After 12 years, legal dispute over water transfer ends [Desert Sun]
Imperial County and the Imperial Irrigation District announced a
settlement in a long-running legal battle Tuesday, ending 12 years of
litigation over a water transfer deal and its effects on the shrinking Salton
Sea. The case stems from the 2003 Quantification Settlement Agreement, or QSA,
the largest agricultural-to-urban water transfer in U.S. history. Under that
deal, increasing amounts of water are to be transferred from the farmland of
the Imperial Valley to urban areas in San Diego County and the Coachella
Valley. Imperial County had challenged the IID’s approval of the water transfer
in court, concerned about the costs of controlling increasing airborne dust as
the lake’s decline leaves growing stretches of lakebed exposed….After years of
jostling in court, the two agencies apparently agreed they have more to gain by
pressing together for the state to take on a bigger role at the Salton Sea.
SLO
supervisors vote down groundwater management proposal [San Luis Obispo Tribune]
A
temporary emergency ordinance in place since 2013 to manage the dwindling Paso
Robles groundwater basin will expire without a replacement program in August,
San Luis Obispo County supervisors decided Tuesday. In a 3-2 vote, the Board of
Supervisors voted not to pursue a countywide water offset law, which would have
applied to the three groundwater basins in overdraft: Paso Robles, Los Osos and
the Nipomo Mesa. The vote came during a wide-ranging discussion by supervisors
on water issues. The county staff had proposed a new ordinance that would ban
new agricultural plantings in areas with dwindling groundwater basins unless it
is offset by an equal amount of water conservation.
Stockton
East: Some farmers might receive no water in 2015 [Stockton Record]
With
the local water outlook even bleaker than last year, the Stockton East Water
District will warn farmers soon that some might go without irrigation water in
2015. A draft letter to be sent to property owners says there is “real
potential” that no water will be available from New Melones Lake, which is less
than a quarter full and just 40 percent of normal for this time of year. This
isn’t unprecedented; the New Melones supply from the federal government has
been curtailed in the past. But Stockton East also is warning of a “very
limited supply” of water in New Hogan Lake, which could affect many more
growers east of the city.
Conservation,
efficiency and environment part of this year's Colusa Farm Show [Capital Public
Radio, Sacramento]
This
is the Colusa Farm Show's 50th year. Organizers say it is the oldest in the
state of California. Farmers say they've never had so many earth-friendly tools
at their disposal. David Zwald is chairman of the farm show and a walnut
grower. He says the number of water-related products and services offered at
the show has increased by 50 percent in the past 10 years….More and more farms
are using solar power to run the pumps that supply the drip tape with
water….While the cost of solar drops, the costs of other products that are more
environmentally friendly remain relatively high.
Without
immigration fix, many dairies struggle to find employees [Harvest Public Media]
When
Jon Slutsky’s dairy farm in Wellington, Colo. is fully staffed, it’s a moment
to celebrate. A full roster of employees at Slutsky’s La Luna Dairy is rare
these days….With the farm’s 1,500 cows waiting to be milked, Slutsky and his
wife Susan Moore felt panicked, worried they didn’t have enough hands on deck
to milk about 200 cows per hour….America’s dairies rely on immigrant labor to
milk cows and care for the herd. Many owners of the country’s largest dairies
say that they’re unable to find employees. A comprehensive fix to the
immigration system seems like a longshot in the new Congress, leaving some
dairies struggling to keep up.
Frozen
fruit sales soar as smoothies get popular [Wall Street Journal]
Finally,
after decades of sitting in a small corner of the freezer case, frozen fruit
has landed its breakthrough role: smoothie ingredient. We add frozen
blueberries, strawberries and mango to our morning oatmeal, yogurt parfaits and
our children’s lunches, drawn to frozen fruit’s year-round availability, value
and health credentials (it is usually just fruit, frozen)….Mostly we love
making smoothies….Dole Packaged Foods, the largest seller of frozen fruit in
the U.S., estimates that in 2014 about 60% of frozen fruit purchased went into
smoothies, up from about 21% in 2006.
Ag
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