From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request.  To receive News Line, click here and submit your request.

Don't delay water bond; repeal it

Repeal $11.14 billion water bond

Coalition response...People who call for the defeat of the water bond currently scheduled for the November ballot fail to recognize the importance to all Californians the bond represents. Our water supply system, on which our society and economy is based, is woefully inadequate to serve our growing population and to maintain a standard of life to which we have become accustomed. A recent Field Research poll revealed that 62% of respondents believe it is worth it to invest funds to ensure a reliable water supply for the future. Interests who claim the water bond should be defeated are out of step with almost two-thirds of California voters.

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request.  To receive News Line, click here and submit your request.

Offspring of Calaveras River salmon may be left high and dry

Coalition response...It is unfortunate that weather patterns and a study mired within the federal review process combined to isolate spawning pools in which salmon eggs may not survive. A resolution of the study could lead to a quicker and brighter future for salmon runs. If only the future of these salmon could be as quick and bright as they travel into the Delta as young juveniles. This future was put in doubt as the California Fish and Game Commission declined to accept the recommendations from its own Department of Fish and Game that urged revisions in striped bass fishing. DFG biologists acknowledged that striped bass consume up to 50% of the juvenile salmon that traverse the Delta and recommended the new regulations. Instead of acting to protect juvenile salmon, the Commission played the political trump card and denied its own biologists and the new regulations.

Fishing guide J.D. Richey provides a realistic look at what happens in the Delta when striped bass meet the young salmon. In the March 2009 edition of Western Outdoors, Richey wrote, "...the peak of the baby salmon's downstream journey corresponds with the spring spawning run of striped bass. Somewhere along the line the two migrations crash headlong into one another. It's a one-sided blood bath, and when the spray and foam settles, the stripers emerge fat and happy while the Chinook suffer heavy losses."

Guidelines are now available for the California Farm Water Coalition's 2012 Poster Contest!  Check out the guidelines below and get your class started today.  Winners and their teachers will receive cash prizes!  

Hurry!  The deadline for entries is April 13 so don't delay! 

From News Line, a daily compilation of farm water news distributed to CFWC members and others upon request.  To receive News Line, click here and submit your request.

Are the salmon really clamoring for a bigger dam?

Coalition response...Members of the public too often overlook or do not realize the full value of reservoirs in California's water supply system. Government formulas have been used through the years to make sure groups and interests who benefit from the reservoirs pay their fair costs. Likewise, these same formulas also protect against these same groups from being overcharged. To characterize the recent proposal to raise Shasta Dam and apportion the costs as a "shell game" is misguided and short-sighted.