The House of Representatives today passed a comprehensive water bill, the GROW Act (H.R. 23), that would resolve the perpetual water crisis in the San Joaquin Valley. Introduced by Rep. David Valadao, this legislation is vital for many Valley families and communities that are suffering from the debilitating effects of our water crisis. Although the Valley is still benefitting from our recent big rainfalls, don't be fooled -- since we can't save nearly as much water as we need due to a lack of st...
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The recent storms in California have brought some relief to families and farmers suffering from the water crisis. Reservoirs are filling up for the first time in years, while the snowpack in the Sierra Nevadas has increased significantly. And yet, those who are rushing to declare an end to the crisis are acting on little besides hope. The problems that caused the crisis—laws and environmental regulations that restrict pumping and mandate huge water flows be flushed into the ocean—all remain unc...
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Congressman Devin Nunes (CA-22) released the following statement today after joining the executive committee of Donald Trump’s transition team: “Today I was honored to have been named to the executive committee of President-elect Donald Trump's transition team. In this role, I will advise President-elect Trump on the appointments of his Cabinet members and on appointments to other top positions in the new administration. I look forward to helping to assemble an energetic and forward-looking team...
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I'd like to thank all my constituents who came to my water forum on Wednesday—with nearly a thousand people attending, the event was an extraordinary demonstration of our community's commitment to overcoming our government-made water crisis. As I argued at the forum, our best hope for resolving our 2.5 million acre-foot water shortfall is for our elected officials, ag groups, and water districts to unify behind a common agenda of reforming the Endangered Species Act, the Central Valley Project ...
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I'd like to offer you a final reminder to register for my water forum taking place in Tulare on August 31. At the event KMJ's Ray Appleton, farmers, water district representatives, and I will discuss the likely consequences of the ongoing water crisis and possible solutions to the problem. It will be held at the Heritage Complex at 4500 S. Laspina St. from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm PST. The event is free and open to the public, but you must register at this link to attend. I look forward to seeing yo...
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The 2015 Fresno County Crop Report found that Fresno’s crop value declined by $400 million last year. A Fresno Bee article on the report quotes Fresno County Agriculture Commissioner Les Wright as saying simply, “The lack of a reliable water supply continues to fallow productive land.” The story also quotes West side farmer Dan Errotabere: “The water shortage with the fallowing and cost of farming being much higher means the margins are even tighter yet for farming.” For many Valley farmers and...
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You can listen to my recent discussion with KMJ's Ray Appleton about the California water crisis and high-speed rail here: http://1.usa.gov/20Y0IeJ
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A group of state attorneys general announced earlier this year they would investigate ExxonMobil for fraud due to company statements that cast doubt on the supposedly catastrophic threat posed by global warming. In an amazing coincidence, the officials took action shortly after a coalition of global warming activists, including Greenpeace and the Rockefeller Family Fund, held a fateful meeting in which they discussed plans to launch a full-scale attack on ExxonMobil. The plans included actions ...
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The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation announced today that westside farmers will receive a minuscule 5 percent water allocation for 2016, following zero percent allocations for the previous two years. This means westside growers will continue to struggle with critical water shortages for the near future. Water bureaucrats will undoubtedly continue blaming the drought and global warming. But those excuses are becoming even harder to believe in light of the wet conditions brought by El Nino. So what cou...
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Capay Valley, a rural area northwest of Sacramento, recently had a big turnout to celebrate its 101st annual Almond Festival. This caught my eye because extreme environmental groups have blamed California farmers in general and almond growers in particular for the state's water crisis. Of course, they rely on grossly distorted statistics to make their case, but that doesn't seem to bother many of the media outlets reporting on growers supposedly using too much water. Like Central Valley farmers...
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