SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Reuters) — California governor Jerry Brown’s administration has hit back against criticism that its drought conservation mandates don’t apply to the state’s US$45 billion agriculture business.
Environmentalists have complained that agriculture, which accounts for 80 percent of water use in the state, should also be required to conserve.
“Agriculture in California produces the food we all rely on,” natural resources secretary John Laird said.
“Folks want to point fingers, but we’re all in this together.”
Laird said the state produces half of all U.S. produce and nearly all of such crops as broccoli, almonds and walnuts.
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Agricultural water use has already been restricted, forcing farmers to fallow 400,000 acres of cropland and lay off 17,000 workers.
Laird said making water even harder for farmers to access could damage the state’s economy and force up food prices.
The controversy began brewing hours after Brown ordered a 25 percent reduction in urban water use in California’s first-ever mandatory cutbacks. He made the announcement in a dry meadow in the Sierra Nevada mountains to emphasize that there was no snow to melt in the spring to feed rivers and streams.
Urban water systems would have to persuade consumers to cut back watering lawns and flushing toilets or face fines, but farmers would be exempt, Brown said, sparking criticism on op-ed pages and social media.
The angry response has left farmers feeling besieged, said Paul Wenger, president of the California Farm Bureau.
“I’m getting so many calls from farmers saying, ‘I feel like I’ve got a target on my back,’ ” Wenger said.
Heather Cooley, a water expert at the Pacific Institute think-tank, said agriculture typically accounts for up to 80 percent of a region’s water use.
“It takes water to grow food,” she said.
California farmers have become more efficient but still have room to improve, she added.
Water Resources Control Board chair Felicia Marcus said the state has to balance urban, agricultural and environmental needs for water.
“We don’t have the option of saying, ‘let’s forget about the fish’ or ‘let’s forget about agriculture,’ ” Marcus said.
