

Most of the time he comes down firmly on the side of the fish.