Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/417249
W i n e s & V i n e s D e C e M B e R 2 0 1 4 15 D E C E M B E R N E W S S acramento, Calif.—More than two- thirds (67.8%) of Californians who voted in the Nov. 4 election chose to approve the Water Bond (California Proposition 1) passed by the state legislature as Assembly Bill 1471. This overwhelming support reflects voter recognition of California's continuing water shortages including a three-year drought that now looks like it could extend another year. Earlier predictions of a strong El Niño system that could break the drought have evaporated. Meanwhile other bills—these passed by the legislature—call for California to start moni- toring and regulating groundwater. Until now, Texas and California were the only western states that didn't do this. The $7.12 billion bond issue is a grab bag of water-related measures, the most signifi- cant of which allocates $2.7 billion for water storage including dams and reservoirs. This is the first time since the 1960s that the legislature has approved water storage; in the recent past, environmentalists and others re- jected new projects and even succeeded in re- moving some dams in the water-hungry state. The new bill includes: $ 2.7 billion for water-storage projects, dams and reservoirs. $ 1.5 billion for multi-benefit ecosystem and watershed protection and restoration. $ 900 million to prevent or clean up contami- nation of groundwater used for drinking. $ 810 million for integrated regional water management plan projects. $ 725 million for water recycling and advanced water treatment technology projects. $ 520 million for grants to reduce drinking water contaminants, particularly in small and disadvantaged communities. $ 395 million for statewide flood-manage- ment projects and activities. With the possibility of another year of in- adequate rains looming, however, it should be noted that the bond won't have any impact for years. "The water bond will have a positive effect but not immediately. It's for the long-term good, not to deal with this possible continuing drought," said Brad Goehring, chair of the California Association of Winegrape Growers' Government Affairs Committee and owner of Goehring Vineyards Inc. in Lodi, Calif. He said that CAWG not only supported the measure but helped craft the language on the ballot. "One of the most important contribu- tions was adding the language to require con- tinuous appropriations. That keeps future legislatures from using the money for other purposes or even not spending it." The next step is for the California Water Commission, a nine-person panel including two farmers, to decide which projects will be built. Competition is expected. In particular, CAWG supports the construc- tion of storage projects that satisfy these goals: S ites Reservoir: The proposed Sites Reservoir north of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta could have off-stream storage esti- mated to add 1.8 million acre feet of water- storage capacity and deliver an annual water yield of roughly 500,000 acre feet. S hasta Reservoir: Raising the Shasta Dam on the Sacramento River by 18.5 feet would add 634,000 acre-feet of storage to its exist- ing 4.5 million acre-foot capacity. S an Luis Reservoir: The San Luis Reservoir requires a retrofit to better protect against seismic activity, and the dam could be raised by 20 feet to provide an additional storage capacity of 130,000 acre-feet. T emperance Flat Reservoir: The proposed Temperance Flat Reservoir on the upper San Joaquin River could hold 1.26 million acre- feet of water and increase water reliability during drought periods by 103,000 to 254,400 acre-feet. California's Wine Institute did not take a formal position regarding the water bond, but a spokesperson says that its approval will be positive for agriculture—especially the stor- age and groundwater elements. The proposition that passed replaced a pre- vious measure known as Proposition 43, which called for an $11.14 billion bond. California Gov. Jerry Brown called the previ- ous water bond proposal "a pork-laden water bond…with a price tag beyond what's reason- able or affordable," and asked the legislature to replace it with a cheaper $6 billion bond June 25. The legislature fattened it up and passed the $7.12 billion bond Aug. 13, 2014. The three-year drought hit San Joaquin Valley growers hard in 2014. Farmers who get water from the federal Central Valley Project got zero allocation this year. Many of the proposed proj- ects would benefit farmers in this area. Coastal areas from Monterey to Men- docino—including Sonoma and Napa coun- ties—have not been badly hit by the drought (yet), but this is partly because mild weather hasn't required the use of sprinklers for frost protection. These coastal regions don't get water from the Sierra that would be collected in proposed reservoirs anyway. Paso Robles, meanwhile, is suffering from a severe shortage of water. While growers welcome the passage of the water bond, other bills are causing concern. The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act established the first significant groundwa- ter-management plan in California history. It covers the whole state but leaves controls and enforcement to local groundwater sustainabil- ity agencies in medium- and high-priority groundwater basins. Some areas like Paso Ro- bles (Groundwater Basin Advisory Committee) and Napa County (Groundwater Resources Advisory Committee) already have established agencies, but others will have to create them or the counties will manage groundwater. Groundwater basins subject to "critical over- draft conditions" will need sustainability plans in place by 2020. All others are due by 2022. The act lets groundwater managers regulate and even suspend pumping from groundwater basins and can levy fees and fines. The state can act if local agencies don't manage the groundwater in their jurisdictions. In addition, Napa County growers and winer- ies have voluntarily been monitoring and report- ing water levels, and results so far show little change in the aquifer that supplies the Napa Valley itself—though traditionally the hillsides and outlying water-short areas like Carneros and Coombsville could tell a different story. —Paul Franson What Grapegrowers Expect From California Water Bond NV CALIFORNIA Pacific Ocean Temperance Flat Reservoir Ukiah San Francisco OR Sacramento Monterey Fresno Shasta Reservoir Sites Reservoir San Luis Reservoir Los Angeles San Diego Stockton Funds from the water bond passed Nov. 4 will be used to update the Shasta and San Luis reservoirs as well as building the proposed Sites and Temperance Flat reservoirs.