Bad News is Good News
We were discussing news coverage of water issues in the office today and why the water user community always seems to be on the defensive. Most stories you read or hear about from news outlets are geared toward a catastrophe or righting something that has supposedly gone wrong.
Coverage on the Governor's proposal to build new reservoirs to help meet the state's future water supply needs contained some very strident comments from anti-dam people. Their comments included claims that new storage was just another billion-dollar handout for farmers. The papers love conflict, especially when it pits people against the environment. So often we read that projects like Temperence Flat Dam or the South Delta Improvements Project must be stopped because of the harm they might cause. Seldom are all of the facts printed that explain why new water projects are necessary. It just easier to publish the comments from one side or the other and let the public decide what's right based on who has the best spin.
Its difficult to for a farmer to compete for public sympathy when his or her opposition is a salmon. But is doesn't have to be that way. The discussion shouldn't be framed as an either/or proposition. Fish also benefit from surface storage in the way of water supply reliability. There is simply more water available to release into the river during times of the year when water flows would otherwise diminish.
Farmers are as much a part of California as fish are. Heck, we all are. That's why its important for the public to understand that farmers and the water districts that supply them are doing really great things to help the environment. Take a look at the publication "A Smaller Footprint" on the web site for the Agricultural Water Management Council at http://www.agwatercouncil.org. Its full of positive stories and is a resource that members of the media should use to see that there is indeed some balance in the world.
Coverage on the Governor's proposal to build new reservoirs to help meet the state's future water supply needs contained some very strident comments from anti-dam people. Their comments included claims that new storage was just another billion-dollar handout for farmers. The papers love conflict, especially when it pits people against the environment. So often we read that projects like Temperence Flat Dam or the South Delta Improvements Project must be stopped because of the harm they might cause. Seldom are all of the facts printed that explain why new water projects are necessary. It just easier to publish the comments from one side or the other and let the public decide what's right based on who has the best spin.
Its difficult to for a farmer to compete for public sympathy when his or her opposition is a salmon. But is doesn't have to be that way. The discussion shouldn't be framed as an either/or proposition. Fish also benefit from surface storage in the way of water supply reliability. There is simply more water available to release into the river during times of the year when water flows would otherwise diminish.
Farmers are as much a part of California as fish are. Heck, we all are. That's why its important for the public to understand that farmers and the water districts that supply them are doing really great things to help the environment. Take a look at the publication "A Smaller Footprint" on the web site for the Agricultural Water Management Council at http://www.agwatercouncil.org. Its full of positive stories and is a resource that members of the media should use to see that there is indeed some balance in the world.
posted by California Farm Water Coalition at 2:22 PM
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