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<H2 class=dgHeadline><A
href="http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2005/12/21/194925/70">http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2005/12/21/194925/70</A></H2>
<H2 class=dgHeadline>California's water woes in 2005</H2>
<H3 class=dgSubtitle>Posted by <A
href="http://gristmill.grist.org/user/Lloyd%20Carter"><FONT color=#336699>Lloyd
Carter</FONT></A> at 9:26 AM on 22 Dec 2005 </H3></I>
<P>Like Old Man River, another year has rolled by in California's water world
and, as usual, things have gotten worse. The year started with recurring news
reports of the continuing decline of several critical fish species in the
Bay-Delta Estuary, which is also the source of drinking water for 23 million
Californians.</P>
<P>Then in the wake of Hurricane Katrina last summer came sobering news that the
fragile Delta levee system near Sacramento and Stockton could collapse in a
major earthquake or a horrendous storm event, causing massive destruction and
loss of life. Undeterred, developers proposed another 100,000 homes in the Delta
region -- <EM>below</EM> the levees!</P>
<P>Last month the state's Little Hoover Commission released <A
href="http://lhc.ca.gov/lhcdir/183/report183.pdf"><FONT color=#996633>a
report</FONT></A> (PDF) criticizing "CALFED," the consortium of state and
federal agencies created in 1994 to "solve" the problems of the Delta. More than
a decade and $3 billion later, the Little Hoover Commission report notes CALFED
has little to claim in the way of improvements for the Delta or the state's
water problems.</P></DIV>
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<P>"Frustration with CALFED is warranted," the commission told Gov.
Schwarzenegger and the legislature in a November 17 public letter. </P>
<BLOCKQUOTE>[T]he winds of Hurricane Katrina have reached California --
blowing out the flicker of confidence that officials had in the ability of
Delta levees to withstand earthquakes, rising sea levels and inevitable winter
floods. Some $3 billion have been spent trying to fix the Delta. But the Delta
smelt that some consider to be the estuary's coal mine canary are even harder
to find than stakeholders who are willing to put up their own money to
continue funding CALFED.</BLOCKQUOTE>
<P>The fundamental problem, in my view, is that the two primary agencies in
CALFED, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Bureau) and the California Department of
Water Resources (DWR), have spent the last several decades building a
water-delivery system primarily for agribusiness, and they still act like it's
the 1960s. Other agencies in CALFED, such as the U.S. Geological Survey, the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the California Department of Fish and Game
add window dressing to CALFED's prestige, but rarely have the final say.</P>
<P>Thus, while the Delta fishery is collapsing, the Bureau and DWR are both
pushing <EM>increased</EM> exports from the Delta -- as much as 25 percent
more.</P>
<P>And the Bureau, in a process occurring outside the CALFED framework, wants to
provide Westlands Water District in the western San Joaquin Valley a 25-year
water contract (with a virtually automatic 25-year renewal clause) for over one
million acre-feet of water. An acre-foot of water is 325,851 gallons and will
meet the domestic needs of two families of five for a year. In other words, the
400 growers in Westlands will get enough water to meet the needs of a city of 10
million people.</P>
<P>This massive amount of water apparently will be provided even though the
600,000-acre Westlands has unsolvable drainage problems caused by the trace
element selenium and plans to take as much as 200,000 acres out of production.
Westlands drainage water containing selenium poisoned the Kesterson National
Wildlife Refuge more than 20 years ago.</P>
<P>Even more amazing, the Bureau wants to build another Kesterson evaporation
pond facility -- three times larger than the original one -- for Westlands' 400
growers, at a cost of nearly $1 billion. Bureau officials claim birds will be
protected, but don't say how. State and federal scientists are incredulous.
Again, this scheme is being proposed outside the CALFED process.</P>
<P>DWR, meanwhile, is promoting the water interests (both irrigation and selling
water) of big growers and water marketers in the Tulare Basin of the southern
San Joaquin Valley, including cotton billionaire J.G. Boswell and Beverly Hills
billionaire Stewart Resnick, who has been buying tens of thousands of acres of
farmland and jumped into water marketing.</P>
<P>In my view, California's water crisis will never be solved as long as these
two agencies -- who see their mission as providing all the water agribusiness
wants -- continue to call the shots. California has more than two million acres
of farmland planted with crops subsidized by American taxpayers (cotton, rice,
corn, grains), using water subsidized by California taxpayers. Even the
conservative Heritage Foundation decries this massive waste of public funds and
precious water.</P>
<P>Meanwhile, urban water system infrastructures throughout California continue
to decay. Underground drinking water pipelines and deteriorating wastewater
lines in Sacramento alone will cause $4 billion to repair. San Joaquin Valley
farm towns report recurring problems with drinking-water quality.</P>
<P>Will the governator take charge? After two years in office, he has yet to
give a speech on or show any interest in water issues. His staffers hint he will
mention water in his State of the State message early next year. A mention isn't
going to change anything.</P>
<P>With California's population estimated to reach 46 million in the next few
decades, water use clearly will shift away from agriculture to cities and
growth. The agricultural San Joaquin Valley, which is poorer than Appalachia, is
expected to add five million people by the year 2050. Who will profit from this
shift of water?</P>
<P>Thanks to state and federal laws passed in 1992, irrigation districts and
individual growers are now free to sell their cheap irrigation supplies at
retail market prices. In other words, growers can buy water from these two
agencies at $10 to $100 an acre-foot and sell it to Southern California
developers for $600 an acre-foot. </P>
<P>Which is why smart growers know that water is the new cash crop.</P>
<P>What will become of the Little Hoover Commission report? What will become of
cries for repairing the Delta levees? Don't hold your breath. The public
generally doesn't care about water issues unless the water poisons them or
drowns them, as Katrina proved. Hard water decisions are the third rail of
California politics.</P>
<P>My guess? The report is likely to gather dust on a shelf until California's
version of Katrina hits.</P></DIV><!-- poll box -->
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<TD align=middle width="100%"><B><</B> <A
href="http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2005/12/21/155835/49"><FONT
color=#336699>Sunny days ahead</FONT></A> (1 comments) | <A
href="http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2005/12/22/93753/654"><FONT
color=#336699>Green advertising</FONT></A> (0 comments) <B>></B>
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