IEP Stakeholders News

Greetings IEP Community Members,

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would like to invite you to a joint information update on Thursday, November 7, 2024 from 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

As has been the case for the past three years of the Delta Smelt Experimental Release project, we normally provide individual updates to various technical teams on our planning efforts.

Next month, we are inviting all interested parties to one joint meeting where we will focus on Year Four Experimental Release plans.

The meeting will be held virtually through Microsoft Teams.

Meeting Information

• Microsoft Teams meeting link
• Meeting ID: 220 701 303 621
• Passcode: CvVsvr

Thank you and we look forward to seeing you in November.

Katherine Sun
Fish & Wildlife Biologist
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
San Francisco Bay-Delta Fish and Wildlife Office
650 Capitol Mall, Eighth Floor Suite 300
Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 930-5641

Dear IEP community,

The Delta Independent Science Board, which provides scientific oversight of programs that support adaptive management, is planning to host a symposium in early 2025 that explores the 1) current climate projections for California’s Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and related uncertainties; and 2) how organizations in the region are incorporating climate change into their decision making. The goal of the symposium is to increase the understanding among Delta ISB members, researchers, practitioners, and affected parties about the latest climate science. The Delta ISB has released a draft prospectus that describes the scope of the symposium and is interested in your feedback on the draft prospectus, as well as ideas for speakers.

You can email comments to disb@deltacouncil.ca.gov by November 19, 2024 at 12:00 p.m.

Please let us know if you have any questions.

Delta Independent Science Board
715 P Street, 15-300
Sacramento, CA 95814
disb@deltacouncil.ca.gov
 

Greetings IEP Community Members,

The Delta Science Program would like us to share their Science Communication Survey with IEP community members to better understand the science communication needs of those who live, do research and advance knowledge of California's Bay-Delta. The survey consists of 13 questions, including a mix of multiple choice and short answer questions, to help the Delta Science Program better tailor its science communication efforts. Answers to the survey are by default anonymous. You can choose to share your contact information should you wish to be included in follow up information-gathering efforts on this topic.

• Delta Science Program's Science Communication Survey Form

Questions related to the science communication survey can be directed to Miranda Tilcock at Miranda.Tilcock@deltacouncil.ca.gov.

Please see the general announcements below that may be of interest to you and others.

Reclamation, Fish and Wildlife Service announce Notice of Funding Opportunity for Central Valley Project fish studies

The Bureau of Reclamation and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced a Notice of Funding Opportunity for projects that collect information on Chinook salmon, rainbow trout, green sturgeon, white sturgeon, and Delta smelt.

Reclamation and the Service are awarding up to $5M in FY2025 to projects that collect biological information on select fish population in the Central Valley and Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta. The information will be used to reduce uncertainties in existing decision support models, which are used to evaluate recovery strategies for Chinook salmon, rainbow trout, green sturgeon, white sturgeon, and Delta smelt. Eligible projects include field and laboratory research studies that are aimed at measuring fish growth and survival rates, movement, spawning population size, abundance and distribution, and many others.

View the News Release for more information about this exciting funding opportunity and how to apply.

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CDFW Kicks Off White Sturgeon Season Opener with "Conserve The Sturg" Campaign

The white sturgeon sport fishing season opens Oct. 1, 2024, only for catch-and-release fishing. Anglers may continue to fish using 2024 Sturgeon Fishing Report Cards purchased earlier in the year, but all remaining 2024 sturgeon harvest tags are invalid, and no harvest is permitted under any circumstances.

“Conserve The Sturg” Campaign

In support of sustaining sturgeon and California’s fisheries, CDFW has developed the “Conserve the Sturg” campaign that aims to raise awareness about sustainable angling and stewardship for this large, long-lived and prehistoric fish.

“There is a unique thrill to catching this living-legend fish while also releasing it back to its waters knowing that this species will live on for future generations,” said Jonathan Nelson, CDFW environmental program manager.

To learn more about “Conserve the Sturg” and about how the public can help sustain this prehistoric species, visit wildlife.ca.gov/Conserve-the-Sturg.

View the 2022-2024 CDFW News Releases for more information about the Sturgeon Season Opener, the "Conserve the Sturg" campaign and monitoring efforts for white sturgeon.

Greetings IEP Community,

Last year, the Predation Project Work Team (PWT) rebooted a Predation Project Tracker. The objective of the tracker is to share predation-related projects in the region, to promote complementary efforts and collaboration, and to provide a resource for researchers and managers who are interested in project design, methods, or results.

The tracker consists of a voluntary project submission form that people who lead predation-related projects in the region can share information about their projects. In our first year, a total of 12 projects were entered into the Tracker and posted on the Predation PWT web page.

As planned, we are sending an annual reminder to update existing projects or submit new predation-related projects. If you previously submitted a project and have any changes or updates, please complete the project submission form. If you have a new project to submit, use the same form. If you know of someone else who leads a predation project, please share this message or the form link. The form is largely multiple choice with a few short answer questions, with an average completion time of under 15 minutes.

Please be aware that form submissions will be posted publicly, except for email addresses. Please submit your revised or new predation-related projects by the end of October, although the form will remain open at all times for new projects or to update already-entered projects.

In early November, we will post the updated list of predation projects on the Predation PWT web page.

Questions may be addressed to Geoff Steinhart (geoffrey_steinhart@fws.gov).

Thanks,
Geoff Steinhart and Tyler Pilger
Predation PWT Co-Chairs

Greetings IEP community,

Analisa Vavoso, an undergraduate researcher at Chapman University, in collaboration with Dr. Richelle Tanner, is conducting a survey on environmental practitioner's emotions related to climate change. They kindly requested we share this survey with our members. See their announcement below.

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IEP community members,

We thank you in advance for your consideration to distribute this message to your staff, colleagues, and organization.

We are reaching out to individuals whose work or education concerns the environment. This survey is focused on emotions concerning climate change and burnout. We hope you can help us address the role that climate change plays in environmental practitioner’s emotions by answering a quick, ~10-minute survey. If you complete the survey, you will be entered into a raffle to win one $100 Amazon gift card.

If you are interested, follow the survey link to take the survey. We will make every effort to keep your study data confidential and not share your personal information with anyone outside the research team, however, we cannot guarantee confidentiality.

Thank you in advance for your participation!

Survey Link: Chapman University environmental practitioner's emotions concerning climate change(opens in new tab)

Please consider helping us distribute this widely across the environmental science field by sharing this email.

If you have any questions, please let us know.

Richelle Tanner, PhD
Email: rtanner@chapman.edu

Analisa Vavoso
Email: vavoso@chapman.edu

Hello All!

The DELTA (Developing Environmental Literacy, Taking Action) education program was developed for grades 6 – 8, emphasizing student interactions with scientists that work in the Delta through hands-on scientific investigations, and evidence-based explanations for discoveries. It's hoped that this program will provide students in the region, as well as their families, with information about the important role that science plays in managing Delta water for the state's people and its environment.

The curriculum meets California standards for science and English-Language Arts, with different emphases for each grade level:

• 6th: Introduction to California's water infrastructure and how it works (tentative timeframe is January or early February 2025)
• 7th: Ecosystem monitoring with an interactive field component (tentatively scheduled during the week of September 9th, 2024. Many volunteers are needed due to the field component.)
• 8th: Invasive species and environmental DNA monitoring (tentative timeframe is March or April 2025)

Please fill out our DELTA Education Program Volunteer Interest Survey form if you would like to volunteer.

Thank you!
The DELTA Team

Sarah Brown, PhD
Senior Environmental Scientist (Supervisor)
sarah.brown@water.ca.gov
Division of Integrated Science & Engineering
California Department of Water Resources
Mobile: (279) 386-6084

Greetings IEP Community members,

The Culture and Supplementation of Smelt (CASS) Steering Committee has released their annual memo (PDF) to request proposals for the use of cultured Delta Smelt originating from the U.C. Davis Fish Conservation & Culture Laboratory from the 2025 year-class. Review the memo to learn more about the proposal submittal process.

Note, there will only be one opportunity to submit requests for 2025 brood year fish; 2024 brood-year post-spawn adult fish may also be available. Requests must be submitted to Nora De Cuir (Kearns & West) at ndecuir@kearnswest.com on or before September 30, 2024.

Share this announcement with others who may be interested.

Kind regards,
IEP Program Support
iep@wildlife.ca.gov

Greetings IEP Community members,

The Department of Water Resources has completed the West False River Comprehensive Emergency Drought Barrier Effectiveness Report. This report with accompanying appendices encapsulates the 2-years of the Emergency Drought Barrier activities, data, and analysis.

• Emergency Drought Barrier Effectiveness Report and Appendices (pdf)

Contact Rosemary Hartman if you have any questions or issues accessing the files.

Greetings IEP Community members,

Below are five items that may be of interest to the IEP community. Please share this information with others.

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Aquatic Vegetation ID Workshop

The Aquatic Vegetation Project Work Team plans to host a vegetation ID workshop in September 2024, if a sufficient number of people (>20) express interest via this short survey. Please submit survey responses by Monday, June 10th. Please share the survey with anyone else who might be interested.

During the first half of the workshop, experts will give presentations covering common species found in the Bay-Delta ecosystem, including native and non-native species. During the second half, participants will get hands-on identification experience with live specimens of many of the species covered in the presentations. The workshop will be approximately four hours and take place at DWR - West Sacramento (3500 Industrial Blvd).

• Aquatic Vegetation Identification Workshop survey

Contact Nick Rasmussen (nicholas.rasmussen@water.ca.gov) for questions.

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Notice of Funding Opportunity for the Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watersheds

Fiscal Year 2024 Building Partner Capacity and Promoting Resiliency and Equity under Clean Water Act, Wetlands, Nonpoint Source, Monitoring, Assessment and Listing Programs

• Initial Announcement EPA-OW-OWOW-24-03 (pdf)

I. Funding Opportunity Description

A. BACKGROUND

The EPA is soliciting applications from eligible applicants to provide support for training and related activities to build the capacity of agricultural partners, state, territorial and Tribal officials and nongovernmental stakeholders in activities to be carried out to support the goals of the Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 303(d) Program, the CWA 305(b) Program, the Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Program, the Nonpoint Source (CWA Section 319) Program, the Fish Monitoring/Advisory Programs, the Recreational Waters/Beach Monitoring Programs and the Water Quality Monitoring Program.

B. STATUTORY AUTHORITY

The statutory authority for the assistance agreements to be funded under this announcement is Section 104(b)(3) of the CWA which authorizes assistance agreements for the following activities: conducting or promoting the coordination and acceleration of research, investigations, experiments, training, demonstrations, surveys and studies relating to the causes, effects (including health and welfare effects), extent, prevention, reduction and elimination of water pollution.

Implementation projects are not eligible for funding under this announcement. If the application is a demonstration project, then the applicant must describe how it meets the following requirement. Demonstration projects must involve new or experimental technologies, methods, or approaches. The EPA expects that the results of the project will be disseminated so that others can benefit from the knowledge gained in the demonstration project. A project that is accomplished through the performance of routine, traditional, or established practices, or a project that is simply intended to carry out a task rather than transfer information or advance the state of knowledge, however worthwhile the project might be, is not a demonstration project. For applications that include demonstration projects, the applicant must describe how the project meets the above requirements.

C. NATIONAL PRIORITY AREAS

Each application submitted under this announcement must address one, and only one, of the five National Priority Areas described below. Applicants may submit more than one complete application package under this announcement as long as each application is separately submitted and addresses only one National Priority Area. The cover page of each application package must clearly indicate the National Priority Area addressed in the application. If an applicant submits an application that addresses more than one National Priority Area, it will be deemed ineligible and will not be reviewed.

National Priority Area I: State and Tribal Aquatic Resource Monitoring Technical Training and Capacity Building Workshops
National Priority Area II: State, Tribal and Territorial Data Management and Data Sharing Training Workshops in Support of CWA Section 303(d), CWA Section 305(b), TMDLs and Water Quality Monitoring and Assessment
National Priority Area III: Training Workshops on Recreational Waters and Beach Monitoring Programs
National Priority Area IV: Nonpoint Source Technical Support for Tribes
National Priority Area V: Training Workshop on Fish Monitoring and Advisory Programs

A full application package  can be found on the Grants.gov web page under the grant opportunity EPA-OW-OWOW-24-03.

Applications must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov by July 17, 2024 at 11:59 P.M. EDT. Late submission will not be considered for funding. Questions about this RFA must be submitted in writing via e-mail and must be received by the Agency Contact identified in Section VII, AGENCY CONTACTS, by July 01, 2024.

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2024 Bay-Delta Science Conference Call for Abstracts

The due date for submitting an abstract for the 2024 Bay-Delta Science Conference has been extended to June 10, 2024. For more information, visit the Bay-Delta Science Conference website.

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Draft Grand Challenges to Delta Science

The Delta Science Program is developing the third iteration of the Delta Science Plan, which aims to provide the vision, principles, and approaches for coordinating science in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. This iteration's proposed focus is on addressing the “wicked” problems, or “grand challenges,” facing Delta science.

An essay detailing the literature review process and draft grand challenges (pdf) is now posted, and the authors are seeking feedback.

The opportunity to comment starts May 28, 2024. Comments may be submitted via this online survey, emailed to collaborativescience@deltacouncil.ca.gov, or mailed to the following address by July 12, 2024, to be considered for the final Grand Challenges Essay.

Delta Science Program
Collaborative Science and Peer Review Unit
715 P Street, 15-300
Sacramento, CA 95814

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Reminder: Public Comments Wanted on the Draft Delta Plan Five-Year Review Report

The Delta Stewardship Council is seeking input on its five-year review of the Delta Plan.

This report uses established performance measures to provide a snapshot of measured progress toward Delta Plan objectives. It also includes an analysis of the Delta Plan’s regulatory functions and a series of recommendations, along with associated actions to outline how the Council and its partners can implement the Delta Plan over the next five years.

As a reminder, comments are due June 10, 2024, via email to fiveyearreview@deltacouncil.ca.gov, or by mail to the address below.

Delta Stewardship Council
715 P Street, 15-300
Sacramento, CA 95814