Farm Water News: News articles and links from August 29, 2012

Water supply

Drought-stricken farmers take to ancient practice of dry farming to sustain their crops

Blog

By Andri Antoniades

From Take Part - Sunday, Aug. 26, 2012

Coalition response...Dry farming as described in this article is a practice used in isolated areas under certain conditions. The remaining apple farmers in western Sonoma County who opt to dry farm take advantage of the moist coastal climate to maintain their trees; most of the trees are 50-years or older. Unfortunately, the yield from these trees is declining and the acreage devoted to apples has gradually declined in the region as farmers turn to more profitable crops such as grapes that are irrigated with micro-irrigation systems. The suggestion that dry farming may be an answer for farmers across the United States during dry years like we are experiencing does not recognize the the fact that the worldwide demand for food production must be met with dependable irrigation water supplies. Leaders in the early 20th Century recognized the need for water supply projects and that paid off with economic prosperity and bountiful food production. That kind of leadership is needed again as we work to improve our world-class water supply system and restore precious environmental resources.

Delta

Peripheral Canal: Get it right or don't do it

Opinion

By Victor Gonella

From North Bay biz - September 2012

Coalition response...The author's claims falsely portray the current proposal by stating that the "primary purpose is to interrupt the natural flow of the Sacramento River" and suggesting that the project is "big enough to drain the entire Sacramento River." These claims are far from reality and continue the campaign of spreading false information to the public.

No more water will be allowed to be diverted than what the flow of the Sacramento River will support. Those documents are already part of the project plan. No existing water rights are allowed to be affected by the project. That's the law. Saying that the project will destroy salmon habitat is directly opposite to the legislature's requirement for co-equal goals of improving water supply reliability AND ecosystem restoration.

The bottom line is whether we are going to do the hard work necessary to provide water supply reliability to 25 million Californians and to the farms that use the water to grow the food we all depend on. The author doesn't explain where our food will come from if we can't grow it on the productive farmland that we already have.

GROUNDWATER

Debate grows over new water rules in California

Story

From ENews Park Forest - Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2012

Nitrate contamination rules coming

Story

From Hanford Sentinel - Tuesday, Aug. 28, 2012

RIVERS

UC Merced making water data available

Story

From Sacramento Bee - Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2012

National Science Foundation funds San Joaquin River research