Special Report

The impact of the California drought

A new study from the University of California-Davis shows just how serious the drought is in the Golden State.  The UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences says this is currently the third-worst drought on record in the state with river water for the Central Valley reduced by roughly one-third.  Groundwater pumping is replacing the river water losses especially in the San Joaquin Valley and Tulare Basin.

So far, the direct cost to California agriculture is $1.5 billion: $1 billion in lost revenue and a half-billion in additional pumping costs.  428,000 acres or five percent of irrigated cropland is going out of production in the Central Valley, Central Coast and Southern California.

Josue Medellin-Azuara is Senior Researcher at the Center for Watershed Sciences, he says while the groundwater is limiting the agricultural losses this year, if the drought continues this is like a bank account and it will eventually run out and then they will be in real trouble.

The study found consumer food prices are largely unaffected as they are driven more by market demand than drought.  Medellin-Azuara says the bigger impact is on feed crops like alfalfa and corn silage which in turn hits the livestock and dairy industries harder.  So far, the study says the dairy and livestock industry in the Tulare Basin has lost $203 million.  Fortunately, milk prices are at record-highs so dairy producers are able to withstand this for now.  If the drought continues, additional wells in the Tulare Basin are expected to run dry.  “If we keep pumping at these levels to replace surface water we will start seeing serious consequences.”

The study was done at the request of the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

AUDIO:Medellin-Azuara talks about the study 9:15 mp3

Read the full report here