If there was one overriding theme to last year’s World Ag Expo it was water, with California farmers and ranchers clamoring to see the latest technology available to stretch the precious resource.
Soon after the gates opened Tuesday for this year’s show, a slight but noticeable change was apparent, as the booths selling irrigation equipment, filters, ground sensors and other irrigation-related products weren’t quite as busy as last year.
Calling an appeal between California environmentalists and federal agencies over expired water contracts a “bizarre position,” a Ninth Circuit panel Tuesday encouraged the parties to mediate the issue instead.
“This case is in a bizarre position – we’re dealing with 2012 contracts that have already expired, we’re told there are new ones with new environmental assessments,” Circuit Judge Barry Silverman said. “On top of all that we have Mother Nature playing tricks with the drought.”
The types of storms that have been bringing heavy snow and rain to the West this winter, triggering landslides and floods while easing stubborn droughts, are likely to become stronger and more frequent, according to the results of a conclusive new study.
The drenching storms have been falling from atmospheric rivers — high-altitude streams of moisture that carry much of the West’s water from the Pacific Ocean in sometimes-violent spurts that can lead to floods
The Water News Network is San Diego County’s source for water news and information.
