Contamination?
Coastal elite?
Don’t care about food costs?

We have lost a meaningful discussion when you resort to personal attacks and unfounded accusations. It is the sign of someone who has lost the argument because they have nothing else to say but cliches and to accuse the other person while claiming the higher moral ground.

Show me the data for your alleged contamination. You’re obviously one of the coastal “elite” and thus don’t care about food costs – correlated to water costs – for the poorer citzens.

What is the difference between a wetland and a rice field?

Both are habitat to migratory birds, ducks, and geese. Both teem with insects that provide the food chain for birds and reptiles. The difference is the rice field is economically productive, generates property and sales taxes, and provides productive jobs. The wetland takes money out of the economy for so-called restoration and studies and provides subsidized jobs for those in various government agencies and conservancies. Another difference: rice fields are evil and Capitalist and wetlands are compassionate, caring, and stopping the catastrophic End of the World. How can a rice field compete with that?

I don’t know more about it than you and always want to learn.

I should track this question down and do a bit more research.

thanks

Thanks Wayne-
There is, however, an ADM rice processing plant right right next to the 5 freeway, I think north of Sacramento.
I’d be surprised if the water is reconveyed to cities after use in rice farming, but you know much more about it than I do.

There is no water subsidy in the Central Valley. Taxpayers do not subsidize the water. Farmers pay for the capital cost to build the system and to operate it. Yes, the interest rate on the 1930’s bonds to build the Central Valley Project is zero percent, but that would be the same for California’s water bond today. California wants to put on the ballot a $6 to $11 billion water bond and maybe the tax exempt interest rate on those bonds would be 3% to 4% while inflation is running 3%. If inflation goes back to its historical 4% per year those bonds would be paid back with effectively 0% interest. So Central Valley Farmers are not getting any direct taxpayer subsidy nor are they getting a break on interest rates any more than California’s water bond would.

As for rice farming, those rice fields are often in the Delta or in Coachella Valley where the water inundates the land anyway and serves as a habitat for migratory birds. Then after that water is used for growing rice it can also be conveyed to cities for urban needs. Some of it recharges groundwater basins. The use of water for rice farming is a multiplier not a greedy water grab. Go talk to the rice farmers. Marc Reisner who wrote Cadillac Desert book went and talked with rice farmers after he wrote his book and changed his mind and recanted what he wrote.

Lay off the farmers, amigo. They were here first and have made the Central Valley
the world’s breadbasket/fruit and nut basket.

The only ag-related super water waster that comes to mind in the Central Valley is rice, and since rice in the Central Valley is now the domain of very well-connected mega corporations (like ADM) politicians and water decision-makers won’t touch it. That delicious cal rose rice you enjoy in your sushi comes from california, grown in the desert with water subsidized by US the taxpayers. A DIRECT subsidy to the corporate bottom line. A HUGE water waster.

Meanwhile urban californians are henpecked to turn off the water when brushing teeth, take showers so short they are really sponge baths, not flush the toilet (yuck) etc etc. All so ADM can get another 0.085 cents per share direct from the taxpayers……

Also, the groundwater that farmers use is not available to the hydraulic water system of the State Water Project or the Central Valley Project, so it does not rob water away from cities or wildlife. Also, farmers have legal water rights to much of that water.

Go talk to a contractor who installs drip irrigation systems in the Central Valley. They are super busy installing drip systems, contrary to your statement that farmers have no incentive for conservation.

California is roughly using the same amount of water it did in the 1960’s with double the population. That 50% increase in water availability came mostly from agriculture, not from cities or environmental water.

We don’t need a “forced” totalitarian system of water conservation for farmers that you advocate. Farmers have spend $2 billion of their own monies for water conservation since 2000.

Nitrates are natural salts not poisons or insecticide chemicals. The so-called ‘Blue Baby Crisis’ from nitrates was found to be a total hoax. You might read my story “AB 69 ‘Solves’ Non-Existent Blue Baby Crisis.

I found most of your comments cliches and not fact based.

Just send all the illegal aliens back to where they came from and we would have more water