The federal government is charging full-speed into a fossil-fueled future—reviving dam projects, gutting environmental protections, and turning independent agencies like FERC into puppets of political agendas. From Sites Reservoir to the McCloud River, a growing movement of Tribes and environmental advocates is pushing back to defend clean water, native species, and democratic oversight.

This month’s Federal Watch tracks shifting tides in Congress, endangered species protections, and federal agency staffing—revealing how decisions in D.C. ripple across California’s rivers. From fish protections on the chopping block, to subsidies for deadbeat dams, dive into the latest threats and under-the-radar developments.

On April 15, the Pacific Fishery Management Council voted to close the commercial salmon fishery for the third year in a row, and restricted sportfishing for salmon to a very brief window.

While these measures are necessary to protect salmon stocks, the impacts are mostly felt by fishing communities and the seafood industries they support…

Harming endangered species is about to become federal policy. President Trump has long singled out endangered species protections for the Delta smelt – which he has called “an essentially worthless fish” – as the reason for water shortages on California[A1] , ignoring the facts of how little water is actually allocated for environmental purposes and how many different river and estuary species (including salmon, steelhead, and sturgeon) are also protected by environmental water requirements…

Ever since the election on November 5, there’s been no lack of speculation about what exactly the return of Donald Trump to the White House will mean for all kinds of policies, from the economy and immigration to national security and international relations. But there’s no uncertainty about the consequences for the environment – it won’t be pretty….

YOUR VOICE IS NEEDED: In December and January, the State Water Resources Control Board is soliciting public feedback on the best way to protect fish and wildlife, water quality, and the ecological health of the San Francisco Bay-Delta estuary and the Central Valley rivers that feed it. The Board is also considering a “Voluntary Agreements” (VAs) proposal from the Newsom administration and big water districts that would allow even more water to be diverted. The VA approach means ecosystem collapse and species extinction…

The hijacking of the process to update Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections happened twice, the first time by President Trump, the second time by Governor Newsom. But nobody’s laughing the second time around. Instead, Friends of the River and its allies are working to prevent a replay and ensure that new, stronger ESA regulations are ultimately adopted.

Governors Brown and Newsom have made no secret of their strong support for the construction of another west-side off-stream reservoir to park Sacramento River water. Such a giant reservoir would exist in the seismically prone valleys of the Coast Range west of the Central Valley…

The California State Water Resources Control Board (Water Board or Board) recently released its Draft Staff Report for the Phase II Update of the Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan (Bay-Delta Plan or Plan). This report, and the process to update the Bay-Delta Plan, will have critical implications for the health of California rivers and ecosystems. Unfortunately, the Staff Report outlines several options that will fail to protect the Delta and its tributary rivers…

Friends of the River and the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance (CSPA), along with a coalition of tribes and environmental organizations submitted a formal protest against the water rights application of the Sites Project Authority for the proposed Sites Reservoir. This protest is part of a legally required process to ensure public concerns are addressed when granting water rights in California…

From bad bills to bad rhetoric, there’s the “traditional bad stuff” happening in Congress right now…