Imagine turning on your faucet at home and no water comes out. You call your municipal water department, and they tell you there is no water available for your home — but you still have to pay  a water availability fee for the operation and management of the department. This is the situation for some farmers in California.

As you have most likely read or heard, California is in the midst of one of the worst droughts in the state’s history. How the drought is affecting farmers in this agriculturally rich state depends on where they’re located and their sources of water.

I usually like to write about food, not something as complex as the drought. This blog post gave me a headache. But imagine the headache you would have as a farmer trying to source much-needed water to earn a living.

I have read about water systems and the history of water in California; at this point, I think I have read every article written about the drought. My Google alert for “California+ drought” was going off so much that I had to shut it off. I have talked to farmers, shippers and water district managers about the situation in California.

Farmers who depend on the state’s network of canal systems fed by reservoirs have had their allotment of water cut drastically. Right now, the most sought-after men in the state are those with water drilling rigs. Some farmers already have wells and are redirecting their well water for use on their permanent crops; others are pouring money into digging new ones.

Farmers are conserving as much water as they can by using drip and micro sprinklers on their permanent crops such as almonds, walnuts, grapes and fruit trees. These permanent crops are long-term investments that take several years before they produce a crop, but once established can be productive for 20 year or more. Some farmers are letting their land go fallow to protect their permanent crops.

Steve Azevedo, vice president of operations at Dompe Warehouse in Crows Landing, says that the permanent crop landscaping in California has changed the row crop production in the state, and that the drought has a “domino effect up and down California.”

Water districts are also scrambling for every last drop. Anthea Hansen, general manager of the Del Puerto Water District, says “the surface water is just not there.”  There are limited quantities from the Delta Mendota canal, and the federal district is worse. The Del Puerto District serves 45,000 acres, of which 26,000 are permanent crops. About 15,000 acres will be fallow this year.

In the last five years, dry bean acreage was at 2,500; this year, it will be half of that.  The district is looking for water from other sources, but it will come at a high price: $775-$980 per acre foot, if they are able to get it. Anthea told me all indications are that the drought will be a multi-year problem, and the district is preparing for a zero percent allocation next year.

Mark Kirsten of Kirsten Company said that in the South Central Valley, the blackeyes are going to be significantly down, as are baby limas on the West Side. Large limas will probably also be around 25 percent in this area due to water availability. Garbanzos, however, are drought resistant plants that take little water and growers find them a great alternative to other crops that need more water, such as tomatoes and cotton. Because of that, the acreage for garbanzos maybe slightly up from last year.

In the northern part of the valley, the Sacramento River water users were told that they would only receive 40 percent of their full allotment of water. They ended up getting 75 percent of their initial water. Their acreage was affected, but it did not have a negative effect as a whole. Mark says the baby lima acreage is probably slightly higher than last year.

The bad news is the drought will significantly impact the state’s economy and your food budget, especially if it continues. The good news is that there will be a bean crop and beans will remain an economical source of protein for your meals and your health.

                                                                                            -Marilyn