Barbarians at the Irrigate
Big Ag wins, fish and wildlife lose in California's water wars
Welfare for the Rich: Two articles from Grist Magazine: Multi-millionaire "family farmers" continue to receive millions in agriculture subsidies. The five largest oil firms make record billions in earnings this quarter, while continuing to collect oil subsidies from U.S. government. Meanwhile, consumers pay more at the pump and California's water supply is being depleted.
Date: 10/25/2005 7:29:54 PM ( 19 y ago)
| | NEW IN GRIST Barbarians at the Irrigate Big Ag wins, fish and wildlife lose in California's water wars |
Thanks in part to a recent public-relations blitz and some crucial assistance from the Bush administration, Big Agriculture seems to have won California's decades-long water wars. Irrigation districts in California's Central Valley are signing federal contracts that ensure taxpayer-funded water supply for the next 25 to 50 years. Meanwhile, multi-millionaire "family farmers" -- many of whom live in mansions miles from their mega-farms -- continue to receive millions in agriculture subsidies. Thus, taxpayer-subsidized water is pumped uphill with taxpayer-subsidized electricity to nourish taxpayer-subsidized crops. Not a bad deal for what state Rep. George Miller (D) calls "the most politically powerful welfare recipients in the world." Meanwhile, rivers and estuaries in northern California -- which received more water after conservationist campaigns in the 1990s -- are once again getting shorted and seeing their fisheries decline precipitously. Perhaps it's time for eco-groups to make an ad that shows a fish in overalls, crumbling a clump of dirt, squinting into the distance. Save the Family Fish! 
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