Feinstein’s anti-drought bill may face rough waters in House [McClatchy News Service]
Democratic
Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s newly finished California water bill that’s designed
for quick Senate approval gratifies some farmers while alienating some
fishermen, tribes and environmentalists. The California Democrat is pushing for
the revised 16-page bill to pass the Senate as soon as possible, perhaps by
Friday, setting up a delicate round of deal-making with Republican-led House
negotiators. Right now, though, this remains a machine with many moving
parts.…Feinstein indicated Wednesday that she has the support of all Democratic
senators, who are willing to let the bill slide through under a
unanimous-consent procedure called “the hotline.” Republican Sen. Lisa
Murkowski of Alaska is trying to win similar consent from the 44 other Senate
Republicans. It’s possible that GOP senators may demand a change or two before
letting the package pass.
East Valley farmers
sue to stop Millerton Lake water release [Fresno Bee]
East
San Joaquin Valley farmers, facing a zero water allocation this summer, are
asking a judge to stop unprecedented water releases that started last week at
Millerton Lake. The Friant Water Authority, representing 15,000 east-side
growers, says federal leaders are not following a long-established water-rights
pecking order in releasing Millerton water, which would help save thousands of
acres of east-side orchards. The water is instead headed to a group of west
Valley farmers who hold rights dating back to the 1800s.
Woes mount for Calif.
farmers amid drought [Courthouse News Service]
This
year's crop may very well be the last for Brad Cravens. Along with his father,
Sam, he's been growing Butte and Padre almonds on his 160-acre plot seven miles
north of Kettleman City, Calif., for over a decade. Without wells on his
property, Cravens relies on solely on groundwater and water allocations from
the Westlands Water District. He banked enough water last year to carry him
through this season, but California's prolonged and debilitating drought has forced
the water district, which holds long-running supply contracts with the Central
Valley Project, to cut off allocations this year. His father said, "We
were smart and we banked water this year. But after this year, we're
done."…Brad Cravens compared the drought to air slowly leaking from a hole
in a tire. "You can fill it up, roll for a while, but in the end you're
still going to go flat," he said, noting environmental regulations
compounded with unusually dry winters have added up to disaster.
Crop cuts taking toll
on economy [Marysville Appeal-Democrat]
Fertilizer
sales are down and seasonal jobs are being cut as local businesses adapt to
crop reductions due to the drought. More than 100,000 acres of agricultural
land will likely go fallow this summer due to cutbacks in the surface water
supply, and fertilizer companies reported decreases in sales volume between 10
and 15 percent as farmers ready fields for planting. "Absolutely, (the
drought) impacted our business," said Blake Covert, market manager for the
Sacramento region for Simplot Grower Solutions. "It's taxing everybody,
not just us. Other businesses are off, from car dealers to restaurants to
everybody in between."
Climate change to
result in less nutritional food, report says [Los Angeles Times]
Climate
change threatens to undermine not only how much food can be grown but also the
quality of that food as altered weather patterns lead to a less desirable
harvest, according to a new study. Crops grown by many of the nation's farmers
have a lower nutritional content than they once did, according to the report by
the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. Adaptation must begin now. Developing
the necessary scientific breakthroughs and broadly disseminating them will
require years, even decades of lead time. - Report by the Chicago Council on
Global Affairs
U.S. charges egg
business and owners [New York Times]
Federal
prosecutors in Iowa on Wednesday brought felony charges stemming from a 2010
salmonella outbreak against the owners of one of the nation’s largest egg
businesses and their company, Quality Egg L.L.C. The owners, Austin J.
DeCoster, known as Jack, and his son, Peter DeCoster, were each charged with
selling adulterated food across state lines, a misdemeanor. They each face a year
in jail and a $250,000 fine. Quality Egg, facing two felony charges, is accused
of bribery and intentionally mislabeling eggs to make them appear fresher than
they were. In 2010, Wright County Egg, the predecessor to Quality, and
Hillandale Farms had to recall more than a half billion eggs after an outbreak
of salmonella was traced to two DeCoster farms in Iowa.
Ag
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