California Lawmakers Mull Buying Out Farmers to Save Water

[sl8]

https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/california/california-lawmakers-mull-buying-out-farmers-to-save-water/2911831/

California Lawmakers Mull Buying Out Farmers to Save Water

By Adam Beam • Published June 6, 2022 • Updated on June 7, 2022 at 11:35 am

After decades of fighting farmers in court over how much water they can take out of California’s rivers and streams, some state lawmakers want to try something different: use taxpayer money to buy out farmers.

A proposal in the state Senate would spend up to $1.5 billion to buy “senior water rights” that allow farmers to take as much water as needed from the state’s rivers and streams to grow their crops. If state officials owned those rights, they could leave the water in the rivers to benefit endangered species of salmon and other fish.

California has been mired in drought for most of the last two decades, prompting intense scrutiny of the state’s complex water system and how it might be modified to ensure steady supplies during exceptionally dry periods — including a separate state proposal that would pay farmers to grow fewer crops to save water.

Current readings show about 98% of the state has severe drought conditions as California heads into summer months that rarely produce any significant precipitation. Many areas have begun restricting water use for homeowners, largely by reducing outdoor use such as lawn irrigation. And farmers have had their allocation from the two major state-owned water systems reduced — in some cases down to zero.

[...]

[Auggie]

1. One very rare time I agree with (I hate to say) a Republican

It is ridiculous.

It's not a great solution, and not the only solution, but I'd rather start by paying Big Ag not to grow water-hogging cash crops like almonds and pistachios and (regrettably) cutback on others like rice, citrus, and stone fruits. It just doesn't make sense to continue growing crops like these where water is a dwindling resource.

There are multitudes of other actions, of course. Ag is not, and should not, be made the only villain.

[hunter]

2. They need to start with the factory farm cows and export silage.

I know it's not a politically popular position, but cheap hamburger and cow's milk are not necessities. California does not have to feed cows in other states and nations.

Pistachios and almonds were originally domesticated by humans on irrigated land in dry regions. That's where they grow best. Places like California.

The dairy industry has far too much political power and they've been lying about the origins and health benefits of milk for far too long. Your cheap gallons of milk do not come from cows grazing on green hillsides.

Pistachios and almonds are often singled out as water hogs by the dairy industry alarmed by the increasing demand for vegan milk alternatives. The dairy industry uses more water and pollutes more water.

Personally, I quit buying milk a long time ago. I used to buy milk when our children were small, but I believed the bullshit then and it was family tradition. There was always milk in the refrigerator. My wife is lactose intolerant so we always had vegan milk alternatives as well. At some point my kids started drinking those and left the cows milk to go bad, so I quit buying it.

I do buy cheese. That could just as well be imported from places with ample rain.

[Auggie]

4. Yes, livestock and dairy ...

a myriad of issues, akin to the spokes of a bicycle tire radiating out from a single hub. There's too much demand from everywhere.

The elephant in the room? Overpopulation.

[hunter]

3. It's not a matter of "if" it's a matter of "when."

Hopefully it's a rational process, starting with the farms that have the largest environmental footprints because of especially salty soils (for example) or their impingement on ecosystems that are now rare in California.

We could pay "traditional" family farmers to restore their land to something resembling a natural state and even pay them a stipend to look after the land if they want to remain in grandpa's house.

The huge corporate farms, which is most of them, could simply be bought out and contractors hired to restore the land.

Inevitably throughout the arid West water now used by farmers will be diverted to cities.

Aside from burning fossil fuels, agriculture is the most environmentally destructive things humans do. We should minimize it. We can do that by eating fewer meat and dairy products. The biofuel industry is another lie. Biofuels are bad for the environment.