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Category Archives: Drought

From PPIC – If Drought Continues: Environment and Poor Rural Communities Most Likely to Suffer

August 20, 2015   Office of Public Affairs

URBAN AREAS IN BEST SHAPE, FARMERS ADAPTING BUT VULNERABLE From the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) Water Policy Center SAN FRANCISCO, August 19, 2015—If the California drought continues another two to three years, the state will face increasingly acute challenges in two areas: water supply in some low-income rural communities, where wells are running dry; and ecosystems, where the …

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From the Department of Water Resources – NASA Report: Drought Causing Valley Land to Sink

August 19, 2015   Office of Public Affairs

SACRAMENTO, CA — As Californians continue pumping groundwater in response to the historic drought, the Department of Water Resources today released a new NASA report showing land in the San Joaquin Valley is sinking faster than ever before, nearly two inches per month in some locations. “Because of increased pumping, groundwater levels are reaching record lows—up to 100 feet lower …

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Glimpses of California’s water future – from the Los Angeles Times

August 19, 2015   Office of Public Affairs

  By Peter King A sprawl of sewage treatment plants, recharge basins and desalination facilities, stretching out across an industrial backlot near Rancho Cucamonga. A collection of slender, solar-powered telemetry towers rising from an almond orchard in the San Joaquin Valley to bring high-tech efficiency to irrigation. And, at a university research station near Irvine, three Potemkin Village-like suburban houses …

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Posted in Conservation, Drought | 1 Comment

USDA and NASA expand partnership to monitor drought and predict wildfires from space

July 17, 2015   Office of Public Affairs

Meeting at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Mountain View, CA, USDA Deputy Secretary Krysta Harden and NASA Deputy Administrator Dava Newman have announced an expanded partnership between the two agencies to better protect America’s working lands, predict and prevent natural disasters, and inspire young people to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, mathematics and agriculture. Among other things, the agreement …

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Drought response efforts making a difference in hardest-hit rural communities

June 25, 2015   Jenny Lester Moffitt, CDFA Deputy Secretary

When you type “East Porterville” into your trusty search engine, it offers a few suggested phrases before you even get to the “-ville” part: “water crisis” and “drought.” It’s no secret that this part of California is feeling the brunt of our drought, now well into its fourth consecutive summer. But nothing can replace witnessing firsthand the impacts of the drought …

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From USDA: Agriculture Secretary Vilsack Announces $150 Million, New Partnership to Support Water Quality and Quantity in Drought-Stricken California

June 24, 2015   Office of Public Affairs

Resilient Lands and Waters partnership will focus public and private resources towards conserving and restoring the Sierra-Cascade California Headwaters Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today joined Interior Deputy Secretary Mike Connor and California Secretary for Natural Resources John Laird to announce a new partnership focused on conserving and restoring the Sierra-Cascade California Headwaters, as part of President Obama’s Resilient Lands and …

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Southern California remains robust food producer, maintains strong commitment to feed the hungry

June 22, 2015   Karen Ross, California Agriculture Secretary, and Linda

You have to go back more than 70 years to get a view of a very different Southern California. Long before urban and suburban post-war development blossomed around Los Angeles, the region was a major agricultural producer. Citrus was the leading crop, and that heritage is all too apparent in the place names that remain today. An example of that …

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Preliminary report on drought impacts to agriculture in 2015

June 2, 2015   Office of Public Affairs

Drought conditions in crop field near Woodland, Calif. By Richard Howitt, Duncan MacEwan, Josue Medellin-Azuara, Jay Lund and Daniel A. Sumner The drought is expected to be worse for California’s agricultural economy this year because of reduced water availability, according to our preliminary estimates released today. The study, summarized below, estimates farmers will have 2.7 million acre-feet less surface water …

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Posted in Drought, Environment, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

California agriculture: it’s worth the water – Op-ed co-authored by Secretary Ross in the LA Times

June 2, 2015   Office of Public Affairs

By Karen Ross and Daniel Sumner Pundits here in drought-stricken California have become fond of proclaiming that farms consume 80% of the state’s water and generate only about 2% of its gross domestic product. “Why devote so much of our water to an industry that contributes so little fuel to our economic engine?” they ask. Both of those figures are …

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Posted in AG Vision, Agricultural Education, Drought, Environment, Trade, Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Drought relief program offers training for impacted workers

May 26, 2015   Office of Public Affairs

The California Drought Employment Training Program provides 12 different training opportunities, each requiring roughly 250 hours for completion, to workers, employers and students impacted by the drought. Training programs include Irrigation Technicians, Logistics Technicians, Industrial Maintenance Technicians, Water Treatment Operators, Forklift and Warehouse Technicians, Food Safety Technicians, Qualified Applicators License, and Manufacturing Production Technologists. The program is funded through an …

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