Friday, Jul. 04, 2008

Dry year for Westside farmers

With irrigation cutbacks, farmers are plowing under some crops -- and that means higher prices at stores

After the driest spring on record, growers on Merced County's Westside are having to make some tough decisions.

Dan Nelson, executive director of the San Luis & Delta-Mendota Water Authority, said that growers facing severe cutbacks in water are abandoning or plowing under their row crops.

Nelson said that water authorities had allocated only 45 percent of the normal amount of water to the farmers before the dry spring hit. That was lowered to 40 percent, plus the amount of water that can be used in June, July and August is also being restricted.

"This is unprecedented. This was after the growers had already planted their crops," Nelson said.

Because of the cutbacks, Nelson said that growers of canning and fresh market tomatoes and cotton, along with other row crops, have had to abandon this year's crops.

Lettuce growers in the Huron area have also been hit hard by the water shortage.

The Fresno County town on the Westside has become one of the major producers of lettuce, and the loss of these crops will do more than hurt area farmers.

"The water shortage will absolutely affect the price of food," Nelson said.

Diana Westmoreland Pedrozo, executive director of the Merced County Farm Bureau, said farmers are responding to the water shortage like any business person would.

"There's no way these guys can survive without knowing what the guarantee is for their crops," Westmoreland Pedrozo said.

This year's lack of water for farmers isn't a surprise to the farm bureau leader. She said that long-term water needs have been ignored by the government leaders, and the problem involves everyone.

"This is our food supply. Unfortunately, there is no quick and easy solution now," Westmoreland Pedrozo said.

Both Nelson and Westmoreland Pedrozo said that more storage for water is needed to help catch all the water that is possible.

With global warming a threat, more rain will fall instead of the snowpack that irrigation districts have depended on in the past.

Capturing rainfall will become more and more crucial if the climate does change.

"I know that there is a great debate about climate change, but we better be preparing for it one way or another," Westmoreland Pedrozo said.

Nelson said that a fix for the problem is at least 10 years away.

"We need more storage in the state, and we need more water through the delta," he said.

For the farmers who are having to make tough decisions right now, 10 years is a long time away. And that's bad news for more than just farmers.

"This involves everyone because it's our food supply," said Westmoreland Pedrozo. "We don't have a plan, and we haven't had one."

Merced Sun-Star reporter Carol Reiter can be reached at (209) 385-2486 or creiter@mercedsun-star.com.

Reporter Carol Reiter can be reached at (209) 385-2486 or creiter@mercedsun-star.com.