Some California Agencies May Ignore Water Cuts

Some California water agencies are considering whether to defy new water conservation mandates imposed by the state.

“A handful of Central Valley water agencies that have been warned to stop pumping water from rivers to farms, in light of the drought, say they’re considering running their pumps anyway,” the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

“The defiance comes after state officials this week presented a legal case for their conservation crackdown — a framework that irrigation districts see as a retreat from tough talk of cutbacks and fines,” the report said.

Water rights holders received orders mandating that they stop drawing water, but they may not comply.

“Many suppliers stopped drawing water from rivers and creeks [in June], for the first time ever, when the state water board took the extraordinary step of sending curtailment notices to some of California’s strongest water rights holders. Now, agencies with those historic claims say that state regulators, by their own admission, don’t appear to be in a position to penalize people who keep taking water,” the report explained.

Rick Gilmore, general manager of the Byron Bethany Irrigation District in eastern Contra Costa County, said his district is ambivalent. The district had stopped pumping water, but he said it may now resume.

Jeanne Zolezzi, attorney for the Tracy district, argued that the rules are questionable.

“The resulting effect has been that water districts are already writing to the state board agreeing with the state board’s attorneys’ conclusions that the curtailment notice is of no force and effect, and need not be respected,” she wrote, per the Chronicle.

A handful of farmers are mulling defiance. “Farmers in at least two California irrigation districts are considering whether to ignore a letter from the state calling for historic cuts in water use during the drought,” KSBW reported, citing Attorney Steven Herum, who represents two Central Valley irrigation districts.

The state has cracked down on individual, business, and agricultural water users in recent weeks. Urban centers face particularly stiff cuts. "While 135 communities face the stark 35 percent order, another 18 communities, including San Francisco, face reductions of just 10 percent, reflecting the progress they have made in cutting water consumption on their own. The remainder of the 400 California water agencies...would have to make cuts of 20 to 25 percent. Los Angeles would have to reduce its water use by 20 percent," Newsweek reported.

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