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California farmers may get less water 7/7/03 LOS ANGELES, July 4 (UPI) -- The Bureau of Reclamation says farmers in California's Central Valley are wasting water and should have their allocation of Colorado River water cut. The ruling by Robert Johnson, the Bureau of Reclamation's Lower Colorado regional director, was immediately denounced by farmers and officials of the Imperial Irrigation District who vowed to take any reduction to the U.S. Supreme Court. "I don't believe for a moment that this will hold up in court, which is exactly where we are headed," Imperial Valley official Andy Horne told the Los Angeles Times. "This is a nation of laws, and there are property laws to protect people. We're not going to put up with this punitive agenda." Although the argument centers on farming practices and irrigation,
the outcome could affect the ability of water agencies in urban and
suburban Southern California to meet future needs. |