Hoo boy, this unfortunately demonstrates the severity of California Central Valley water problems. Wells are going dry at an alarming rate. Farmers need to drill new wells and don’t want restrictions. But the water just isn’t there.
Before you sneer at farmers for using water, please remember that some farming families have been there for generations and the Central Valley provides huge amounts of food to the rest of the country.
I do question the wisdom of have huge orchards in a semi-desert with water coming from hundreds of miles away simply because trees always need water and a few dry years will kill orchards.
Warning that “disaster is imminent,” the Oakdale Irrigation District’s board president on Tuesday called for an immediate moratorium on new water wells in Stanislaus County.
What’s causing concern is repeated reports of domestic wells going dry, scientific studies showing dramatically falling groundwater levels throughout the San Joaquin Valley and millions of trees being planted on what had been dry range land.