California policy protecting major rivers upheld in long-awaited court decision

A state policy that seeks to protect California’s major rivers and creeks by cracking down on how much water is pumped out by cities and farms can move forward despite widespread opposition, the Superior Court has ruled.

The long-awaited decision on what’s known as the Bay-Delta Plan denies 116 claims in a dozen separate lawsuits that seek to undo a 2018 update to the policy, most of which are from water agencies saying the limits on their water draws go too far.