Delta Vision: riding the crest of big ideas

The Sacramento-San Joaquin Rivers Delta is in crisis. The prevailing viewpoint is simple: the Delta will collapse politically, structurally, and environmentally unless California identifies and implements bold changes. In 2006, Governor Schwarzenegger convened Delta Vision and invited interested stakeholders to share in the creation of a sustainable Delta vision. I use qualitative and quantitative analysis to code stakeholder testimonies obtained from the Delta Vision website. Testimonies identified a range of issues that are crucial to restore and maintain the Delta and its water supply. I use descriptive statistics to identify which issues are most important to each stakeholder interest group. I then used bivariate correlation to analyze relationships between twelve variables associated with Delta issues. Stakeholder participation in the Delta Vision process was lower than expected in a process this significant. Three stakeholder groups—water, local government, and experts—submitted the majority of testimonies. Stakeholders in this study identified inadequate conveyance and storage facilities, and flood threats as the most important and water conservation as the least important issue facing the Delta.