Growing Returns

Crop-switching in the megadrought: Can guayule help Arizona farmers use less water?

By Kevin Moran / Bio / Published: March 21, 2022

This year, farmers in Pinal County, Arizona, will lose two-thirds of their irrigation water from the Colorado River because of a historic shortage declaration triggered by the driest period in more than 1,000 years. And within two years, they will be completely cut off from the Colorado River.

Some farmers are responding by fallowing fields. Others are selling their land to solar companies. And then there’s Will Thelander, a farmer who partnered with EDF, Bridgestone Americas and the University of Arizona to test a new crop that uses half as much water as the alfalfa he previously grew.

Crop-switching to a desert shrub called guayule used to produce rubber is one of just many strategies that will be needed in Arizona and other regions to adapt to water scarcity and maintain agricultural economies in a new era of aridification. However, it’s not nearly as simple as just planting different seeds in the ground.

Posted in Water / Tagged agriculture, arizona drought, climate change, colorado river, farmers | Comments are closed

California’s new farmland repurposing program requires community engagement. This guide describes how.

By Anna Schiller / Bio / Published: March 14, 2022

Many regions in California are embarking on a new era of water and land management strategies as local agencies implement sustainability initiatives and climate change intensifies droughts and water scarcity.

However, too often low-income rural communities have had little opportunity to influence land and water decisions that directly impact — and often harm — them, resulting in such outcomes as wells drying up and limited access to parks.

California’s new Multibenefit Land Repurposing Program aims to ensure these communities as well as small-scale farmers are more involved in land and water use planning by making their engagement a requirement for funding recipients.

Also posted in ecosystems / Tagged agriculture, california water, farmland, farmland repurposing, groundwater, San Joaquin Valley, SGMA | Comments are closed

Gov. Newsom proposed nearly doubling funds for a new farmland repurposing program. Here are 4 ways it can help people and wildlife.

By Ann Hayden / Bio / Published: January 27, 2022

This month Gov. Gavin Newsom took another important step in supporting the San Joaquin Valley and sustainable groundwater management by proposing $40 million in additional funds for the new Multibenefit Land Repurposing Program, which he and the Legislature created last year with $50 million in initial funding.

This voluntary program aims to help farmers reduce groundwater use by repurposing farmland to other uses that deliver new benefits, including outdoor recreational spaces, wildlife habitat, renewable energy, soil health and groundwater recharge.

Posted in Water / Tagged California Groundwater, Gavin Newsom, Multibenefit Land Repurposing Program, San Joaquin County, San Joaquin Valley, SGMA | Comments are closed

Arizona water is at a crossroads. Will the Legislature respond?

By Christopher Kuzdas / Bio / Published: January 13, 2022

The Arizona Legislature opened this week with the state facing significant water insecurity. Water has climbed to one of the top three concerns of Arizona voters, who are getting engaged in water issues and will be watching the Legislature closely this session as an election year looms large.

EDF Action and our Water for Arizona Coalition partners are focusing on the following five priorities for this year’s legislative session to respond to residents’ concerns and help ensure water security for Arizona.

Also posted in ecosystems / Tagged arizona drought, arizona infrastructure, arizona water, colorado drought, colorado river, Colorado River Basin | Comments are closed

Arizonans have spoken: It’s time to protect rural groundwater.

By Rachel O'Connor / Bio / Published: January 7, 2022

Across roughly 80% of Arizona, there are virtually no groundwater regulations, meaning that anyone can drill a well and pump groundwater, even if it dries up neighboring drinking wells or depletes flows in nearby rivers and streams. It’s the land of “the deepest well wins,” putting livelihoods, communities, agriculture and ecosystems at risk.

To help address this risk, state Rep. Regina Cobb introduced legislation two years in a row that would safeguard critical groundwater supplies by providing at-risk groundwater basins or subbasins in rural Arizona the opportunity to opt in to Rural Management Areas (RMAs). Doing so would trigger the creation of a local advisory board that can leverage a suite of tools to develop a groundwater management plan that considers local needs and context.

Posted in Water / Tagged Arizona, Arizona groundwater, arizona legislature, rural grundwater, rural water, water security | Comments are closed

2021 began with a Texas-sized water crisis. In 2022, Texas needs solutions.

By Vanessa Puig-Williams / Bio / Published: January 6, 2022

Last February, Texans got a terribly clear view of the fragility of their state’s water infrastructure, as a statewide freeze left millions of Texans without heat or electricity and almost half of the state’s population lost water.

This event provided a stark reminder of what’s at stake. The state’s 2022 water plan estimates that more than $80 billion in projects are needed to meet future water demands and build resilience across Texas.

Posted in Water / Tagged aquifers, texas aquifers, texas blackout, texas groundwater, texas infrastructure, texas legislature, texas water freezing | Read 1 Response

New EDF video helps Texans visualize and protect the groundwater they cannot see

By Vanessa Puig-Williams / Bio / Published: December 16, 2021

Protecting Texas’ vulnerable groundwater supplies raises a challenging dilemma: How can you motivate people to stand up for an underground resource they cannot see?

So we made a video to bring this vital resource to life.

This year, EDF released “Beneath the Surface and Above: The Journey of Groundwater.” The video combines beautiful natural footage from filmmaker Ben Masters and others with computer-generated animation to illuminate the connection between Texas’ groundwater supplies and iconic rivers and springs — and to show how they all need to be protected to safeguard the state’s people, economy and environment.

Posted in Water / Tagged agriculture, conservation, drinking water, groundwater, rivers, Texas | Comments are closed

Wells and springs are drying up in Texas. Here is what leaders can do about it.

By Vanessa Puig-Williams / Bio / Published: December 8, 2021

Millions of Texans are in danger of seeing their water supplies dry up as groundwater is being pumped out of aquifers across the state at an unsustainable pace.

Fortunately, there is still time for Texas to turn the tide and preserve groundwater for future generations.

Those are the conclusions of a new pair of reports released by EDF and the Meadows Center for Water and the Environment at Texas State University.

The first report Five Gallons in a Ten Gallon Hat: Groundwater Sustainability in Texas by Robert Mace, executive director of the Meadows Center, shows Texas is losing groundwater at nearly twice the maximum sustainable rate. Moreover, according to long-term management plans approved by local groundwater agencies, overpumping is likely to increase in coming years unless officials change course.

A second report co-authored by EDF, Advancing Groundwater Sustainability in Texas: A Guide to Existing Authorities and Management Tools for Groundwater Conservation Districts and Communities, lays out a path for addressing the looming groundwater crisis utilizing existing law.

Posted in Water / Tagged groundwater agencies, Ogallala, texas drought, texas groundwater, texas springs, texas streams, texas water, texas wells | Comments are closed

The Grand Canyon Protection Act would advance water security and environmental justice at critical time

By Christopher Kuzdas / Bio / Published: November 9, 2021

Climate change and drought are bringing home the urgent need to protect the Grand Canyon and secure clean water supplies for all communities in the Colorado River Basin. With the compounding threat of uranium mining, the stakes are high in the Grand Canyon — a global treasure, economic driver for Arizona, and place of great cultural and spiritual importance to at least 12 sovereign indigenous nations.

If passed, the Grand Canyon Protection Act would make permanent the 20-year temporary ban (enacted in 2012) on new uranium and other hard rock mining on about 1 million acres of public land around Grand Canyon National Park. The bill was introduced earlier this year by Reps. Raúl Grijalva and Tom O’Halleran and Sens. Kyrsten Sinema and Mark Kelly, all Arizona Democrats. It has passed out of the House but has not yet received a vote in the Senate.

Posted in Water / Tagged colorado groundwater, grand canyon water, uranium mining | Comments are closed

Capturing water from atmospheric rivers will help build drought resilience in California. Here’s how.

By Anna Schiller / Bio / Published: October 28, 2021

This blog was co-authored by Nicole Schmidt, a recent graduate from UC Santa Barbara’s Bren School of Environmental Science and Management.

Several locations in California set all-time 24-hour rainfall records this past weekend when an atmospheric river delivered much needed precipitation as the majority of the state remains in extreme drought conditions.

In Sacramento, this wettest day on record followed the longest consecutive dry spell on record amid California’s second driest year.

As scientists have been predicting, climate change is causing more dramatic extremes in weather — both wet and dry — and that pendulum swung very dramatically to the wet side over the weekend.

Consequently, it’s critical we prepare now to capture and store water during these shorter, intense wet periods so that more water is available during the inevitable increasingly severe drought years ahead. Read More »

Posted in Water / Tagged atmospheric river, California drought, california flood, california rain, climate change, drought, sustainable groundwater management act | Comments are closed