Westlands Water District is a
water district A water district is a special district given the task of supplying water and sewer needs to a community. This term is commonly used in the United States.
See also
* Irrigation district In the United States an irrigation district is a cooperative ...
in central
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
, a local-government entity formed in 1952, that holds long-term contracts for water supplied by the
Central Valley Project
The Central Valley Project (CVP) is a federal power and water management project in the U.S. state of California under the supervision of the United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR). It was devised in 1933 in order to provide irrigation an ...
and the
California State Water Project
The California State Water Project, commonly known as the SWP, is a state water management project in the U.S. state of California under the supervision of the California Department of Water Resources. The SWP is one of the largest public wate ...
.
It is the largest agricultural water district in the US, and provides water to farms in an area of approximately 600,000 acres (2,400 km²) in
Fresno County
Fresno County (), officially the County of Fresno, is a county located in the central portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 1,008,654. The county seat is Fresno, the fifth-most populous city in Cali ...
and
Kings County in the
San Joaquin Valley
The San Joaquin Valley ( ; es, Valle de San Joaquín) is the area of the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California that lies south of the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta and is drained by the San Joaquin River. It comprises seven ...
of central
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
. Its headquarters are in
Fresno
Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...
.
Background
Westlands is the largest agricultural water district in the United States. Farms in Westlands make up less than one-tenth of the 6.9 million acres of farmland in California. It has been the focal point for many controversial water issues in California because of its size. Roughly 600 farmers own land, many of them are large (25,000 acres) but many also small.
Economical significance of district agriculture
Farms within Westlands produce approximately $1 billion worth of food and fiber per year, more than 20 percent of the agricultural output of Fresno County, per the Fresno County Farm Bureau.
[Fast Facts on Fresno County and California Agriculture](_blank)
That averages out to about $1,700 of gross revenues per acre. Despite this apparent productivity, a 2008 study by Oxfam and the Rockefeller foundation found that the 20th U.S. Congressional District is the poorest congressional district in the United States. Westlands water district farmers receive a triple subsidy- cheap water, USDA crop subsidies, and below-market electricity.
Legislative history
The
Reclamation Act of 1902
The Reclamation Act (also known as the Lowlands Reclamation Act or National Reclamation Act) of 1902 () is a United States federal law that funded irrigation projects for the arid lands of 20 states in the American West.
The act at first cover ...
required that farmers live on their land, because Westlands had many absent landowners at the time of federal contracting, and that they only receive water for 160 acres. From 1915 until the mid forties water from deep wells irrigated the land and lowered the water table.
In 1942, the 'Westside Landowners Association' formed to help finance studies of developing an alternative water supply for the west side. They contracted with the Bureau of Reclamation, to determine if surface water from the
Central Valley Project
The Central Valley Project (CVP) is a federal power and water management project in the U.S. state of California under the supervision of the United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR). It was devised in 1933 in order to provide irrigation an ...
(CVP) through an off-stream site at San Luis could reach west side lands.
In 1952, owners of 400,000 acres of west side land successfully petitioned the
Fresno County Board of Supervisors to form a
water district A water district is a special district given the task of supplying water and sewer needs to a community. This term is commonly used in the United States.
See also
* Irrigation district In the United States an irrigation district is a cooperative ...
.
In 1961, the State of California signed a contract with the federal government for federal construction of the San Luis Unit of the CVP, including a drain, followed by its construction over 6 years and operation since 1968. The government had agreed to build a drain as well, well aware that the irrigation in parts of Westlands would saturate the root zone. Due to environmental concerns and budget constraints only the first part of the San Luis Drain was completed. The half-completed drain created
Kesterson Wildlife Refuge.
Congress passed the 'Reclamation Reform Act of 1982', which increased allowable irrigated land to 960 acres (3.9 km²) and struck the requirement that west side landowners remain near their lands. In 1985 the drain had to be closed by court order due to high levels of heavy metals, such as selenium, boron, chromium, molybdenum and salts in the drained water, violating environmental laws .
The soil in the upslope regions of the district contains "extraordinarily elevated concentrations of selenium, boron, chromium, molybdenum, and extremely high concentrations of various salts that disrupt the normal ionic balance of the aquatic system."
The California drought, beginning in 1987, led to reductions in surface water delivery.
In 2011, lawyer
David L. Bernhardt and the Colorado-based law firm
Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck
Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP is a lobbying and law firm based in the United States with 250 attorneys and policy consultants in 13 offices across the western U.S. and in Washington, D.C.
History
The firm was founded in 1968 by Norman Bro ...
filed a lawsuit for Westlands that "sought to force the feds to make good on a commitment to build a multibillion-dollar system to dispose of the poisoned water" resulting from toxic irrigation in the Westlands district. Later, through the 2017 bill HR 1769, Westlands agreed to drop the lawsuit in exchange for forgiven debt and long-term access to water from
Central Valley Project
The Central Valley Project (CVP) is a federal power and water management project in the U.S. state of California under the supervision of the United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR). It was devised in 1933 in order to provide irrigation an ...
facilities. In April 2017, the
House Natural Resources Committee approved the settlement, but rejected an amendment that would have "barred former Westlands officials or lobbyists — meaning Bernhardt — from working on the drainage issue for five years."
Through Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, Bernhardt also represented Westlands Water District in "a lawsuit that sought to undo court-imposed protections for endangered
salmon
Salmon () is the common name for several commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the family Salmonidae, which are native to tributaries of the North Atlantic (genus ''Salmo'') and North Pacific (genus '' Oncorhy ...
in the
Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta."
In February 2020, 75 project customers, including the Westlands, received permanent federal water contracts for the Central Valley Project.
Lobbying activities
Up until 2006 the Westlands Water District had spent less than $100,000 annually on lobbying. In 2006 it increased to $208,000, to pay two firms, and $266,000 in 2009 to pay three lobbying groups. In 2012 lobbying expenses further increased to $370,000, to pay three groups, and in 2013 to $600,000 for 5 lobbying groups and their 9 lobbyists.
Until the end of 2016,
David L. Bernhardt was both an attorney and lobbyist for Westlands.
However, in November 2016 he delisted himself as a lobbyist, to avoid "running afoul of the new president's ban on lobbyists joining his
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an administrative officer, admini ...
." By April 2017, Bernhardt remained on a $20,000-a-month retainer with Westlands.
See also
*
San Joaquin River
The San Joaquin River (; es, Río San Joaquín) is the longest river of Central California. The long river starts in the high Sierra Nevada, and flows through the rich agricultural region of the northern San Joaquin Valley before reaching Suis ...
*
Central Valley Project
The Central Valley Project (CVP) is a federal power and water management project in the U.S. state of California under the supervision of the United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR). It was devised in 1933 in order to provide irrigation an ...
*
California Water Wars
*
Water in California
California's interconnected water system serves over 30 million people and irrigates over of farmland. As the world's largest, most productive, and potentially most controversial water system, it manages over of water per year.
Water and wate ...
*
Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley Emergency Water Delivery Act (H.R. 3964; 113th Congress)
References
External links
Westlands Water District websiteLand Retirement Analysis of Economic Impacts (Full Report)Law.ggu.edu: "Reaping Riches in a Wretched Region: Subsidized Industrial Farming and Its Link to Perpetual Poverty"
{{coord, 36.7797, -119.781, region:US-CA, display=title
Water management authorities in California
California State Water Project
Central Valley Project
Irrigation Districts of the United States
Government of Fresno County, California
Government of Kings County, California
Agriculture in California
San Joaquin Valley
1952 establishments in California
Government agencies established in 1952