As this year is looking more and more like another water short year for California, it is important to remember the many important uses for water in our state. The chart below, which is generated with information contained in the California Water Plan, shows the many and varied environmental water uses, as well as the proportion of water used by the urban and agricultural sectors in the state. As decisions are made in response to the drought, meeting these multiple uses needs to be part of the process.

Water in the Sacramento Valley is generally very high quality. As part of the ongoing efforts for regional sustainability, there are various programs that are working hard to improve water quality in the region. A good example of these efforts is the program on Walker Creek in Glenn County, where landowners, with assistance from the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), have developed a watershed management plan to prevent insecticides from entering the creek.

Recent comments by an economics Professor from the University of California Davis projects that “there’s going to be significantly more pain this year than there was last year” with respect to agriculture and the rural parts of the state. Last year, Dr. Howitt suggested that there would be a $2 billion economic impact—this year he “would be very surprised if the economic impact was less than $3 billion.” This will include a loss of more than 20,000 jobs as a result of the drought.

Water agencies throughout the Sacramento Valley have been leaders in progressive water management and environmental stewardship—managing water for farms, birds and fish. Western Canal Water District just south of Chico was recently featured in the ACWA News with a detailed story on how Western Canal has pursued an ethic of environmental stewardship. Through its leadership and water management actions over the past decade, Western Canal provides high quality water for ricelands and other managed wetlands that serve as essential Pacific Flyway habitat.