… In December 2024, a new framework took effect to minimize harm to endangered species from the operation of California’s two biggest water projects. The framework, developed by federal fishery agencies and called a “biological opinion,” replaces a framework that had been in place since 2019. … The new science and additional flexibility that underpin the revised framework allow water project operators to respond more nimbly to real-time conditions in California rivers and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, where rivers drain to San Francisco Bay. Farms and cities have the potential to gain additional water supply, while endangered species are protected. … The State Water Project, a network of reservoirs and pumping plants, provides some or all of the water used by 27 million Californians and 750,000 acres of farmland. Since the new biological opinion went into effect on December 19, the State Water Project – a major source of Southern California water supply – already has gained 12,500 acre-feet of additional water supply beyond what would have been possible under the 2019 framework. The additional supply is approximately enough water to meet the needs of 37,500 households for a year.