Updated from October 11, 2003 Meeting
Note: These draft principles were adopted by the participants at the October 11 meeting. You can comment on these principles by sending email to kevin@wolfandassociates.com who will circulate your comments to the steering committee and send you any replies they make.
The adopted principles will guide the actions of the SVEWC and its steering committee until changed. Member organizations and individuals do not have to have the same principles, but they have to accept that the SVEWC will use these principles as it makes decisions. Campaigns that are supported by the SVEWC will also need to support the adopted principles in their actions and decisions.
The principles developed here will be useful to other organizations and environmental efforts around the state. Your help in stating them well and in making the list complete will be very worthwhile. In the future, we anticipate creating a discussion forum to advance the debate and refinement of these principles. Thank you.
The Interim Steering Committee
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Principles of the Sacramento Valley Environmental Water Caucus
Adopted at the October 11, 2003 Meeting
1. Guaranteed Water. Ground and surface water essential to habitat and environmental needs shall be secured in perpetuity.
2. Precautionary Principle. Precautionary measures shall be taken to reduce or eliminate harm to human health or the environment. The burden of proof that an action will not harm the environment is on the proponent.
3. Collaboration. SVEWC members support its mission, goals and principles and help each other in their individual environmental efforts so long as these efforts, campaigns, projects and programs do not go against their own principles, goals and strategies.
4. No Transference of Harm. A project or program's redirected impacts to the environment shall be avoided, minimized and/or fully mitigated.
5. Meet or Exceed Applicable Laws and Regulations. The SVEWC is committed to meeting or exceeding all environmental, cultural, public health and safety laws and regulations.
6. Beneficiary Pays. Water users, water polluters and water project proponents should be responsible for paying their fair share of the full environmental costs, including monitoring of projects and programs that would benefit them, both in the water source areas, as well as in the water use locations.
7. No Water Rights Holders Exempt. All water rights holders are subject to the public trust and the doctrine of reasonable use.
8. Least Cost First. After fully accounting for long-term "external costs" to the environment, society, recreation, the economy and biodiversity, the and most environmentally-beneficial and cost-effective water supply, pollution control, restoration and flood control projects and programs shall be chosen.
9. Science. Independently peer-reviewed, transparent, quality assured, and easily-accessible monitoring data and scientific research should be developed and used to create ecologically sustainable water management and effective restoration projects, programs and policies with a focus on subwatersheds and on making the best use of the existing information.
10. Flexibility, Disclosure and Interaction. The SVEWC operates under the principles of high flexibility, high disclosure, and high personal interaction.
