California's water wars reach 'new level of crazy' this year

Good piece by Mark Grossi in the Fresno Bee about this year's version of the "crazy" California Water Wars, which will only escalate as we exit the (not very) rainy season. A lot of these same issues are covered in the Delta Blues documentary - they just keep rolling through every few years. This year's historic drought is likely to make everything worse for fish and farmers, and the impact will be felt for years.

Tunneling under California's Bay Delta water wars

High Country News looks at the latest on the Delta with Jerry Brown's "I want to get shit done" press conference in July where he announced that he wanted not just one, but two tunnels under the Delta to transfer water downstate. Will it solve the problem of delivering enough water to farms and cities south of the Delta without destroying the fish population? It remains to be seen, and expect many more years of debate, lawsuits and rancor in California's most persistent water war.

2010: A Record Year for Fresno County Agriculture

Despite the lingering impact of the drought, and widespread complaints about lack of water, particularly from west side farmers, Fresno County had a record year. Grapes and almonds are neck and neck for the leading crops and even cotton - seemingly dead as a viable crop in the Central Valley when I was filming Delta Blues - is making a comeback.

Tim Sheehan from the Fresno Bee has the story here.

Not Enough Jobs and Not Enough Water

Good, balanced radio story about water and jobs in the Central Valley.

Nice piece in the Fresno Bee on restoring the San Joaquin

For San Joaquin River, a historic reawakening

Despair flows as fields go dry and unemployment rises

Article in the Los Angeles Times about tough times in the Central Valley for farmers and workers.

Here are the numbers:

"Water scarcity looms as a major challenge to California's $37-billion agricultural industry, which has long relied on imported water to bloom. The consequences of closing the spigot are already evident here in rural Fresno County, about 230 miles north of Los Angeles. Lost farm revenue will top $900 million in the San Joaquin Valley this year, said UC Davis economist Richard Howitt, who estimates that water woes will cost the recession-battered region an additional 30,000 jobs in 2009."

Farmers vs. Fish Amid the California Drought

Here's an article in Time Magazine about Farmers vs. Fish in the Delta and in California's central valley. There's good reporting in it, and it highlights the difficulties the agricultural interests are having this year, with the double whammy of reduced water allocations and the drought in California.

More on this in the documentary.