Small California community worried construction of delta tunnel project would tear town apart
In his budget proposal released on Wednesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom included funding for the $20 billion water tunnel known as the Delta Conveyance Project.
No place will be more impacted by the project than the tiny town of Hood, in Sacramento County. It will be ground-zero in the effort to build the tunnel, and with fewer than 300 people, they don't have a lot of political clout.
But the feeling in town about the project is pretty much unanimous.
"Typical small town. Everybody knows everybody," said Mayor Mario Moreno, as he stood on the street corner that makes up the entire downtown.
He presides over the 271 residents of Hood. The sign says, "Population 313," but it's a little out of date and some people have left. But those who remain have a pretty universal feeling about the plan to place the Delta Conveyance tunnel project there.
"I don't really know anybody who's for the proposed project," Moreno said.
Hood will be in the center of the project with huge intakes just above and just below the town.
The plan is to drill a 36-foot-wide tunnel 100 feet below ground to funnel water from the Sacramento River, 45 miles to a pumping station to be sent to Central Valley farms and Southern California cities.
In his budget briefing on Wednesday, Newsom talked about how vital he thinks it will be for the state's water infrastructure.
"One of the most important projects in the United States of America," he told reporters. "One of the most important climate adaptation projects in this country. We have got to move that project forward and learn the lessons from high-speed rail."
It's interesting that he mentioned the lessons of the high-speed rail because, in Hood, they point to the stalled rail line as a reason to be worried about how long the tunnel boring operation could affect the little town's future.
"They said 10 years, eight years, 10 years," Moreno said. "But we know by state government stuff that they've built, that are major infrastructure projects, whether it's the proposed high-speed rail or the East Bay span, rebuilding takes way longer than they anticipated."
But beyond the construction headaches, Hood residents fear a loss of their way of life.
"Having these giant tunnels right in our backyard is going to take the landscape away," said Shawn Morales. "I mean, who wants that? This is not a city. This is the country and country should remain how it is, you know?"
"It just takes something away from you that's real, real big. That's pretty mighty," said Charles Rice, pointing to the river flowing across the street. "It is. It's pretty majestic for all of us. When it rains, it talks. When it thunders, it talks. When the water gets high, we kind of enjoy a little bit of how it all works out here. And so they're going to come along and put some screws to it, you know?"
Newsom summed up his feelings in a press release announcing that he is fast-tracking the project.
"We're done with barriers. Let's get this built," it said in bold letters.
To do that, he said he intends to simplify permitting, limit protests and legal challenges, and increase the state's authority to acquire land for the project.
That bothered Aaron Pruitt and his son Mason, who operate a thrift store and antique warehouse in the town.
"Now, if they're going to put their big thumb on it and say, this is the deal and you have to accept it. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth," Aaron said.
"All this will be destroyed by the hands of those who want to destroy the laws that bind and protect us in our Delta," said Mason. "It's truly sad because a lot of people from my generation that are going to feel the effects."
The truth is, no one really knows what to expect when construction begins. They only know that whatever is built there will not be done with the town in mind.
"Do we get a benefit out of it? Oh no," said Moreno. "Somebody is but it's all going down south."
And they know that having the governor describe their efforts to protect the area as "barriers" lets them know where they stand when the state starts taking water from their river.
