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Fresno and San Francisco rallies urge action to solve state’s water shortages

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on July 8, 2009 at 8:00 am

From the California Farm Bureau Federation:

Cascading concern over California’s water crisis brought assurances from federal officials at a Fresno town hall meeting, sent thousands marching on Fresno streets and saw hundreds demonstrating in San Francisco—all in a four-day period.

By the end of last week, both the state and federal governments had announced steps intended to improve agricultural water supplies in different parts of the Central Valley, as people stepped up their calls for action. “It’s important for Californians from all parts of the state and all walks of life to continue calling attention to the water crisis,” California Farm Bureau Federation President Doug Mosebar said. “This is not just about helping family farms and saving agricultural jobs and communities. It’s about protecting our food supply.”

California Secretary of Food and Agriculture A.G. Kawamura was among speakers at a rally that drew nearly 4,000 people in Fresno last week.

Late last week, Gov. Schwarzenegger announced that the State Water Project would release up to 100,000 acre-feet of water, to be made available to Central Valley farms. The water represents what the governor’s statement called a “water loan” from the state project to the federal Central Valley Project, to be repaid after the summer irrigation season. CVP deliveries have been reduced sharply by a combination of dry weather and court-ordered restrictions on moving water through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, designed to benefit protected fish.

At a rally that drew nearly 4,000 to Fresno City Hall last week, Western San Joaquin Valley farmer John Harris urged support for a petition from the Pacific Legal Foundation urging President Obama to convene a federal panel on endangered species nicknamed the “God Squad.”

Read more from the California Farm Bureau Federation by clicking here.

July 8, 2009 · Filed Under Drought, Weather & Snowpack, Water Supply

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