ourvalleyvoice.com Thanks to a collaborative and forward-thinking partnership with groundwater sustainability agencies and California farmers, the Department of Water Resources’ (DWR) LandFlex Program has protected thousands of community wells, furthered California’s groundwater recharge efforts, and protected critical water infrastructure from subsidence, all while keeping farms operational and sustainable.
LandFlex first launched in 2022 when California was in its third year of a severe drought and hundreds of drinking water wells were going dry in the Central Valley, impacting frontline communities. To address these impacts, DWR awarded $23.3 million in grant funding to six groundwater sustainability agencies (GSAs) in the Central Valley. These GSAs distributed funds to small and mid-sized farms to help transition to more sustainable practices while eliminating groundwater overdraft and protecting drinking water supplies. In total, 52 farms participated in the program and enrolled 4,474 acres of farmland....
AgNet West As California continues its push toward clean energy, the agricultural community is raising red flags over the unintended consequences of solar development on farmland. AgNet West’s own Josh McGill investigated the issue and found a troubling contradiction: while farmers are restricted from pumping groundwater due to SGMA regulations, massive lithium mines required for solar battery storage are being greenlit—drawing water from the same aquifers.
“How are you going to have water to mine lithium, but not water to grow an almond crop?” — Josh McGill...
Newsweek Satellite images illustrate how water levels in Lake Mead have fallen in the past 25 years.
Lake Mead supplies vital water to millions in Nevada, Arizona, California, and parts of Mexico. However, declining water levels could jeopardize city water systems, farm irrigation, and hydroelectric power output....
CalMatters California is at a groundwater management crossroads as legal loopholes threaten to undo the state’s progress toward responsible groundwater sustainability.
At the core of this legal conflict are two legal processes. The first is the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, the landmark law passed in 2014 to bring order to overdrafting of basins and ensure long-term sustainability of the state’s groundwater resources. The second is groundwater adjudications, a legal tool to determine water rights of who can pump water and how much they can use. ...
farmonaut.com “By 2025, U.S. farmers are projected to reduce water usage by 20% through advanced conservation techniques.”
In 2025, sustainable agriculture stands as a critical priority globally, with the United States Food and Agriculture Administration—frequently referred to as the USDA—playing an internationally recognized, pivotal role in promoting soil conservation and innovative farming practices. As we navigate an era defined by climate change, population growth, and increasing resource scarcity, the urgency for effective farming conservation practices has never been more pronounced....
San Francisco Chronicle On a recent sunny Monday morning, 85-year-old Doug Brown pulled up to a breakfast joint in Willits in his white pickup. Bold white letters on the tinted camper shell window spelled out “Water Witcher,” with Brown’s phone number written just below. Inside the truck was a quiver of wire rods, each tipped with different metals or materials, to be used for Brown’s practice of an archaic tradition: water dowsing.
In an age defined by dry spells and dwindling resources, an unlikely group continues to quietly deploy their centuries-old practice in search of water. Called dowsers, water witchers or diviners, members of this eclectic guild claim they can locate the Earth’s hidden reservoirs using primitive technology and intuition, all for a price....
