State Water Board releases the final draft Bay-Delta Plan; comments close September 18, vote set for October 28 to 29
The final draft of the Sacramento and Delta update offers two compliance paths: voluntary Healthy Rivers and Landscapes commitments (flow plus habitat) or enforceable unimpaired-flow objectives. It targets more than 27,000 acres of habitat and $2.9 billion in restoration.
- Habitat restoration target
- > 27,000 acres
- Restoration funding facilitated
- $2.9 billion
- Adoption vote
- October 28 to 29, 2026
What happened
On August 20, 2026 the State Water Resources Control Board released the final draft update to the Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan for the Sacramento River and Delta. It keeps two compliance pathways: a voluntary pathway under the Healthy Rivers and Landscapes program, combining flow and habitat commitments, and a regulatory pathway of enforceable unimpaired-flow objectives for those who do not participate.
The plan is built around protection of fish and wildlife through increased river flows and restoration of more than 27,000 acres of aquatic habitat, and is intended to facilitate $2.9 billion in restoration and related actions, with annual reporting, triennial Board review, and a dedicated science program. The Board has scheduled its adoption vote for October 28 to 29.
What it means if you own water here
Diverters on the Sacramento, Feather, Yuba, American, and in the Delta will be bound one way or the other: by their voluntary-agreement commitments, or by a percentage of unimpaired flow left in the river. Either reduces divertible supply against senior rights, and the voluntary path creates a second market for flow and habitat contributions alongside straight water leases.
The comment window is the last chance to shape terms before adoption. Owners of Sacramento Valley rights who have not read the staff report’s flow percentages should, before October.
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