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From the Pacific Institute: More with less – new report shows California agriculture can thrive while conserving water

Posted by: Maven on September 8, 2008 at 8:29 am

From the Pacific Institute, this summary of their latest report, “More with Less: Agricultural Water Conservation and Efficiency in California – A Special Focus on the Delta”:

California farmers can grow more food and fiber with less water, according to a new analysis released today by the Pacific Institute, Oakland, California. The report, More with Less: Agricultural Water Conservation and Efficiency in California – A Special Focus on the Delta, offers a comprehensive analysis of how to maintain a strong agricultural economy while improving the efficiency of water use and reducing groundwater overdraft and water withdrawals from the critically threatened Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.

The Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta is a crucial resource. Almost half of the water used for California’s agriculture comes from rivers that once flowed to the Delta, and more than half of Californians rely on water conveyed through the Delta for at least some of their water supply. This important region provides habitat for 700 native plant and animal species and is now in a serious, long-term crisis, with declining populations of threatened and endangered fish; increasing risk of levee failure; rising seas and changes in flood/drought patterns due to climate changes; and worsening water quality. A key common finding of recent court decisions, scientific assessments, and the Delta Vision Blue Ribbon Task Force is that we are taking too much water from the Delta.

“Given that agriculture accounts for about 80% of Delta water consumption, no economic, environmental, or policy assessment can be complete without a serious examination of agricultural water withdrawals from the Delta,” said Heather Cooley, senior research associate at the Pacific Institute and lead author of the report. “We are already facing reductions in the amount of Delta water available for agriculture, and the consequences of sudden disruptions are far worse than if we take a proactive approach to improving efficiency.”

Read the rest of this summary and the report from the Pacific Institute by clicking here.

September 8, 2008 · Filed Under Agriculture, Conservation

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