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State’s Water Grab Hurts More Than Just Farmers

/in /by /Merced-Sun Starby Fernando Aguilera

The state of California’s proposed Bay Delta water plan is being portrayed as a water fight between supposedly wealthy farmers and fish. When there is so much more at stake to us all, I have to ask why? I suspect this is a deliberate tactic by those involved in professional politics and government. It is probably much easier to say that only a handful of farmers are being harmed by a massive water diversion than to acknowledge that an entire community – including some of the most disadvantaged youths and adults in the state – are going to be harmed.

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Modesto Rain Stays Ahead Of Average, But Sierra Snow Lags

/in /by /The Modesto Bee

The first in a wave of storms brought moderate rain to the Modesto area Thursday, along with accidents on the slick streets.The Modesto Irrigation District reported 0.39 inches in its downtown gauge as of 5 p.m., bringing the total to 3.88 inches for the rainfall year that started July 1. The historical average to date is about 2.5 inches.The more important Sierra Nevada snowpack is not doing so well. It stood at 52 percent of average in the central part of the range as of Thursday, the California Department of Water Resources reported.

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San Diego Explained: San Marcos Water Shortage Just A Figment

/in /by /Voice of San Diegoby Kinsee Morlan

On paper, there’s enough water for San Diegans for years to come. The exception is in San Marcos. Every five years, urban water agencies across California must prepare reports showing they won’t run out of water. Almost every San Diego water agency projects they will have enough water for the years to come. But the Vallecitos Water District, which provides water to 97,000 people in and around San Marcos, has projected a huge shortage: 3.7 billion gallons a year by 2020. Vallecitos is the only district in the state that projects such a shortfall.

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Conservation Opportunities to Improve Water Quality

/in /by /AgNet West

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will offer farmers and ranchers more opportunities to participate in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). The announcement includes new CRP practices to protect water quality and adds an additional 1.1 million acres targeted to benefit wildlife, pollinators and wetlands. “The Conservation Reserve Program is an extremely popular voluntary program that offers producers and landowners a wide variety of opportunities to prevent erosion, protect wildlife habitat and reduce nutrient runoff,” said Vilsack.

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Pelosi Rails Against Bipartisan California Drought Bill, Calls Republicans Arrogant

/in /by /The Daily Caller (Washington, DC)by Juliegrace Brufke

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi railed against a bipartisan provision tacked onto the Water Resources Development Act providing California drought relief funding Thursday, alleging Republicans “hijacked” the must-pass legislation. While the rider was negotiated between House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy and California Democrat Sen. Dianne Feinstein, critics, including outgoing California Democrat Sen. Barbara Boxer, slammed the addition, calling it a “poison pill” that would undermine the Endangered Species Act.

 

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Industry Heads Praise California Drought Legislation

/in /by /Fresh Fruit Portal

Representatives of some of California’s leading agricultural bodies have highlighted a “litany of positives” in the state’s recently introduced drought legislation for its “short term and long term solutions to California’s needs”.

In a statement, California Citrus Mutual president Joel Nelsen, California Fresh Fruit Association president George Radanovich and California Cotton Ginners & Growers Association and Western Agricultural Processors Association president Roger Isom, echoed the words of Senator Dianne Feinstein – “this bill isn’t perfect but I do believe it will help California”.

 

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Coastkeeper Says Latest Water Conservation Report Highlights Need For Efficiency In Drought

/in /by /Orange County Breeze

According to monthly conservation numbers released by the State Water Resources Control Board today, water conservation in California has continued to drop since the 25 percent statewide conservation mandate was weakened.

 

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House Approves California Water Plan That Splits State’s Democratic Senators

/in /by /The News And Observer (Raleigh, N.C.)by Michael Doyle

The House on Thursday overwhelmingly approved the biggest federal reset of California water use in a generation, setting the stage for easier dam-building, more recycling and potentially happier Central Valley farmers. By a 360 to 61 vote that divided California representatives, the House approved the drought-inspired California provisions as part of a broader water projects bill that now heads to the Senate. Disappointing environmentalists and some Northern California Democrats, the White House declined to issue a potentially lethal veto threat.

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House Approves California Water Plan That Splits State’s Democratic Senators

/in /by /The Fresno Beeby Michael Doyle

The House on Thursday overwhelmingly approved the biggest federal reset of California water use in a generation, setting the stage for easier dam-building, more recycling and potentially happier Central Valley farmers. By a 360 to 61 vote that divided California representatives, the House approved the drought-inspired California provisions as part of a broader water projects bill that now heads to the Senate. Disappointing environmentalists and some Northern California Democrats, the White House declined to issue a potentially lethal veto threat. “It is a bill that helps deliver water to our communities,” said House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield.

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California Drought Bill Victory Could Be Short-Lived: Sen. Barbara Boxer Pledges Filibuster As One Of Her Last Acts

/in /by /Los Angeles Timesby Sarah D. Wire

The water policy measure overwhelmingly passed by the House of Representatives on Thursday to build long-term water infrastructure across the Golden State is headed for a showdown with outgoing Sen. Barbara Boxer, who plans to mount a filibuster in the Senate on Friday as one of her final acts in Congress. The overall bill — which Boxer co-authored — authorizes hundreds of water projects across the country, including new infrastructure to fix lead issues in Flint, Mich., and projects connected to the Los Angeles River, Salton Sea and Lake Tahoe.

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