March 17, 2013

N NE EW WS SR RE EL LE EA AS SE E

Tuesdays Firebaugh Rally Focusing On Threats To Water Rights, Supply

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACTS: Mario Santoyo, (559) 799-0701
California Latino Water Coalition Executive Director

Cannon Michael, (209) 299-7792

Bowles Farming Company

A Firebaugh rally Tuesday morning (March 18) will air protests and concerns over crippling effects on irrigated agriculture that will result from recent State Water Resources Control Board orders along with ongoing water supply impacts continuing to result from actions by fishery agencies that limit and sometimes halt Delta water export pumping. The rally will be held:

In Firebaugh
TUESDAY, MARCH 18, 2014 11:00 A.M.
Andrew Firebaugh Community Center and Rodeo Grounds
1655 13th Street Firebaugh Next to the San Joaquin River

The rally will bring together farmers, farm workers and community leaders from throughout the central and southern San Joaquin Valley. Those attending will hear pleas from state and local elected officials for the State Board and federal fisheries agencies to work cooperatively to make at least some water available for farmers who are in danger of having to fallow land or lose permanent plantings in this exceptional drought if all agricultural supplies remain cut off. Sponsoring the rally are the California Latino Water Coalition, San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors Water Authority, Nisei Farmers League, California Farm Water Coalition Central California Irrigation District, Columbia Canal Company, Firebaugh Canal Water District, San Luis Canal Company and San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors Political Action Committee. Lunch will be served to those attending. While the rally may have been motivated by a recent State Water Resources Control Board ruling (from the agencys director) that threatens to halt agricultural water deliveries from the federal Central Valley Project and State Water Project, the rally is also expected to include large amounts of frustration vented by water users over Delta water
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export pumping restrictions they have experienced for more than 20 years. Users of Delta water have had to consistently make do with less-than-contract amounts of water in order to protect the tiny Delta smelt and other fish listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Just this past week, the Delta water export pumping restriction issue darkened for valley farmers and others who rely on CVP and SWP Delta water deliveries when a divided 9th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a trial courts ruling that invalidated a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's biological opinion on the Delta smelt. The State Board action came on petitions from the California Department of Water Resources and U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to lessen stringent Delta water supply standards as a water savings tool in response to the drought. The order being protested not only limits Delta export pumping to 1,500 cubic feet per second in the federal Delta-Mendota Canal and nearby California Aqueduct, but restricts that water to health and safety uses in urban areas. Many water agencies have objected, calling the action illegal and asserting it endangers long established water rights. Eliminating water deliveries for agricultural irrigation is not only foolish, but dangerous, said Senator Anthony Cannella (R-Ceres), who will be one of the Firebaugh rallys speakers Tuesday. The California State Water Resources Control Board must take into consideration what withholding water will cause. Fallowed farmland, skyrocketing unemployment and lack of food resources will ultimately cause catastrophic effects that will negatively impact our Central Valley, our state and beyond. We simply can't allow this to happen. Senator Tom Berryhill (R-Twain Harte) said, The Water Board needs to realize we are not just a bump in the road on the way to L.A. The Central Valley supplies more than 25% of the nation's food supply and agriculture is multi-billion dollar industry. Thousands of families living here rely on agriculture for a paycheck. Without adequate water deliveries all of that is at risk. No water means no crops. No crops means no paychecks. That's a giant loser. The projected water deliveries to the Central Valley agricultural industry over the next couple of years will break the bank and the spirit of the backbone of America, said Los Banos Mayor Mike Villalta. Agriculture is the No. 1 economic generator in our area by far. The time is behind us where the effective use of our precious water resources needed for agriculture and the human race must compete with a philosophical preservation of the ecological system. Andreas Borgeas, Chairman of the Fresno County Board of Supervisors, said, Today our valley not only faces one of the driest years in history but to make things worse the State Water Resources Board may take our Valley's Agriculture Water Supply. This could be devastating to our economy and force more people into unemployment. West Side grower Cannon Michael, President of Bowles Farming Company, observed, California is experiencing a drought, this is not the first time nor will it be the last. The idea that all of California Agriculture could be allocated no water in 2014 is insanity. The time has come to push back on the excessive regulations that are crippling one of our most productive and important industries." Mario Santoyo, California Latino Water Coalition Executive Director, pointed out the significance of the recent Delta smelt 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision along with the long-standing effects of fish and habitat protections under the ESA. Today our valley not only faces what is likely to be the driest year since the 1920s but many valley agricultural water users continue to be hammered by state and federal policies, Santoyo said. The Delta water export pumping restrictions that have been in place for years under the ESA have harmed the livelihoods and social well being of thousands of valley residents, idling vast amounts of farmland, costing jobs, resulting in business failures and taking a massive toll on people. Last weeks court decision can only perpetuate this devastation. On top of that, were facing a State Water Resources Board order that would block vast amounts of the valleys agriculture water supply. This will kill our economy. Its wrong and it is unacceptable!