From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

A dry spell Butte County groundwater levels at historic lows

Coalition response…San Joaquin Valley farmers have been aggressive during the past century in managing groundwater supplies. They stepped forward and supported the construction of the Central Valley Project (CVP) that delivered surface water to the region to reduce reliance on groundwater. This support required them to commit billions of dollars toward repaying the costs of constructing the dams, canals, maintenance and operation costs of the CVP.

Another example of improved water supply management is the $2.1 billion farmers have spent upgrading irrigation systems on 1.8 million acres of San Joaquin Valley farmland, including the installation of drip and micro-irrigation technology.

Barbara Vlamis is concerned that the proposed Bay Delta Conservation Plan and its tunnels will “devastate” other regions’ water supplies but there is nothing to support what she is saying. The BDCP is designed to provide reliable deliveries of water that people already have a right to use. And the amount that would be exported is on average the same that has been moved over the past 20 years.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

Cities may get just 5% of Delta water requests next year

Coalition response…Bill Jennings continues to beat the drum with the same message that others need to cut back on water use in order to protect the Delta. This may be a “news flash” for him but others have already cut back. In fact, San Joaquin Valley farms have been cutting back for 20 years thanks to federal regulations intended to help fish that have been largely ineffective. How can Jennings, or anyone else for that matter, justify the same old path when it obviously isn’t working? Is their priority helping fish or is it putting farmers out of business? If its fish you would think they would devote their energy to finding a solution that really works.

Nov. 20, 2013 — Release Immediate

Announced Water Allocation Serves as Wake-Up Call
to Fix Broken Water Supply System

(Statement by Mike Wade, executive director of the California Farm Water Coalition, on the State Water Project 5 percent allocation announcement.)

“Today’s announcement by the Department of Water Resources should be a wake-up call to all Californians that our water supply system is broken. More than 750,000 acres of farmland in the State Water Project service area will once again face severe water shortages.

“Land that could have been planted to grow fresh produce will lie fallow. Consumers who shop for California farm products may instead find fewer choices at the grocery store, higher prices, or produce grown outside of the country. This announcement comes at the same time a report released by the Department of Pesticide Regulation reaffirmed an almost 100 percent pesticide residue compliance record for California-grown produce. California farm products are safe.

“This cannot continue. We must find a way to update our aging water infrastructure and improve water supply reliability to farms, homes and businesses. In the short term federal fishery agencies can legally exercise their discretion on the limits they set so that we can capture the water when it is available. And the Bay Delta Conservation Plan proposal by Governor Brown is expected to achieve further water supply reliability for 25 million Californians and millions of acres of productive farmland.”

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From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

Opinion: There’s a better way

Coalition response…While Ken Vogel would like you to believe that California is suffering under an oversubscribed water supply it is important to note that South of Delta CVP water users received 100 percent of their supplies from 1952 to 1989, with the exception of 1977, a severe drought year. Today those supplies have been decimated, not because of an oversubscribed water supply but because of environmental regulations that limit water exports that once served several million acres of productive farmland. Sadly, those regulations have not helped endangered species recover and people like Vogel want to continue to try and fix the problem with a solution that is proven not to work.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

AquAlliance warns not to follow in dry footsteps of the San Joaquin Valley

Coalition response…Characterizing farms along the west side of the San Joaquin Valley as “industrial agriculture” paints the wrong picture of farmers who use Central Valley Project water. Almost 4,000 family farms receive CVP water south of the Delta and they share the same supply that their counterparts in the Sacramento Valley do. Maintaining water supply reliability helps farmers provide jobs and support local community economic activity whether it is in Chico or Mendota. Despite claims from Barbara Vlamis and Jim Brobeck, nothing in the State Water Action Plan or Bay Delta Conservation Plan threatens area-of-origin water rights for users north of the Delta. Both plans are intended to increase the reliability of water farmers and others already have a legal right to use.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

Opinion: Will There Be Enough Water for the Twin Tunnels?

Coalition response…Water users are seeking more reliable water supplies from the Bay Delta Conservation Plan. Deliveries of water that flows through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta have been interrupted in recent years because of drought conditions and Endangered Species Act regulations that are suppose to protect fish. As an example, beginning last December at the same time that water flowing through the Delta was high, regulations meant to protect fish prevented it from being stored for farms to use later in the year. More than 727,000 acre-feet of water went to the ocean instead of helping meet the needs of 25 million Californians and nearly 4,000 family farms. Federal officials have yet to provide information that this action benefited endangered fish.

The Bay Delta Conservation Plan could have avoided this loss of water. Read more about it at farmwater.org/watersupplycutshurtusall.pdf.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

Groundwater levels falling at alarming rate while lawmakers decide what to do

Coalition response…San Joaquin Valley farmers and water officials recognized the amount of water being pumped from aquifers in the early 1900s as land subsidence was occurring. One of the benefits of the federal and State water projects was to provide a surface supply of water that would curtail the need to pump groundwater at unsustainable levels. Today’s surface supply has been negatively impacted by Environmental Species Act regulations and drought conditions. Consequently, farmers have been forced to increase pumping from the aquifer to maintain farm production and associated jobs and local economic benefits.

One avenue of reducing the reliance on groundwater would be to restore the water lost due to unproven regulations.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request. To receive News Line, click here.

Opinion: Twin Tunnels: LA prospers, Fortune 500 farmers thrive & SJ County dies

Coalition response…The State and federal water supply projects significantly aided in the advancements to California’s economy and a way of life sought by many, as indicated in the opening paragraphs by the author. Decades after these projects became operational, the Endangered Species Act was approved by the federal government and has threatened what had once been a reliable water supply.

ESA regulations have taken water away from farmers and 25 million Californians for the protection of endangered fish in the Delta. Federal officials have failed to provide proof that these actions are helping the fish. Combined with drought conditions, these regulations have forced hundreds of thousands of acres to be unplanted and thousands of workers to lose their jobs. The Bay Delta Conservation Plan and its tunnels provide a solution to reduce the ESA effects on California’s water supply by sending the allowed amount of water through the tunnels instead of pushing fish toward the pumps.

The author’s suggestions that include south Delta tunnels, levee improvements and new south of Delta reservoirs are good ideas but they do not resolve the threat to endangered fish.

Years of study by scientists, biologists and researchers have gone into the Bay Delta Conservation Plan. It is the best option to provide a secure water future for California.

 

From Irrigation Association

Release Immediate

Nolletti, Zoldoske Honored With IA Awards

FALLS CHURCH, VA. (Nov. 8, 2013)— The Irrigation Association presented its annual awards during the General Session, Nov. 7, at the 2013 Irrigation Show and Education Conference in Austin, Texas. The association honored individuals in two categories:

Industry Achievement Award

The Industry Achievement Award was established in 1966 and recognizes an individual whose career demonstrates outstanding contributions to the advancement of the irrigation industry, products, practices, education, research or professionalism.

Vince Nolletti, Paige Electric Co. (Fresno, Calif.) Nolletti is recognized for his outstanding contributions to the industry, which include introducing the first commercially available microprocessor-based irrigation controllers, the KCS system, and increasing awareness of best management practices for electrical aspects of irrigation systems. He has been actively involved in several IA committees since the late 1990s, and he currently serves on the Irrigation Foundation Board of Trustees.

Person of the Year Award

Established in 1952, this honor is awarded to a person outside of the commercial irrigation industry who has made outstanding contributions toward the acceptance of sound irrigation practices or policies. Award recipients receive a lifetime technical membership to the Irrigation Association.

David Zoldoske, PhD, CID, Center for Irrigation Technology, California State University, Fresno Dr. Zoldoske has been a strong leader in the irrigation industry for many years — both at the national and international level. Some of his most notable contributions include serving as project director for the establishment of the Zimbabwe Irrigation Technology Center and representing the United States in the development of international equipment standards. As the director of the Center for Irrigation Technology, Dr. Zoldoske has established the center as an internationally renowned irrigation testing facility — a facility that is now the primary testing lab for WaterSense-labeled irrigation products. He also served on the IA Executive Committee for five years and was president from 2004 to 2005.

An IA membership is not mandatory to nominate a candidate or to be nominated. Recipients are selected by the IA Awards and Honors Committee based on overall strength of the candidate.

For more information or to nominate an individual for one of IA’s awards, visit www.irrigation.org/awards.