Opinion: Solving water crisis will mean less for California farms
A modest proposal for western water: Turn off the spigot to the Imperial Valley and let the farms go fallow. In return, provide a water future for Arizona, Nevada and Southern California. Sure, there would be a price to pay. California’s Imperial Valley, which sits in the southeastern corner of the state, bordered by Arizona and Mexico, produces alfalfa, lettuce, corn and sugar beets, among other crops. It’s home to more than 300,000 head of cattle. Cutting off the water would end all of that, along with the livelihoods of the farmers and ranchers who produce it and the communities that depend on it. But let’s face it, the whole valley defies nature. It’s a desert that became an agricultural area when the All-American Canal was built just over 100 years ago.
-Written by Jim Newton, a veteran journalist, best-selling author and teacher.Related articles:
- Farm Progress: Why California’s drought is not over
- Forbes: Seedless Lemons Are The Next Big Bet From The Billionaires Behind Halos, Pom Wonderful And Fiji Water
- Agri-Pulse Communications: With farms under water, a waterlogged California Ag Day endures