Central Valley farmers crank up the pumps

ORLAND
March 25, 2008 10:07am

Water tables are dropping in the Sacramento Valley portion of the Great Central Valley as farmers respond to cutbacks in supplies from federal reservoirs.

Agricultural contractors in the Central Valley Project have seen allotments cut with the giant pumps turned down under court order to protect an endangered fish, the Delta smelt.

But another reason is more elemental: There isn’t as much water in storage, such as the state’s Lake Shasta.

“Lake Shasta is still way down. As of a week and a half ago it was only 61 percent of normal,” says Mike Vereschagin, an almond and dried plum farmer and president of the Glenn County Farm Bureau.

“It’s not going to be a pretty year. It’s going to be ugly when it comes to water supply,” says Mr. Vereschagin.

He says the ground water table is dropping because of the heavy pumping this spring by farmers.

CVP farm customers in the Sacramento Valley sometimes avoid cuts imposed in the San Joaquin Valley, but not this year.

Farmers have been substituting well water, and drillers are busy sinking new wells as farmers seek additional supplies.

Reduced water allocations will be one factor affecting California rice acreage, the California Rice Commission says.

Rice farmers have started preparing fields for this year's crop, with planting expected to start in mid-April and continue into May.

The Rice Commission says it may see some acreage reduction, despite strong prices for rice. It cites high prices for other grains and reduced water supplies as the main factors in the possible acreage cuts.