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Westlands Water District To Provide Habitat for Endangered Fish |
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FRESNO, CALIFORNIA, Dec. 21 -/E-Wire/--
California farmers are coming to the aid of a tiny endangered fish, the Delta Smelt. The Westlands Water District has announced that it acquired property in the northern Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The District plans to restore natural tidal wetlands and upland habitat for the protection and conservation of listed species, including the smelt.
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"We're trying to solve a problem that is of critical importance, not just for agriculture but also for 25 million Californians who get drinking water and water for irrigation from supplies conveyed through and pumped from the Delta," said Tom Birmingham , General Manager of Westlands.
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As the smelt's numbers have declined, a federal court in California has ordered new restrictions on Central Valley Project and State Water Project operations that will result in massive water supply reductions, amounting to a loss of one-third of the water that is normally delivered from the Delta. Those deliveries are needed to supply billions of dollars worth of agricultural production in the Central Valley and meet the water needs of two-thirds of the state's residents.
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Westlands is the largest agricultural water district in the United States . It encompasses more than 600,000 acres in an area 15 miles wide and 70 miles long on the west side of California 's Central Valley .
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The district is a world leader in water conservation. From its inception, Westlands' distribution system has been fully enclosed, to eliminate losses from evaporation and leakage. Laser-levelling, computer-aided drip irrigation and the extensive use of global positioning systems help Westlands farmers achieve efficiencies of water use of 85 percent or more.
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"Saving the smelt is an issue of self-preservation for most of California ," Birmingham said. "Regulation of the state's water supply projects alone hasn't worked, and as a public agency with responsibility for providing water for more than 500,000 acres of farmland, the District's Board of Directors decided we need to act directly to help solve a critical problem."
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The court-ordered reductions in water use are being imposed in addition to prior restrictions prescribed for the protection of the smelt and come on top of two years of an ongoing drought. As a result, many experts are predicting major losses for the state's economy and water shortages in the Bay Area, Los Angeles , Orange County , and San Diego .
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To address chronic water supply shortages resulting from environmental regulations in the Delta, Westlands has, at its own expense, fallowed nearly 100,000 acres.
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The Delta property that Westlands acquired is in the area identified by state and federal fisheries experts as the prime location to create habitat for the smelt. Lying at the southernmost tip of Yolo County , the property is currently used for farming. Westlands plans to convert portions of the property to create habitat for the smelt and maintain the rest in agriculture.
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"The plight of the smelt is just one part of the problems facing the Delta," Birmingham pointed out. "We're working with other public water agencies, state and federal authorities, and the scientific community to define ways to restore the Delta, increase the reliability and adequacy of water deliveries, and ensure the safety of the public water supply. It is a complicated process, but everyone agrees that protecting the smelt is an essential element of any comprehensive plan for restoring the Delta and providing improved conveyance."
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The Westlands Water District serves a community of more than 600 families who farm some of the most productive agricultural lands in the world. The value of the food and fiber produced by Westlands farmers currently totals $1 billion dollars a year and the regional economic activity generated by its operations exceeds $3.5 billion annually.
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