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<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><b><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif";color:black'>Drought Turns Water Into
a Cash Crop<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><b><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif";color:black'>Wall Street Journal
– 3/24/09<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><b><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif";color:black'>By Peter Sanders</span></b><b><span
lang=EN style='font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif";color:#666666'><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:#666666'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>As Don Bransford
prepares for his spring planting season, he is debating which is worth more:
the rice he grows on his 700-acre farm north of Sacramento, or the water he uses
to cultivate it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>After three years of
drought in California, water is now a potential cash crop. Last fall, the state
activated its Drought Water Bank program for the first time since 1994. Under
the program, farmers can choose to sell some of the water they would usually
use to grow their crops to parched cities, counties and agriculture districts.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>Water -- or the lack
of it -- has been costing the state dearly. According to Richard Howitt, a
professor at the University of California, Davis, the drought and resulting
water restrictions could cost as much as $1.4 billion in lost income and about
53,000 lost jobs, mostly in the agriculture sector.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>In the water market,
demand is already outstripping supply. Water agencies, worried about being left
high and dry in the hot summer months, are expected to request at least twice
the amount of water as the bank will have to sell.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>"The state is
offering about $275 per acre-foot of water, which is a reasonable deal,"
said Mr. Bransford, who has been growing rice for 29 years. An acre-foot, equal
to slightly less than 326,000 gallons, is roughly the amount two suburban
households consume in a year. He is considering taking 100 acres out of
cultivation and selling the water he would have used to irrigate it to the
state water bank. It is a move that could bring him roughly $90,000.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>As water has grown
scarce, cities have tried to spur conservation by increasing the price to
consumers. Last Tuesday, the Los Angeles water utility agreed to raise rates on
consumers who fail to reduce their water usage by 15%. Mayor Antonio
Villaraigosa suggested earlier this year that Angelenos begin using lawn
sprinklers only twice a week.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>For farmers such as
Mr. Bransford, figuring how much to plant and how much water to sell is a tricky
calculation. Last year, with the price of medium-grain rice at record highs,
farmers were eager to grow as much as they could. Prices haven't been set this
year, but will likely remain high.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>In addition, the
water bank is still wending its way through a complicated approval process from
state and federal agencies. The bank can't formally open for business until
those kinks get worked out. If the approvals don't happen soon, farmers like
Mr. Bransford will have no choice but to plant their crops instead of selling
their water.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>"We're going to
make it happen," said a federal official involved in the process, while
declining to specify when.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>Though a series of
powerful storms in the past few months have brought rain and snow, the
statewide snow pack is at 88% of normal and many major state reservoirs remain
only about half full. Last month, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a
statewide drought emergency.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>"The situation
is a lot more favorable now than it was a few weeks ago, but we don't know what
the rest of the spring is going to look like," said Debra Man, assistant
general manager and chief operating officer of the Metropolitan Water District,
which provides water to 26 Southern California cities, including Los Angeles.
Her agency has been authorized to purchase up to 300,000 acre-feet of water
from the state. That was intended as a safeguard so her region would have
"water in the bank," she said.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>Ms. Man said the
drought has forced her agency to secure water earlier than usual, reconfigure
various water lines and spread the word about conservation. "Last year we
took steps to have a very aggressive outreach plan to educate consumers to get
ready, because things are getting serious."<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>Drawing from the
water bank, however, is no mean feat. Moving water from the verdant northern
part of the state to the dry south requires navigating myriad state, federal
and local regulations, environmental concerns and the availability of pumping
stations.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>"The state has
been working with exporters since last October trying to develop an agreement
on how to get this done, but we're still mired in a regulatory morass,"
said Mr. Bransford, the rice farmer.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal style='background:white'><span lang=EN style='font-size:
14.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";color:black'>State officials said
the water bank is a crucial tool to ensure adequate supplies into the dry
summer and fall months. "We have to make sure we have the proper
coordination for water and health and safety needs, and we want to ensure that
communities with those critical needs will have access to water," said
Lester Snow, director of the state's Department of Water Resources.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:gray'>Byron
Leydecker, JcT</span></i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:gray'>Chair, Friends
of Trinity River</span></i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:gray'>PO Box 2327</span></i><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:gray'>Mill Valley, CA
94942-2327</span></i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:gray'>415 383 4810
land</span></i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:gray'>415 519 4810
cell</span></i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><b><i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:gray'><a
href="mailto:bwl3@comcast.net"><span style='color:blue'>bwl3@comcast.net</span></a></span></i></b><b><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><b><i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:gray'><a
href="mailto:bleydecker@stanfordalumni.org"><span style='color:blue'>bleydecker@stanfordalumni.org</span></a>
</span></i></b><i><span style='font-size:12.0pt;color:gray'>(secondary)</span></i><b><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
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href="http://fotr.org/"><span style='color:blue'>http://www.fotr.org</span></a>
</span></i></b><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
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