Drought
From: John McManus, Sacramento
Bee
Today, California's commercial
salmon season begins off our coast. From Santa Barbara to Fisherman's Wharf and
beyond, commercial fishermen will soon be delivering one of nature's most
healthy and delicious foods - California wild king salmon.
The king salmon caught off our
coast are the best anywhere in the world, and markets all over the U.S. and
beyond will bid for these fish. Here in California, thousands of workers will
benefit from this fishery. In addition to boosting the economy, the health of
our salmon runs also tells us about the health of Central Valley rivers where
salmon spawn and rear.
Coalition response... Most Californians are
experiencing the effects of the drought, including commercial fishermen who
catch and sell salmon in markets around the world. Many farmers, you might say,
are in the same boat. Water supply shortages are leading to an estimated
800,000 acres of idled farmland and an economic impact on California's economy
of about $7.5 billion. That means the people who grow, process and ship food to
the grocery store will face economic difficulties from lost jobs and reduced
economic activity. It means that consumers could see fewer fresh food choices
and higher prices at the grocery store.
Concerns over salmon being killed
by export pumps are unfounded. As of April 17 less than 3 percent of the
allowable number of salmon that could be impacted by the pumps have been lost.
Trolling data show that they simply aren't in the vicinity of the pumps. The
bigger problem, as most biologists agree, are predatory fish that feast on baby
salmon as they make their way through the Delta to the ocean. The salmon
mortality rate from predators is more than 90 percent.
In regard to his concerns about
low reservoir levels and higher than normal water temperatures later this year,
McManus should remember that without the reservoirs there would be no water
this year in the system for fish or anyone else.
Drought
From: Staff, Western Farm
Press
Ed Chambers, a Central Valley
(California) citrus grower and farm manager of more than 700 acres, has never
witnessed anything as catastrophic to the area's citrus industry as this year's
0 percent surface water allocation.
Chambers started farming in 1962
and has dedicated his life to the citrus industry. During the 1976-1977
drought, he was told to expect only 1 acre foot of surface water to service his
crops.
From: Ian Schwartz, KOVR 13
For months farmers have only been
able to guess how the drought would affect them, but this year's planting
season brings bad news. Not only are the crops hit hard, other businesses are
feeling the pain.
Each year the land is worked in
the spring, being readied for the rice crop harvest in the fall. But this
season, farmers are in uncharted waters.
From: Staff, CBS - LA
With summer approaching and
California's snowpack measuring a fraction of normal, state officials said
Thursday they will likely order farmers and other big water users to limit the
amounts they take from rivers.
The State Water Resources Control
Board projected the curtailment letters would be sent out later this month for
users on 10 different rivers and their watersheds. It would mark the first such
directive since 1977.
From: Peter Fimrite, San
Francisco Chronicle
The heat is on, in more ways than
one, as California staggers toward a third drought-plagued summer that will
probably include rationing and lots of fighting about how the state should use
its precious, dwindling supplies of water.
The snow levels in the Sierra
were only 18 percent of average on Thursday, when the last of the season's
once-a-month measurements was taken by the California Department of Water
Resources. That's worse than last month, when the snowpack was 32 percent of
normal for the date.
Water Bond
From: Brigid McCormack,
Modesto Bee
As umbrellas popped open around
California in recent months, you could almost feel the tension ease.
Californians were becoming so desperate about the drought that they could be
forgiven for allowing themselves to think things were on the upswing - that
farmers would have enough water, communities could get drinking water, vital
habitat would be provided for birds and other wildlife, and that as a bonus,
maybe we'd save our ski season.
Those hopes were premature.
Experts tell us our snowpack is still at less than 50 percent of normal and
that our lakes, rivers and reservoirs are at the lowest levels in decades. The
California Department of Water Resources Drought Operations Plan indicates this
is going to be a painful summer.
Groundwater
From: Matt Weiser, Sacramento
Bee
A new analysis of groundwater
levels across California has found historically low water levels in thousands
of wells in all areas of the state, another telltale of the drought's
intensity.
The report by the California
Department of Water Resources, released Wednesday, was ordered by Gov. Jerry
Brown as part of his January emergency drought proclamation. It analyzes
thousands of wells across the state, based on available data submitted by well
drillers and owners.
From: Ian James, Desert
Sun
With water tables plummeting in
places from the wine country of Paso Robles to the almond orchards of the San
Joaquin Valley, the state Legislature and Gov. Jerry Brown could soon adopt
measures to retool California's approach to groundwater.
Water agencies, experts and
academics have offered a growing list of recommendations for policymakers in
Sacramento, and one of the worst droughts in California history has given new
urgency to the prescriptions for preventing more wells from running dry.
Farming News
From: John Holland, Fresno Bee
California could produce its
third-largest almond crop in history despite the severe drought this year, a
federal agency reported Thursday.
The 1.95 billion-pound estimate,
announced at the Modesto headquarters of the Almond Board of California, trails
only the 2.03 billion pounds harvested in 2011 and the 2 billion last year.
Fisheries
From: Kurtis Alexander, San
Francisco Chronicle
Dozens of fishing boats dropped
lines into calm waters along the California coast Thursday in hopes of bringing
the year's first locally caught salmon to market by the weekend.
The state's celebrated commercial
salmon season arrived Thursday morning amid high expectations. Preliminary fish
counts this year have been relatively strong, and sport fishermen, whose season
started last month, have reported decent catches so far.
From: Staff, ACWA News
On Wednesday, the House Natural
Resources Committee voted to approve four bills that would bring about changes
to the Endangered Species Act. The first bill, H.R. 4315, The 21st Century
Endangered Species Transparency Act (Hastings R-WA), would require that data
used by Federal Agencies for ESA listing decisions be made publicly available
through the internet. The bill passed out of committee on a vote of 17-15.
The second bill, H.R. 4316, the
Endangered Species Recovery Transparency Act (Lumis R-WY), would require the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to provide to both Congress and the Public
information about: the funds expended in response to ESA lawsuits, the number
of employees dedicated to litigation, and the attorneys fees associated in the
course of litigation or settlement agreements. This bill passed out of
committee on a vote of 26-16.
No comments:
Post a Comment