State regulators watching, Stanislaus water leaders are told [Modesto Bee]
While
assuring that California’s new groundwater law gives local communities the
power to control their water basins, State Water Resources Control Board member
Dee Dee D’Adamo warned Wednesday that state regulators will be watching. “That
strong state presence lurking in the background gives locals the incentive they
need” to protect their groundwater resources, D’Adamo told members of the
Stanislaus Water Coalition…Stanislaus County is gearing up to implement the new
mandate, but the state still is developing the act’s specific requirements. As
an initial step, the county Board of Supervisors is expected to vote Nov.25 on
a revised groundwater ordinance that would restrict new well drilling in some
rural areas.
Upcoming
frost season means new rules for area farmers [Santa Rosa Press Democrat]
Hundreds
of grape growers and farmers in Sonoma and Mendocino counties are girding for
the implementation of new state rules aimed at protecting imperiled fish in the
Russian River by regulating stream diversions for frost protection. With a
three-year legal battle now concluded in the state’s favor, affected farmers
will have to submit “water demand management plans” to the state water
regulators by Feb. 1 and be prepared to implement those plans during the
upcoming frost season — March 15 to May 15. Farmers are prohibited from drawing
water during that time from the Russian River system, including wells dependent
on that water source, without a plan. “This year will be interesting. There are
a lot of question marks” remaining about the rules, said Mendocino County Farm
Bureau Executive Director Devon Jones.
Editorial: Everyone must get
involved in water debates [Contra Costa Times]
The
good news for ensuring a reliable water supply in California is that the voters
passed Proposition 1. The bad news is that much more must be done, and it won't
be cheap….Just before the election, the state's two top water wonks, John
Laird, secretary of the California Natural Resources Agency, and Mark Cowin,
director of the California Department of Water Resources, held a news
conference about the latest update to a massive document that has been the
playbook for state water policy since 1957: the California Water Plan….As
taxpayers and ratepayers, we must understand that not only is planning for
enough water for all 38 million of us is going to be ever more complex, it's
going to be expensive….
Those
Californians who didn't vote Nov. 4 passed on one opportunity to get involved
with water policy. That can't continue if the state is to fashion a reasonable,
fair plan. We urge residents to channel your inner wonk and get involved in the
discussion to create access to this essence of life.
Film
festival flick ruffles local feathers [Napa Valley Register]
Though
the Napa Valley Film Festival officially started Wednesday, it screened a
controversial documentary on Tuesday that presented an unfavorable view of Napa
Valley. “Food Chains,” directed by Sanjay Rawal, focuses on tomato pickers in
south central Florida, but segues to celebrants at Auction Napa Valley
juxtaposed with families living in a farmworker camp said to be along the Napa
River….The bulk of the film describes the efforts by Florida tomato pickers in
the unincorporated small town of Immokalee to raise their wages, which the film
said were 1 cent per pound picked, by one penny….The film also looks at the
plight of workers in other areas, notably Napa Valley, claiming that the labor
content of a bottle of wine is only 25 cents, and paying farmworkers more would
hardly affect the final cost. Jennifer Putnam of the Napa Valley Grapegrowers,
however, responded later that the full cost of labor in an expensive bottle of
wine is $30 to $40.
Commentary: Protect those who
protect our food [New York Times]
…All
food workers are on the front lines of the vast food-production industry, and
regularly witness dangerous breaches in safety procedures. Take farm workers
who witness the processing of infected (or “downer”) cows — an illegal but,
unfortunately, not uncommon practice that risks spreading a host of diseases to
humans….Unless we offer specific legal protection for all food workers who come
forward to expose such practices — something the law does not do now — we all
are at risk….Once federal law recognizes food workers as a distinct legal
category, it could then regulate food work and offer distinct protections to
food workers….When it comes to food workers, some of the new protections would
extend to everyone in the industry: Whistle-blower protections, for example,
should be available to all food workers who report on practices related to food
safety.
Williamson
Act: Lack of program creates unrest
[Imperial Valley Press]
A
state act designed to preserve agricultural land turns 50 next year, and
Imperial County will not be a party to it….The initiative is commonly known as
the Williamson Act….To cover the shortfall in property tax revenues, counties
received money from the state. However, the program was not fully funded, and
in 2010, the Imperial County Board of Supervisors pulled out of the program,
and put more 117,000 acres in "nonrenewal status."…Imperial County's
farmers and their advocates were against the move. The California Farm Bureau
Federation helped landowners file protests and sponsored legislation designed
to ease the burden on counties by having landowners to give up 10 percent of
their property tax relief benefits in return for shorter contracts….The potential
for commercial development continues to worry local farmers. "We want to
make sure our farmland is protected," said Linsey Dale, executive director
of the Imperial County Farm Bureau. "Once you pave over farmland you can't
go back.
Ag
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