Water marketing is the transfer or sale of water or water rights
from one user to another, typically from an agricultural to an
urban water agency, often without investing in new infrastructure
On March 22, 2022, the Second District Court of Appeal
published its Opinion in Buena Vista Water Storage District v.
Kern Water Bank Authority, upholding the Environmental Impact
Report (EIR) for the Kern Water Bank Authority’s Conservation
and Storage Project (“Project”) and reversing the trial court’s
ruling. The Project proposes to divert up to 500,000
acre-feet-per-year (AFY) from the Kern River for recharge,
storage, and later recovery within the Kern Water Bank.
State Sen. Melissa Hurtado (D-Bakersfield) and state Sen. Dave
Cortese (D-San Jose) are calling for U. S. Attorney General
Merrick Garland to investigate possible drought profiteering
and water rights abuses in the western states. … A
county supervisor in Arizona joined the California state
senators in calling for the investigation. … In addition
to raising anti-trust questions, Hurtado and Cortese expressed
concern about the potential for hedge funds to divert water
intended for food production to cannabis growing operations.
On Wednesday, State Senator Melissa Hurtado, D-Sanger joined
her colleague, Democratic State Senator Dave Cortese in sending
a letter to United States Attorney General Merrick
Garland requesting an investigation into possible drought
profiteering and water rights abuses in the Western
states. The Senators said they’re concerned about the
increasing amount of water rights being purchased by hedge
funds, their potential anti-competitive practices and the
devastating impact that could have on water security.
A sale of agricultural water within the Panoche Water District
on the upper west side of the San Joaquin Valley hit the
eye-popping price of $2,000 per acre foot recently. The buyer
bought 668 acre feet in a deal that was brokered by Nat DiBuduo
with Alliance Ag Services. … Last year, the same sellers,
also unnamed, sold water for $1,648 and $1,800 per acre foot,
indicating how a third year of drought is pushing up the price
of water, according to the broker.
A move to dry up water speculation once and for all in Colorado
ended at the legislature despite intense supply pressures from
drought and water developers, as lawmakers said they’re loath
to hurt farmers’ ability to sell their most valuable
asset. The Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources
Committee tabled the anti-speculation bill after first
accepting an amendment to turn it into a between-sessions study
of the problem. Technically, the measure could be revived, but
the bill’s sponsors say the issue is over for this year.
This tour ventured through California’s Central Valley, known as the nation’s breadbasket thanks to an imported supply of surface water and local groundwater. Covering about 20,000 square miles through the heart of the state, the valley provides 25 percent of the nation’s food, including 40 percent of all fruits, nuts and vegetables consumed throughout the country.
In the universe of California water, Tim Quinn is a professor emeritus. Quinn has seen — and been a key player in — a lot of major California water issues since he began his water career 40 years ago as a young economist with the Rand Corporation, then later as deputy general manager with the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, and finally as executive director of the Association of California Water Agencies. In December, the 66-year-old will retire from ACWA.
This printed issue of Western Water looks at California
groundwater and whether its sustainability can be assured by
local, regional and state management. For more background
information on groundwater please refer to the Foundation’s
Layperson’s Guide to Groundwater.
Although some water districts have coordinated use of surface
water and groundwater for years ,conjunctive use has become the
catchphrase when it comes to developing additional water supply
for the 21st century. This article focuses on conjunctive use. It
includes background information explaining how conjunctive use
works, discusses the potential storage capacity, provides an
overview of the hurdles that must be overcome to develop a
successful project, and profiles several projects.
The 20-page Layperson’s Guide to Water Marketing provides
background information on water rights, types of transfers and
critical policy issues surrounding this topic. First published in
1996, the 2005 version offers expanded information on
groundwater banking and conjunctive use, Colorado River
transfers and the role of private companies in California’s
developing water market.
Order in bulk (25 or more copies of the same guide) for a reduced
fee. Contact the Foundation, 916-444-6240, for details.
The 28-page Layperson’s Guide to
Water Rights Law, recognized as the most thorough explanation of
California water rights law available to non-lawyers, traces the
authority for water flowing in a stream or reservoir, from a
faucet or into an irrigation ditch through the complex web of
California water rights.
Water marketing is the transfer or sale of water or water rights
from one user to another, typically from an agricultural to an
urban water agency, often without investing in new infrastructure
Most exchanges involve a transfer of the resource itself, not a
transfer of the right to use the water.
Reallocating the available water on a supply-and-demand basis is
viewed by proponents as the best financial, political and
environmental means of accommodating an increase in population.
