Local leaders urging Newsom to declare drought emergency in Valley [KFSN TV, Fresno]
… The latest drought has growers taking extreme measures. “I know in this county, today, there are farmers that have bulldozed trees because of a lack of water. Productive trees,” says Fresno County Farm Bureau CEO Ryan Jacobsen. … Democrats and Republicans don’t often see eye to eye but they presented a united front in urging the governor to declare a drought emergency here in the Valley. “Without it, we will be moving from an emergency to an absolute catastrophic crisis,” said Assemblyman Jim Patterson. State Senator Anna Caballero pointed out local food production didn’t end during the pandemic.
https://abc30.com/drought-emergency-central-valley-california-declaration/10565220/
Drought forces Sonoma County farmers to make adjustments to crop plans [Santa Rosa Press Democrat]
While Sonoma County supervisors declared a drought emergency on Tuesday, local farmers already had been taking action as they grapple in an era with much less water for their crops than in previous years. … Sonoma County Farm Bureau is issuing a best practices manual for agricultural sector to help its members adapt. The group also is conducting a survey of farmers on steps already taken, such as the number of acres unplanted this year due to less available water, said the farm bureau’s executive director Tawny Tesconi, who expects that acreage to be significant and demonstrate farmers’ water reduction.
Opinion: Modesto irrigation pricing is based on volume and delivery costs [Modesto Bee]
… Unlike water rates, we don’t have jurisdiction to dictate what crops our farmers grow or fields they fallow or how they run their businesses. To do so is akin to us showing up at your house and telling you what plants to plant and what color to paint your walls. We’re sure that our customers are thankful we won’t be doing this. … For us, it isn’t about pitting agriculture against the environment, it’s about striking a balance with a finite natural resource that allows us all to thrive. That’s what our customers expect.
https://www.modbee.com/opinion/opn-columns-blogs/article251021344.html
Opinion: Trump-era water rules should be reversed [CalMatters]
… The focus of one scandal was the failure of the Trump administration to collect required fish and wildlife mitigation costs set out in the Central Valley Project Improvement Act. … The Biden administration has the ability to roll back the Trump administration abuses of water law. It can do that by rescinding the bad rules and bad water contracts. … The Newsom administration has the ability to press the Biden administration to take these important steps.
https://calmatters.org/commentary/my-turn/2021/04/trump-era-water-rules-should-be-reversed/
U.S. farmers look for government help to support Biden’s climate plans [Wall Street Journal]
A White House goal to slash U.S. greenhouse-gas emissions hinges in part on farmers and agriculture companies changing the way they manage fields and feedlots. The farm sector says it will need the government’s help to make it happen. … With often-thin profit margins, individual farmers have tended to be wary of regulations that add costs and complexity to their operations. … Farmers generally support emissions-reduction efforts but need more specifics on the Biden administration’s strategy, said Andrew Walmsley, director of congressional relations at the American Farm Bureau Federation, a trade group for farmers.
Shortage of truck drivers worries local ag producers as harvest nears [Bakersfield Californian]
A worsening shortage of truck drivers is raising concerns among local farmers that, unless a solution emerges soon, there might not be enough hauling capacity to bring this year’s harvest to market. The California Trucking Association says initial indications suggest the shortfall could be as high as 30 percent because of a confluence of factors including an aging workforce and some drivers possibly choosing to collect unemployment benefits rather than return to work during the pandemic. Although the driver shortage has affected many industries for years now, farmers already wrestling with congestion at Southern California ports say the situation threatens to drive up food prices as produce sits in the field for too long.
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