Ag Alert. August 24, 2022

Klamath Project irrigators’ water cut off at last minute

When it did rain, Simmons said, the bu- reau divided the water between irrigators and fish. KWUA President Ben DuVal said, “Reclamation keeps changing the rules.” He said the bureau’s announcement to cease diversions goes beyond the min- imum level needed for the suckerfish, which was conservative to begin with. He added that more water has not shown any improvement to the species. Ceasing diversions now, DuVal said, means “crops are going to burn up in

the field.” Growers without other water sources will not be able to finish the sea- son. Local wildlife refuges are also affect- ed, he said. “This is the same story that other farmers are dealing with,” DuVal said. “They built these reservoirs to weath- er droughts, and the management has changed so much that reservoirs are be- ing used for other purposes.” (Christine Souza is an assistant editor of Ag Alert. She may be contacted at csouza@cfbf.com.)

By Christine Souza With a few weeks left in the season, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which operates the Klamath Water Project, pulled the plug on irrigators last week. On Aug. 18, the agency informed Klamath Basin water districts that divert water from Upper Klamath Lake—the major reservoir for the Klamath Project— that they must stop diverting water, ef- fectively cutting the season short. The announcement comes on the heels of 2021, when the bureau shut down project irrigation entirely. Klamath Water Users Association Executive Director and Counsel Paul Simmons said drought is a factor, but in the Klamath Basin, reckless federal water management is the real problem. “This irrigation season, there will be about 335,000 acre-feet of inflow to Upper Klamath Lake, yet the government is requiring that 407,000 acre-feet be re- leased for Klamath River flow,” Simmons said. “Upper Klamath Lake ended the year at elevations far above any level ever claimed to be necessary for endangered sucker species.” The bureau announced in mid-April that the water supply for producers and

wildlife would be about 15% of actual demand. KWUA estimates about 100 square miles of farmland, or one-third of the project, received zero water this year, while the rest received limited water. Simmons said the bureau keeps in- creasing the amount of water to be left in the lake. Irrigators were told they would receive water if it rained after April 15.

Citrus Continued from Page 3

known symptoms of the disease aren’t all that uncommon in citrus, making it hard to tell if an orchard has infected trees. Hornbaker said the best mitigation measure is to control the known vectors that can carry the virus. Because the virus can also be transferred on contaminated tools and equipment, she urged growers to sanitize them in between jobs or when moving from grove to grove. Tulare County fruit grower, packer and shipper Doug Phillips noted that be- cause of HLB and other citrus diseases that are already here, the state for years has maintained a robust program to pro- tect its $3.63 billion citrus industry. Even though the Citrus Pest and Disease Prevention Program was creat- ed because of HLB, McBroom said the state started doing routine annual tree surveys years ago because of diseases such as tristeza and citrus canker. With CYVCV added to the list of poten- tial threats, McBroom said it’s a concern because it could affect how growers har- vest, move and sell their fruit. Every new pest or disease that pops up, he added, could lead to a regulatory response and trade ramifications. He said that means “additional costs (and) hoops to jump through…that become that much more detrimental to being able to make a profit and stay in business.” (Ching Lee is an assistant editor of Ag Alert. She may be contacted at clee@cfbf.com.)

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August 24, 2022 Ag Alert 9