Opinion: CA rain storms delivered missed opportunity to save water
The recent series of atmospheric rivers dumped enough rain and snow on Northern California to give us hope that the end of the drought may be near. … The tremendous amount of water flowing through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to the Pacific Ocean is additional evidence of this winter’s bounty. … The outflow is so abundant now that it’s more than 20 times the threshold set by the state to meet environmental standards. … [D]ecades-old regulations limit how much water can be captured — even water is flowing over the banks of creeks and streams and trees are being toppled. The rule preventing us from saving more of this near-biblical flood is based on fish behavior under certain historic conditions. However, we are clearly living through exceptional circumstances, and these rules — and California’s rule-makers — are utterly incapable of adjusting.
-Written by Ian LeMay, president of the California Fresh Fruit Association and the chairman of the Water Blueprint for the San Joaquin Valley.Related article:
- Farm Progress: Report - 95% of Calif. rainwater runs to ocean