California drought leads to Obama visit, Democratic bill
February 12, 2014 | 07:53 PM
President Barack Obama will travel to Fresno, Calif., Friday to take a look at drought conditions, the White House announced as California and Oregon Democratic senators introduced legislation Tuesday to address the problems caused by the lack of rain.
The White House has not announced details of Obama’s visit.
Democratic Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer of California and Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkely of Oregon introduced the California Emergency Drought Relief Act of 2014, a bill to help California and Oregon farmers, businesses and communities suffering from historic drought conditions.
The senators said that although there was rain and snow this past weekend, the drought could prove to be worse than the historic dry conditions of 1976 and 1977, and already threatens California’s $44.7 billion agriculture sector.
Sen. Feinstein: “This drought has the potential to devastate Western states, especially California, and Congress and the president must take swift action. This bill provides operational flexibility to increase water supplies and primes federal agencies to make the best use of any additional rain. With so little water available, we must focus on streamlining federal programs and provide what assistance we can to those farmers and communities being hit the hardest.”
Sen. Boxer: “Our bill will require all agencies to use their existing authority to help provide relief to communities hardest hit by this unprecedented drought and make investments to move and conserve water to help our entire state.The goal of this bill is to bring us together to address this crisis, rather than divide us.”
Sen. Wyden: “Drought is already hitting Southern Oregon farmers and ranchers in the Klamath Basin, with Klamath County issuing a drought declaration two months earlier than last year.
“This bill can provide sorely needed relief by making sure that agencies can send scarce water to the communities that need it the most.”
Sen. Merkley: “Even though the Willamette Valley was hit hard by snow over the weekend, Oregon is still experiencing a terrible drought, especially in Southern Oregon. Snowpack in the Klamath Basin is only 20 percent of normal. We need to start preparing now because water shortages are nearly inevitable. This bill will provide emergency funding for important drought-relief projects that will help conserve water where we can and make sure the water we have gets to where it’s needed most.”
The bill, which does not waive any federal or state law, includes a range of provisions that require federal agencies to use their existing powers to maximize water supplies, reduce project review times and ensure water is directed to users whose need is greatest, the senators said.
The bill also provides $300 million in emergency funds to be used on a range of projects to maximize water supplies for farmers, consumers and municipalities and provide economic assistance.
Among other provisions, the bill mandates that federal agencies use flexibility under existing law to maximize water supplies using Delta pumping.
“Under the Delta smelt biological opinion, which is required by the Endangered Species Act, pumping that results in ‘reverse flows’ of water between 1,250 and 5,000 cubic-feet-per-second is permitted for the Old and Middle rivers between December and June,” the senators said.
“This ‘reverse flow’ occurs when the state and federal water pumps are turned on to draw water from the rivers into the South Delta for water users. The bill requires federal agencies to operate the pumps within this range to maximize water supplies while remaining consistent with the biological opinion and the Endangered Species Act.”
It also allows the Agriculture secretary to help cover losses caused by the drought through the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program that was included in the new farm bill.
Experts say California’s two-year drought could be worse than the record drought of 1976 and 1977, resulting in the fallowing of more than half-a-million acres of farmland, the senators said.
Tom Nassif, president and CEO of Western Growers, which represents fruit and vegetable producers, praised the introduction of the bill and urged the Senate to take it up and go to conference with the House on the bill that the House passed last week.
“I believe if reasonable accommodation can be made between the two and merged into a single bill in a bipartisan effort, benefits can be realized by all California water users," Nassif said.
But Democrats have criticized the House-passed bill as not addressing real problems and interfering with long-term agreements on how to handle water issues in California.
The White House has not announced details of Obama’s visit.
Democratic Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer of California and Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkely of Oregon introduced the California Emergency Drought Relief Act of 2014, a bill to help California and Oregon farmers, businesses and communities suffering from historic drought conditions.
The senators said that although there was rain and snow this past weekend, the drought could prove to be worse than the historic dry conditions of 1976 and 1977, and already threatens California’s $44.7 billion agriculture sector.
Sen. Feinstein: “This drought has the potential to devastate Western states, especially California, and Congress and the president must take swift action. This bill provides operational flexibility to increase water supplies and primes federal agencies to make the best use of any additional rain. With so little water available, we must focus on streamlining federal programs and provide what assistance we can to those farmers and communities being hit the hardest.”
Sen. Boxer: “Our bill will require all agencies to use their existing authority to help provide relief to communities hardest hit by this unprecedented drought and make investments to move and conserve water to help our entire state.The goal of this bill is to bring us together to address this crisis, rather than divide us.”
Sen. Wyden: “Drought is already hitting Southern Oregon farmers and ranchers in the Klamath Basin, with Klamath County issuing a drought declaration two months earlier than last year.
“This bill can provide sorely needed relief by making sure that agencies can send scarce water to the communities that need it the most.”
Sen. Merkley: “Even though the Willamette Valley was hit hard by snow over the weekend, Oregon is still experiencing a terrible drought, especially in Southern Oregon. Snowpack in the Klamath Basin is only 20 percent of normal. We need to start preparing now because water shortages are nearly inevitable. This bill will provide emergency funding for important drought-relief projects that will help conserve water where we can and make sure the water we have gets to where it’s needed most.”
The bill, which does not waive any federal or state law, includes a range of provisions that require federal agencies to use their existing powers to maximize water supplies, reduce project review times and ensure water is directed to users whose need is greatest, the senators said.
The bill also provides $300 million in emergency funds to be used on a range of projects to maximize water supplies for farmers, consumers and municipalities and provide economic assistance.
Among other provisions, the bill mandates that federal agencies use flexibility under existing law to maximize water supplies using Delta pumping.
“Under the Delta smelt biological opinion, which is required by the Endangered Species Act, pumping that results in ‘reverse flows’ of water between 1,250 and 5,000 cubic-feet-per-second is permitted for the Old and Middle rivers between December and June,” the senators said.
“This ‘reverse flow’ occurs when the state and federal water pumps are turned on to draw water from the rivers into the South Delta for water users. The bill requires federal agencies to operate the pumps within this range to maximize water supplies while remaining consistent with the biological opinion and the Endangered Species Act.”
It also allows the Agriculture secretary to help cover losses caused by the drought through the Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees, and Farm-Raised Fish Program that was included in the new farm bill.
Experts say California’s two-year drought could be worse than the record drought of 1976 and 1977, resulting in the fallowing of more than half-a-million acres of farmland, the senators said.
Tom Nassif, president and CEO of Western Growers, which represents fruit and vegetable producers, praised the introduction of the bill and urged the Senate to take it up and go to conference with the House on the bill that the House passed last week.
“I believe if reasonable accommodation can be made between the two and merged into a single bill in a bipartisan effort, benefits can be realized by all California water users," Nassif said.
But Democrats have criticized the House-passed bill as not addressing real problems and interfering with long-term agreements on how to handle water issues in California.
