Water: another scarce resource

Water has always been a big topic in California, and it figures to get even biger.
From the Fresh Produce Industry Discussion Group, Luis writes:


In the West, water is often more precious than oil.
In fact, an OP-ED piece in the NYT suggests that the Western US is losing its Ag competitiveness due to its increasing scarcity. The piece argues that that lost supply could be made up by expanding production in the East under irrigation. The second article details ongoing plans to invest in California's water infrastructure.
Let the East Bloom Again September 22, 2007 Op-Ed Contributor By RICHARD T. McNIDER and JOHN R. CHRISTY Huntsville, Ala. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/22/opinion/22mcnider.html?_r=1&hp=&pag...
{Intro} "The United States faces two major security challenges this century. Both involve water. The increasing demand for water in the Western United States in an era of diminishing supply has put America's highly efficient agricultural system in jeopardy. At the same time, our nation's energy demands have led President Bush and Congressional leaders from both parties to call for more domestic production of biofuels like corn ethanol. Some agricultural experts fear that the country does not have enough water and land to both replace the declining agricultural production in the arid West and expand the production of biofuels.
There is, however, a sustainable solution: a return to using the land and water of the East, which dominated agriculture in the United States into the 20th century."
Water crisis grips California Leaders make pitch for delta fix Bob Krauter Capital Press http://www.capitalpress.info/main.asp?SectionID=67&SubSectionID=792&A...
Quotes:
"Wanger's ruling could reduce delta water exports by up to 37 percent to protect smelt from being sucked into pumps near Tracy, at the head of the California Aqueduct. Northern California water courses through the delta, the West Coast's largest estuary, and supplies the needs of 23 million Californians and 5 million acres of farmland."
"Patricio said Western Growers, a major fruit and vegetable grower- shipper organization, has commissioned a study of water cutbacks that will be completed soon. Preliminary data show severe impacts to the economy.
"If 2008 is an average rainfall year, the study concludes that between 82,000 and 236,000 additional acres will be fallowed. Ag production will decrease between $68 million and $294 million, and that's if we have average rainfall," Patricio said. Up to 4,000 jobs could be lost on farms that depend on delta water, resulting in a loss of personal income of between $57 million and $246 million, he said. Total regional economic loss could total between $110 million and $475 million."