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Water gives life to Northern California’s rice industry

Posted by: Maven on April 25, 2009 at 8:10 am

From the Orland Press Register:

Water-flooded fields are a sign that Northern California’s rice industry is alive and well. But in a drought, is all that water being wasted?

In fact, rice crops use less water than many other Northern California crops. For example,according to Glenn-Colusa Irrigation District figures, the amount of applied water – that is, how much water goes into a field – required to grow rice is 4.8 acre-feet of water applied per acre; almonds require 5.3 acre-feet; walnuts, 5.5; and alfalfa hay and pasture grasses require 6.2.

Put another way, “rice uses less water than on the average urban lawn in Sacramento,” Tim Johnson, president and CEO of the California Rice Commission, said.

Rice farmers take care to use water efficiently, says the article:

Farmers use a constant flow of canal water. That means the same water is used many times – for a variety of crops – before it reaches the Sacramento-San Joaquin river delta. Carrancho said by the time the water gets to him, it already has been used 10 times or more.

“Water is not wasted here,” he said. “It is very precious to us, and it is watched very closely.” He also said, “rice farmers have regulated themselves for years.”

In addition, the flooded rice fields provide valuable habitat for 235 wildlife species. Read more from the Orland Press Register by clicking here.

April 25, 2009 · Filed Under Northern California

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