<html><body><div style="color:#000; background-color:#fff; font-family:garamond, new york, times, serif;font-size:16px"><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_86761" dir="ltr"><a href="http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_86946">http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html</a><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_86761"> </div><header class="" data-sharelines="" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; clear: both; font-family: Times; font-size: 10px;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_86935"><div class="" style="width: calc(100% - 340px); float: left;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_86934"><div class="" style="font-family: LAHeadline, serif; font-size: 58px; line-height: 56px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding-bottom: 10px;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_86933"><span class="" style="font-weight: 700; font-family: Belizio, Georgia, serif; color: rgb(204, 204, 204); line-height: 28px; content: ' ';" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_86932">Capitol Journal</span> <h1 class="" itemprop="name" style="font-size: 58px; font-weight: 400; display: inline;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_87152">In California, rights to water exceed the supply</h1></div></div><ul class="" style="margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 40px; font-size: 11px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 22px; padding-left: 0px; display: inline-block; width: 300px; float: none;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_87019"><li class="" style="display: inline-block; list-style-type: none;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_87018"><a class="" title="Politics and Government" href="http://www.latimes.com/topic/politics-government/11000000-topic.html" style="display: inline; padding-bottom: 8px; color: rgb(153, 153, 153); text-decoration: none;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_87017">Politics and Government</a></li><li class="" style="display: inline-block; list-style-type: none;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_87021"><a class="" title="Scientific Research" href="http://www.latimes.com/topic/science/scientific-research/13004000-topic.html" style="display: inline; padding-bottom: 8px; color: rgb(153, 153, 153); text-decoration: none;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_87020">Scientific Research</a></li></ul><div class="" style="position: relative; clear: both; padding: 20px 0px 0px; margin: 0px 0px 20px; border-top-width: 1px; border-top-style: solid; border-top-color: rgb(210, 210, 210); height: auto;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_87160"><aside class="" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; float: left; max-width: 495px; width: 380px;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_87163"><figure class="" style="margin: 0px 20px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; float: left; width: 100px; height: 150px;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_87162"><img src="http://www.trbimg.com/img-53fbfdb3/turbine/lanews-george-skelton-20130507/150/100x150" alt="In California, rights to water exceed the supply" width="100" height="150" title="In California, rights to water exceed the supply" style="display: block; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; width: 100px;" class="" data-id="6d4cfb85-e97f-7805-99d7-27d4cb41f9de" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_87161"></figure><address class="" style="padding-top: 11px; font-style: normal; float: left; width: calc(100% - 120px);"><h4 style="font-family: Belizio, Georgia, serif; font-size: 20px; line-height: 20px; color: rgb(255, 84, 67); margin-top: 0px; margin-bottom: 7px;" class=""><a href="http://www.latimes.com/local/lanews-george-skelton-20130507-staff.html" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(255, 84, 67);" class="">George Skelton</a></h4><span class="" style="font-size: 11px; display: block; margin-bottom: 8px; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); text-transform: uppercase;">LOS ANGELES TIMES</span><span class="" style=""><a rel="author email" href="mailto:george.skelton@latimes.com?subject=Regarding%20In%20California,%20rights%20to%20water%20exceed%20the%20supply" data-role="emailwriter_socialemail" data-columnist-name="George Skelton" style="text-decoration: none; font-size: 11px; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); margin-bottom: 25px; font-style: italic; font-weight: 700; display: block; word-wrap: break-word;" class="">george.skelton@latimes.com</a></span><span class="" data-role="socialshare_information socialshare_toggleState base_expandablemenu" data-name="George Skelton" style="margin: 0px; vertical-align: top; line-height: 10px !important; display: inline-block; position: relative;"> <span class="" style="overflow: hidden; z-index: 12; width: 0px; height: 0px; display: block; ; margin-left: 0px; margin-top: -30px; padding: 0px; -webkit-transition: all 0.1s; transition: all 0.1s; border: 0px; clear: both; text-transform: lowercase; right: 0px; vertical-align: top;"><span class="" data-role="socialshare_follow " data-socialshare-type="facebook" data-socialshare-userid="latimes" style="width: 40px; height: 43px; float: left; cursor: pointer; font-family: trb_Icons; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: 21px; display: inline-block; line-height: 23px; position: relative; border-right-width: 1px !important; border-right-style: solid !important; border-right-color: rgb(204, 204, 204) !important;"></span><span class="" data-role="socialshare_follow " data-socialshare-type="twitter" data-socialshare-userid="@latimesskelton" style="width: 40px; height: 43px; float: left; cursor: pointer; font-family: trb_Icons; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: 21px; display: inline-block; line-height: 23px; position: relative; border-right-width: 1px !important; border-right-style: solid !important; border-right-color: rgb(204, 204, 204) !important;"></span><span class="" data-role="socialshare_follow " data-socialshare-type="googleplus" data-socialshare-userid="102622820862257578108" style="width: 40px; height: 43px; float: left; cursor: pointer; font-family: trb_Icons; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: 21px; display: inline-block; line-height: 23px;"></span></span></span></address></aside><aside class="" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; width: calc(100% - 400px); max-width: 70%; float: right;"><h4 class="" style="margin-top: 8px; margin-bottom: 0px; font-size: 20px; line-height: 26px; font-family: Belizio, Georgia, serif;"><a class="" href="http://www.twitter.com/@latimesskelton" style="color: rgb(255, 84, 67); word-wrap: break-word; text-decoration: none;">@latimesskelton</a>Brown's drought edict makes big TV but only small water savings. Crops use 80% of developed H20. He doesn't touch them. He cuts 25% of 20%.</h4><a class="" data-role="socialshare_information socialshare_toggleState socialshare_container" data-socialshare-context="sharelineretweet" data-socialshare-url="http://www.twitter.com/@latimesskelton/status/583679588120731649" data-socialshare-title="@latimesskelton Brown's drought edict makes big TV but only small water savings. Crops use 80% of developed H20. He doesn't touch them. He cuts 25% of 20%." data-socialshare-description="It's arguable whether California has enough water to meet its actual needs. But it clearly does not have enough to match people's expectations. And one reason is simple." data-socialshare-slug="la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413" data-socialshare-content="column" data-socialshare-newspapername="Los Angeles Times" data-socialshare-content-id="83280929" data-socialshare-default-image="" style="overflow: hidden; z-index: 12; width: 50px; height: 35px; display: block; ; margin-left: -10px; margin-top: 5px; -webkit-transition: all 0.1s; transition: all 0.1s; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 1px solid rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration: none;" href=""><span class="" data-role="socialshare_share socialshare_setdefault" data-socialshare-type="twitter" style="width: 40px; height: 43px; float: left; cursor: pointer; font-family: trb_Icons; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: 21px; display: inline-block; line-height: 23px;"></span></a></aside></div><div class="" style="float: left; margin: 0px 20px 0px 0px; width: calc(100% - 340px); z-index: 100; padding-bottom: 10px;"><aside class="" data-content-id="83280930" data-content-size="leadart" data-content-type="image" data-content-subtype="photo" data-role="socialshare_item imgsize_ratiosizecontainer " data-state=" " style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 705px; overflow: hidden; -webkit-transform: none;"><div class="" style="width: 705px; -webkit-transform: none;"><figure data-role="imgsize_item" class="" imgheight="400" imgwidth="750" imgratio="16x9" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 396.5625px; position: relative; width: 706.40625px; height: 0px; background-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow: hidden; float: none; clear: left;"><img itemprop="image" data-baseurl="http://www.trbimg.com/img-552b0dbf/turbine/la-epa-usa-california-drought-jpg-20150412" alt="California drought" class="" title="California drought" data-content-naturalwidth="2048" data-content-naturalheight="1225" data-ratio="16x9" data-width="750" data-height="400" src="http://www.trbimg.com/img-552b0dbf/turbine/la-epa-usa-california-drought-jpg-20150412/750/750x422" style="display: block; overflow: hidden; float: none; max-width: 100.69999694824219%; max-height: 100.69999694824219%; ; left: 0px; right: 0px; top: 0px; bottom: 0px; margin: auto !important; padding: 0px !important; width: auto !important;" data-id="cfe2e340-f4e0-83d8-3a22-568098ca6f3d"></figure><div class="" data-role="lightbox_metadata" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px;"><div class="" style="display: inline-block; margin: 10px 0px; font-family: Arial, serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17px; color: rgb(153, 153, 153);">Sprinklers irrigate farmland near Bakersfield. “The state has over-allocated water in many, if not most, river basins,” UC Davis researchers found. (Michael Nelson, EPA)</div></div></div></aside></div><div id="trb_ad_articleCubeCombo_1_2_/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html" class="" data-role="adloader adloader_ad" data-withinviewport-options="bottomOffset=100&topOffset=1000000" data-adloader-position="articleCubeCombo" data-adloader-size="300x600" data-adloader-adtype="cubecombo" data-adloader-label="" data-adloader-admapkey="articleCubeCombo_1_2_/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html" data-state="adloader_loaded" style="display: inline-block; position: relative; margin: 0px auto 30px 20px; width: 300px; height: 617px; top: 0px; z-index: 10; padding-top: 0px !important; min-height: 250px; float: right;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/4011/trb.latimes/news/local/politics/blogs_1__container__" style="border: 0pt none;" class=""><iframe id="google_ads_iframe_/4011/trb.latimes/news/local/politics/blogs_1" name="google_ads_iframe_/4011/trb.latimes/news/local/politics/blogs_1" width="300" height="600" scrolling="no" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" frameborder="0" style="border-width: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" class=""></iframe></div></div><div class="" style="clear: left; margin: 0px 20px 25px 0px; border-top-width: 4px; border-top-style: solid; border-top-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); float: left; width: calc(100% - 340px); padding-bottom: 10px;"><div class="" data-role="socialshare_item" style="border-top-width: 1px; border-top-style: solid; border-top-color: rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; min-height: 44px; border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-color: rgb(204, 204, 204);"><a class="" data-role="socialshare_information socialshare_toggleState socialshare_container" data-socialshare-context="shareline" data-socialshare-url="/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html" data-socialshare-title="In California, rights to water exceed the supply" data-socialshare-description="Water rights exceed average natural runoff on 16 major rivers, UC Davis researchers found" data-socialshare-slug="la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413" data-socialshare-content="column" data-socialshare-newspapername="Los Angeles Times" data-socialshare-content-id="83280929" data-socialshare-default-image="" style="overflow: hidden; z-index: 12; width: 50px; height: 35px; display: block; ; -webkit-transition: all 0.1s; transition: all 0.1s; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 1px solid rgb(255, 255, 255); top: calc(50% - 22px);" href=""><span class="" data-role="socialshare_share socialshare_setdefault" data-socialshare-type="twitter" style="width: 40px; height: 43px; float: left; cursor: pointer; font-family: trb_Icons; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: 21px; display: inline-block; line-height: 23px;"></span></a><span class="" data-role="socialshare_sharetext" style="display: inline-block; width: calc(100% - 60px); font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); margin: 14px 1px 14px 60px;">Water rights exceed average natural runoff on 16 major rivers, UC Davis researchers found</span></div></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px 0px 22px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-transform: uppercase; letter-spacing: 0.5px; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); clear: left;"><time class="" datetime="2015-04-12T17:35:00PDT" data-datetime-timezone="PDT" data-datetime-month="April" data-datetime-monthshort="Apr." data-datetime-day="12" data-datetime-year="2015" data-datetime-weekday="Sunday" data-datetime-weekdayshort="Sun." data-datetime-fullclock="5:35:00 PM" data-datetime-clock="5:35 PM" data-datetime-hour="5 PM" data-datetime-daydiff="-1 days left" style=""></time><span data-content-dateline="in sacramento" class="" style=""></span></div></header><section class="" data-role="panelmod_articleBody" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; clear: left; width: 1045px; font-family: Times; font-size: 10px;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_86777"><div itemprop="articleBody" data-role="panelmod_articleBodyParagraphs" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_86776" class="" style=""><div class="" data-role="pagination_page" data-content-page="1" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_86775" style=""><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">It's arguable whether California has enough water to meet its actual needs. But it clearly does not have enough to match people's expectations. And one reason is simple.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">Government historically has over-promised — not exactly a new concept.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">In the last century, the state has handed out rights to five times more surface water than our rivers produce even in a normal year.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">On some major river systems, especially in the parched San Joaquin Valley, the over-allocation is jaw-opening. On the San Joaquin River itself, people have rights to nearly nine times more water than flows down from the Sierra. On the Kern, it's six times. On the Stanislaus, four.</div><aside class="" data-content-id="81486644" data-content-size="small" data-content-type="story" data-content-subtype="storygallery" data-role="socialshare_item imgsize_ratiosizecontainer " data-state=" " style="margin: 11px 40px 35px 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 250px; overflow: hidden; -webkit-transform: none; float: left; z-index: 1;"><div class="" style="width: 250px; -webkit-transform: none;"><span data-content-kicker="Full Coverage" class="" style=""></span><a class="" href="http://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-chronicling-californias-drought-story-gallery-20140925-storygallery.html" data-content-media-present="true" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(255, 84, 67); float: left; width: 250px; position: relative; display: block;"><figure data-role="imgsize_item" class="" imgheight="150" imgwidth="300" imgratio="16x9" style="margin: 4px 0px 10px; padding: 0px 0px 140.625px; position: relative; width: 250.5px; height: 0px; background-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); overflow: hidden; float: none;"><img itemprop="image" data-baseurl="http://www.trbimg.com/img-542eefd2/turbine/la-me-chronicling-californias-drought-story-gallery-20140925" alt="Chronicling California's drought" class="" title="Chronicling California's drought" data-content-naturalwidth="750" data-content-naturalheight="422" data-ratio="16x9" data-width="300" data-height="150" src="http://www.trbimg.com/img-542eefd2/turbine/la-me-chronicling-californias-drought-story-gallery-20140925/300/300x169" style="display: block; overflow: hidden; float: none; max-width: 100.69999694824219%; max-height: 100.69999694824219%; ; left: 0px; right: 0px; top: 0px; bottom: 0px; margin: auto !important; padding: 0px !important; width: auto !important;" data-id="7fb5d60c-9360-3b2e-0633-168e64a47dac"></figure></a><div class="" data-role="lightbox_metadata" style=""><a class="" href="http://www.latimes.com/local/la-me-chronicling-californias-drought-story-gallery-20140925-storygallery.html" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(255, 84, 67); float: left; width: 250px; position: relative; display: block;"><span class="" style="display: block; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: LAHeadline, serif; padding-bottom: 5px; padding-top: 0px; word-wrap: break-word; font-size: 20px; line-height: 24px;">Chronicling California's drought</span></a></div></div></aside><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">Water rights exceed average natural runoff on 16 major rivers, UC Davis researchers found last year. And they were only counting so-called junior rights — those granted after 1914, the last time the Legislature updated California's convoluted water allocation system.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">Stronger pre-1914 "senior" and riparian (waterside) rights weren't included in the study. So that makes the over-promising even more egregious.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">"The state has over-allocated water in many, if not most, river basins," researchers Ted Grantham and Joshua Viers wrote for the UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">"After 100 years, California's water rights system is struggling to adapt to 21st Century realities of increasing water stress, changing climate and societal demands for water supply security and a healthy environment."</div><aside class="" data-role="panelmod_container imgsize_ratiosizecontainer" data-load-type="noop" data-panelmod-type="relatedContent" style="margin: 20px 0px 20px 20px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 20px; float: right; border-left-width: 1px; border-left-style: solid; border-left-color: rgb(204, 204, 204); clear: right; position: relative; z-index: 25; width: 360px; left: 20px;"><div class="" style="display: table-cell; vertical-align: top; width: 340px; min-width: 340px; max-width: 340px; position: relative; z-index: 1000; padding-right: 10px; height: 160px;"><a href="http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html#" class="" data-role="panelmod_opener" style="font-size: 15px; margin-bottom: 3px; line-height: 18px; font-weight: 700; font-family: Belizio, Georgia, serif; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); float: left; clear: both; white-space: nowrap;"><span class="" style="font-family: trb_Icons;">l</span>Related </a><a href="http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-20150323-column.html" data-role="imgsize_item" class="" imgheight="150" imgwidth="150" imgratio="1x1" style="float: left; clear: left; width: 130px; height: 130px; margin-right: 20px; overflow: hidden; display: block; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(255, 84, 67);"><img data-baseurl="http://www.trbimg.com/img-550f6e14/turbine/la-me-cap-drought-20150323" alt="Thirsty crops should require state regulation" class="" title="Thirsty crops should require state regulation" data-content-naturalwidth="2048" data-content-naturalheight="1548" data-ratio="1x1" data-width="150" data-height="150" src="http://www.trbimg.com/img-550f6e14/turbine/la-me-cap-drought-20150323/150/150x150" style="display: block; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; width: 130px; -webkit-transition: opacity 0.25s ease 0s; transition: opacity 0.25s ease 0s;" data-id="a1dd5bb2-f27d-f0d1-d644-fd56836559db"></a><dl class="" style="margin: 0px 0px 1px; padding: 0px; clear: none; width: calc(100% - 150px); float: left; height: 109px; overflow: hidden;"><dt class="" style="margin-bottom: 2px; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; font-family: Georgia, serif; color: rgb(52, 141, 160); text-transform: uppercase;"><a href="http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-20150323-column.html" class="" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(52, 141, 160);">POLITICS</a></dt><dd class="" style=""><a href="http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-20150323-column.html" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(255, 84, 67);" class=""><span class="" style="font-weight: 700; font-size: 18px; line-height: 18px; font-family: LAHeadline, serif; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); word-break: normal; width: 206px;">Thirsty crops should require state regulation</span></a></dd></dl><span class="" style="padding: 6px 0px 0px 10px; clear: right; float: right; font-weight: 700; line-height: 14px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); text-transform: uppercase; white-space: nowrap;"><a class="" href="http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html#" data-role="panelmod_opener" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">SEE ALL RELATED</a></span></div><div class="" data-role="panelmod_opener" style="display: table-cell; vertical-align: middle; border-right-width: 10px; border-right-style: solid; border-right-color: transparent; overflow: hidden; width: 55px; -webkit-transform: translateX(-25px); cursor: pointer;"><div class="" style="width: 55px;"><div class="" style="position: relative; left: 35px;"></div><a class="" href="http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html#" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-weight: 700; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-transform: uppercase; display: block; min-height: 56px; position: relative; left: 5px; padding-right: 15px; text-align: right;">8</a><div class="" style="position: relative; left: 35px;"></div></div></div></aside><div id="trb_ad_articleBanner_3_1_3_/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html" class="" data-role="adloader adloader_ad" data-withinviewport-options="bottomOffset=100&topOffset=1000000" data-adloader-position="articleBanner_3" data-adloader-size="320x50" data-adloader-adtype="sidebarbanner" data-adloader-label="" data-adloader-admapkey="articleBanner_3_1_3_/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html" data-state="adloader_loaded" style="position: relative; margin: 60px auto 2em 20px; width: 320px; min-height: 67px; float: right; clear: both; z-index: 1;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/4011/trb.latimes/news/local/politics/blogs_2__container__" style="border: 0pt none;" class=""><iframe id="google_ads_iframe_/4011/trb.latimes/news/local/politics/blogs_2" name="google_ads_iframe_/4011/trb.latimes/news/local/politics/blogs_2" width="320" height="50" scrolling="no" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" frameborder="0" style="border-width: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" class=""></iframe></div></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">The situation, the UC experts continued, "is increasingly creating conflicts between water users and confusion for water managers trying to figure out whose supplies should be curtailed during a drought."</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">There's heated conflict between fellow farmers — those in the semi-arid San Joaquin Valley and others in the more lush Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, California's main water hub. There's bitter fighting between the farming and fishing industries over river flows needed for irrigating orchards and salmon spawning. And urban users are starting to wade in since they've been told to tighten their spigots by 25%.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">Many ask why agriculture wasn't included in Gov. Jerry Brown's mandatory water reductions? It gulps 80% of water used by humans; urban dwellers just 20%.</div><aside class="" data-content-id="83281015" data-content-size="medium" data-content-type="pullquote" data-content-subtype="pullquote" data-role="socialshare_item " data-state=" " style="margin: 10px 10px 40px 40px; padding: 0px; position: relative; width: 522.5px; overflow: visible; -webkit-transform: none; font-family: Belizio, Georgia, serif; font-weight: 700; float: right; clear: right;"><div class="" style="width: 522.5px; -webkit-transform: none;"><span class="" data-role="socialshare_sharetext" style="display: block; padding: 24px 0px 0px; font-size: 20px; line-height: 28px; overflow: hidden; word-wrap: break-word;">After 100 years, California's water rights system is struggling to adapt to 21st Century realities of increasing water stress.</span><span class="" style="display: inline; font-family: Arial; color: rgb(153, 153, 153); font-size: 12px; font-weight: 400;">- Ted Grantham, Joshua Viers, UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences</span><div class="" data-role="lightbox_metadata" style=""><a class="" data-role="socialshare_information socialshare_toggleState socialshare_container" data-socialshare-context="pullquote" data-socialshare-url="/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html" data-socialshare-title="In California, rights to water exceed the supply" data-socialshare-description="After 100 years, California's water rights system is struggling to adapt to 21st Century realities of increasing water stress." data-socialshare-slug="la-viers-grantham-quote-20150412" data-socialshare-content="pullquote" data-socialshare-newspapername="Los Angeles Times" data-socialshare-content-id="83281015" data-socialshare-default-image="" style="overflow: hidden; z-index: 12; width: 50px; height: 35px; display: block; ; margin-left: -10px; margin-top: 5px; -webkit-transition: all 0.1s; transition: all 0.1s; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); border: 1px solid rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration: none; color: rgb(255, 84, 67);" href=""><span class="" data-role="socialshare_share socialshare_setdefault" data-socialshare-type="twitter" style="width: 40px; height: 43px; float: left; cursor: pointer; font-family: trb_Icons; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: 21px; display: inline-block; line-height: 23px; font-weight: 400;"></span></a></div></div></aside><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">The ag industry is countering and spinning. No, it asserts, when all California water is figured, the environment gets roughly 50%, farms 40% and communities 10%. Same difference. Agriculture uses four times as much water as towns and cities.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">The state entity responsible for dividing up the water — based on politicians' edicts and water rights — is the Water Resources Control Board, headed by Felicia Marcus.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">The fact that water rights greatly exceed water is a problem "more of perception than reality," Marcus says.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">That problem is the worst in the farm belt, especially the dry west side of the San Joaquin, where motorists on Interstate 5 see inflammatory billboards denouncing the "Congress-created Dust Bowl." They protest Congress acting to restore salmon runs and protect endangered fish.</div><aside class="" data-role="panelmod_container" data-panelmod-type="comments" style="margin: 20px 0px 20px 20px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 20px; float: right; border-left-width: 1px; border-left-style: solid; border-left-color: rgb(204, 204, 204); clear: right; position: relative; z-index: 25; width: 360px; left: 20px;"><div class="" style="display: table-cell; vertical-align: top; width: 340px; min-width: 340px; max-width: 340px; position: relative; z-index: 1000; padding-right: 10px; height: 160px;"><a href="http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html#" class="" data-role="panelmod_opener" style="font-size: 18px; margin-bottom: 10px; line-height: 18px; font-weight: 700; font-family: Belizio, Georgia, serif; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); float: left; clear: both; white-space: nowrap;"><span class="" style="font-family: trb_Icons;">c</span>Comments</a><div class="" style="clear: both; width: 340px; min-height: 115px; height: auto;"><ul class="" style="-webkit-hyphens: auto; list-style-type: none; margin-bottom: 0px; top: calc(100% - 20px); word-wrap: break-word; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: 1.6em; font-family: Georgia, serif; width: 90% !important; padding-left: 0px !important;"><li class="" style="display: inline-block; box-sizing: border-box; width: 306px; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px; font-style: italic; padding-bottom: 0.5em;"><div class="" style="font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">I've disagreed with George on lots of things, but he hit this one dead on. And Jerry needs to be exposed as the poser he is.</div><div class="" style="font-weight: 700; font-style: normal; font-size: 10px; line-height: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-transform: uppercase; white-space: nowrap; padding-top: 0px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">HUDDYS REVENGE</div><div class="" style="font-weight: 700; font-style: normal; font-size: 10px; line-height: 18px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-transform: uppercase; white-space: nowrap; padding-top: 0px;">AT 7:32 AM APRIL 13, 2015</div></li></ul></div><span class="" style="padding: 6px 0px 0px 10px; clear: right; float: right; font-weight: 700; line-height: 14px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); text-transform: uppercase; white-space: nowrap;"><a class="" href="http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html#" data-role="panelmod_opener" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">ADD A COMMENT</a></span><span class="" style="padding: 6px 0px 0px 10px; clear: right; float: right; font-weight: 700; line-height: 14px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); text-transform: uppercase; white-space: nowrap;"><a class="" href="http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html#" data-role="panelmod_opener" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">SEE ALL COMMENTS</a></span></div><div class="" data-role="panelmod_opener" style="display: table-cell; vertical-align: middle; border-right-width: 10px; border-right-style: solid; border-right-color: transparent; overflow: hidden; width: 55px; -webkit-transform: translateX(-25px); cursor: pointer;"><div class="" style="width: 55px;"><div class="" style="position: relative; left: 35px;"></div><a class="" href="http://www.latimes.com/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html#" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(102, 102, 102); font-weight: 700; font-size: 14px; line-height: 16px; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; text-transform: uppercase; display: block; min-height: 56px; position: relative; left: 5px; padding-right: 15px; text-align: right;">17</a><div class="" style="position: relative; left: 35px;"></div></div></div></aside><div id="trb_ad_articleCube_4_2_4_/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html" class="" data-role="adloader adloader_ad" data-withinviewport-options="bottomOffset=100&topOffset=1000000" data-adloader-position="articleCube_4" data-adloader-size="300x250" data-adloader-adtype="cube" data-adloader-label="" data-adloader-admapkey="articleCube_4_2_4_/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html" data-state="adloader_loaded" style="position: relative; margin: 60px auto 2em 20px; width: 300px; min-height: 250px; float: right; clear: both; z-index: 1; height: 267px;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/4011/trb.latimes/news/local/politics/blogs_3__container__" style="border: 0pt none;" class=""><iframe id="google_ads_iframe_/4011/trb.latimes/news/local/politics/blogs_3" name="google_ads_iframe_/4011/trb.latimes/news/local/politics/blogs_3" width="300" height="250" scrolling="no" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" frameborder="0" style="border-width: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" class=""></iframe></div></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">The reality is that entitlement to water is conditional. It depends on how much is flowing. When a river is running low, a farmer with junior rights is not going to be allowed to draw out much. But the water board soon will also begin crimping growers with senior and riparian rights.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">"Water rights holders do understand," Marcus says, "although their understanding may be different than the rhetoric they put out there."</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">Some growers, however, "have an assumption of what their water right is based on what they think it is," she continues. "People can have an exaggerated sense of their right. They believe they are not getting their fair share. This is challenging in the political world."</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">I asked Phil Isenberg, former chairman of the Delta Stewardship Council, which is overseeing an attempted re-plumbing of the estuary, how big a problem is created by rights exceeding water.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">"Perception is reality," he answered, and " 'paper water,' " as some courts have called it, is a very big deal.</div><div id="trb_ad_pageBottomCube_3_5_/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html" class="" data-role="adloader adloader_ad" data-withinviewport-options="bottomOffset=100&topOffset=1000000" data-adloader-position="pageBottomCube" data-adloader-size="300x250" data-adloader-adtype="cube" data-adloader-label="" data-adloader-admapkey="pageBottomCube_3_5_/local/politics/la-me-cap-drought-water-20150413-column.html" data-state="adloader_loaded" style="position: relative; margin: 40px 0px 0px 20px; width: 300px; min-height: 250px; clear: both; float: right; z-index: 1; height: 267px;"><div id="google_ads_iframe_/4011/trb.latimes/news/local/politics/blogs_4__container__" style="border: 0pt none;" class=""><iframe id="google_ads_iframe_/4011/trb.latimes/news/local/politics/blogs_4" name="google_ads_iframe_/4011/trb.latimes/news/local/politics/blogs_4" width="300" height="250" scrolling="no" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" frameborder="0" style="border-width: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" class=""></iframe></div></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">"If you have some semi-official sounding 'right,' well, why not believe that you are entitled to whatever water you want?"</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">Isenberg, a longtime politico and still a council member, added: "It is almost impossible to reform something that cannot be understood by a well-intentioned citizen. Water rights can barely be understood by water rights attorneys."</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">Ellen Hanak, a water expert at the Public Policy Institute of California, points out that when all these rights were granted, "we were not thinking about what the environment needed." Later, she says, "we found that in a number of streams and lakes we were shortchanging the critters that live there."</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">And despite added protections, she continues, "there have been tremendous cutbacks in environmental regulations in order to make water available for agriculture and urban users."</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">A bigger problem of inflated expectations is created by contracts with the huge state and federal water projects, Hanak says. Deliveries are based on available water. For an irrigation district to receive 100% of what's contracted for, she says, it has to be a flood year.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="">"People think getting 50% is terrible," she adds. "They don't know that 50% is normal."</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_86926">This year growers supplied by the State Water Project will receive only 20% of what they've requested. Federal customers without senior rights are expecting nothing.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_86925">So that leads to more over-pumping of ground water and plunging aquifers, as the land sinks a foot a year in some spots.</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_86774" class="">It's a murky mess. And it calls for forceful political leadership — something stronger than "turn off the lawn sprinkler" and "don't always flush."</div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; margin-bottom: 1em; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); position: relative; width: calc(100% - 340px); font-size: 18px; line-height: 27px;" class="" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_87031"><em class="" style="">Twitter: @<a href="http://www.twitter.com/LATimesSkelton" style="text-decoration: none; color: rgb(255, 84, 67);" class="">LATimesSkelton</a></em></div></div></div></section><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428934470372_86761" dir="ltr" class="" style=""><br class="" style=""></div></div></body></html>