State’s
rapid loss of farmland hot topic at conference [Napa Valley Register]
California
is losing 30,000 acres of farmland annually to development, a rate that’s
unacceptable to farm preservation experts and state agriculture officials who
gathered in Napa on Friday. In a conference hosted by the Napa County Farm
Bureau — celebrating its 100th anniversary this year — farmers, ranchers, experts
and ag officials from all over the state discussed the challenges facing
farmland preservation in the 21st century, and the best methods for stemming
the annual loss of acreage….A conference of this magnitude hasn’t happened in
decades, said Sandy Elles, executive director of the Napa County Farm Bureau.
The Farm Bureau has contemplated organizing such an event for years, but its
centennial celebration offered the right time to do it, Elles said.
Immigration
idea offers compromise [Wall Street Journal]
Supporters
of a broad overhaul of immigration law want the 11 million people in the
country illegally to be given a chance for citizenship. Others say it would be
wrong to give them such treatment. Now, some members of Congress from both
parties say there may be a way to satisfy both sides, offering the possibility
of a common ground in the contentious debate. Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R., Va.), the
conservative chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, has floated an idea
that would rely partly on existing law to allow many people here illegally to
gain citizenship. People in both parties say it has the potential to win
backing from some Republican House members who say those here illegally
shouldn't get special treatment unavailable to other foreigners.
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Editorial: Our Voice: Reform
can strengthen the agricultural industry [Palm Springs
Desert Sun]
…The
Coachella Valley’s annual $5 million agricultural industry must have a reliable
workforce, and the reality is that it won’t come from American teenagers
looking for summer jobs. The report says that 73 percent of California
farmworkers are non-citizens, the highest of any state. A majority are
undocumented. The Desert Sun believes the nation needs a system that no longer
treats migrant workers as second-class, temporary visitors and recognizes that
the 11 million undocumented workers in this country are already part of the
fabric of our society. They’re not going “home.” This is home….The status quo
is unacceptable, especially for our agriculture industry. We hope House
Republicans will see that, and not just because a lack of action would be a
political liability. Don’t pass up this chance to make history.
Powerful
Westlands Water District backs Delta tunnel plan [Associated Press]
As
a giant harvesting machine uprooted and sucked in hundreds of tomato plants a
row at a time, Dan Errotabere contemplated massive strips of bare land on his
farm.…Errotabere and hundreds of others who run massive farms in California's
Central Valley have left tens of thousands of acres barren this year after
seeing their water supplies severely curtailed.…As a result, the powerful
Westlands Water District, which comprises 700 large-scale operations spanning
600,000 acres in western Fresno and Kings counties, has become one of the
loudest proponents and top financiers of a twin tunnel project that would
provide a new avenue for shipping water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta
south to farms and cities.…District famers see the intervention as critical for
their survival, particularly the latest push for the tunnel system. While other
agricultural and urban water districts in California have also faced
reductions, Westlands' members see their situation as more precarious, because
their district has junior water rights and faces the sharpest cuts when
supplies are tight.
Editorial: Paso water bank is
broke; it’s not a time to splurge [San Luis Obispo Tribune]
Think
of the Paso Robles groundwater basin as a bank account. If you’re
consistently withdrawing more than you’re depositing, you don’t suddenly
splurge on a Ferrari.…The most responsible course of action is to eliminate
unnecessary spending while you figure away out of your predicament. That’s
exactly what the Board of Supervisors must do. It’s imperative for the board to
stop additional withdrawals from the basin by ordering a temporary halt to new
development — including the planting of new irrigated crops.
Fire
fee leaves rural foothill residents angry, confused [Sacramento Bee]
Foothill
residents in the Sacramento region are bracing for the second year of
"fire prevention fees," a $150 charge that a class-action lawsuit
alleges is an illegal tax. The state Board of Equalization began sending out
bills two weeks ago to more than 700,000 Californians who own land in the 31
million-acre "state responsibility area" where the California
Department of Forestry and Fire Protection is responsible for fire
protection….The region's foothill residents aren't just confused, though.
They're angry, and like most people subject to the fire prevention fee, say
they don't see the benefit.
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