Posted on 12/30/2021 12:17:27 PM PST by BenLurkin
As rain continued to dump rain on much of Southern California and snow covered mountain peaks Thursday, we could see an even better map this time next week.
The Sierra Nevada range has seen more snow than in over a decade, and that’s good news for California’s snowpack. One spot near Lake Tahoe has recorded a whopping 17 feet of snow so far, a record for the month of December.
Snow in the mountains has meant rain, rain and more rain along the coast, especially in the Bay Area. San Francisco has seen one of its rainiest early winters since the 1980s.
(Excerpt) Read more at ktla.com ...
“We have too many farmers in this valley.”
Problem is we don’t have enough. Between the co-ops and he organized purchasing of land by individual corporations, the day of the farmer is about gone. The industry has become a machine aimed by politics and not a food production process.
An example is the dairy industry in California which in the Valley is much bigger than people know about. California’s Largest Dairy Cooperative, California Dairies, Inc. (CDI) was established in 1999 as the result of a successful merger of three of California’s most successful cooperatives: California Milk Producers, Danish Creamery, and San Joaquin Valley Dairymen. All three cooperatives were rich in tradition with roots dating back to the turn of the 20th century.
As a member-owned milk marketing and processing cooperative, in 2016, CDI was co-owned by 420 California dairy producers who collectively shipped approximately 17 billion pounds of milk annually. Member dairies are located from San Diego County in the south to Sacramento County in the north. CDI is the largest dairy cooperative in California and has a tremendous presence nationwide, as it is the
third largest dairy processing cooperative in the United
States.
However, the owners of the co-op are a whole lot more than the local ranchers:
https://www.adpi.org/Membership/MembershipDirectory/tabid/340/Default.aspx
The big guys, Diamond Walnut Growers, is huge and is partnered with Sun Maid, Suns Sweet, and Valley Fig Growers since the 1980’s. The whole co-op was purchased by Snyder’s-Lance, the second largest salty snack maker in the United States. It was formed by the 2010 merger of Lance Inc. and Snyder’s of Hanover. As of 2018, it is a subsidiary of the Campbell Soup.
So as you can see, the largest ag industries in the valley are not really the valley owned. They are a combination of multi companies that no longer run the sites up front. And their products are sold internationally with sites in many countries.
I watched the changes over the years as I was born in Dinuba and raised in Visalia. Had relatives in the industries.
wy69
So it’s not like the Real McCoys these days?
I wonder how Lake Oroville is holding up
Good question.
80% of the water use every year goes to agriculture, a lot of it to almonds (it takes a gallon of water to produce one almond) in the Central and Imperial Valleys. Of the remaining 20%, 12% goes to landscape irrigation, a large portion of that to support 124 golf courses in the Palm Springs area. 8% is household use.
At 711' asl and heading up.
Two years ago was full, and almost dry last fall.
Imagine the chaos if CA politicians didn't manage the lake levels.
Five years of farm AND HYDROPOWER.
If you don’t like farmers, quit eating.
Should have built more reservoirs and stopped the messycan useless eaters from flooding into the state. Duh.
The Diamond Valley Lake reservoir was completed in 2003. It is one of the largest reservoirs in Southern California.
You are correct. I don’t know why they gave me the wrong info on that search. The article was from Dec 15, 2021 in the LA Times. Several others state the same. Maybe there is some distinction between the New Melons Dam & others?
Now that I look at Wikipedia, there have been a few others since 1980.
At any rate, it looks like they are looking at building a new Sites Reservoir in Northern CA. Who knows how long or when it will be completed. The article about Sites, also states “New Melons Dam north of Sonora has the last water project built in California. It was completed in 1980.” Strange.
so the climate change that caused the drought… also fixed it…
“Of course we don’t. People don’t need to eat, right?”
BOTH the US and CA are net agricultural exporters. By a far piece.
So all of us will always eat.
But I am opposed to wholesale destruction of the local rivers and environment to support corporate farms that exist to export the product.
It would be of no concern to me or fellow conservatives in the Big Valley if there was enough water to support the enterprise AND keep the rivers alive.
There is not.
Corporate farming is $10’s of billions and they buy whatever they need in Sacramento. And they spew disinformation (like Oroville having 5 years supply of water) that appeals to the emotions of the ignorant conservatives.
I was born and raised in Modesto.
And you are correct.
It’s not too many farmers, it’s more land under tillage than the environment can support long term. Corporate farms.
And the corporate farms do not givva sh!t what happens to the San Joaquin valley, especially the river. They would put every drop of Sierra water onto their acreage and let the Pacific ocean creep all the way to Bakersfield.
“It is one of the largest reservoirs in Southern California.”
That’s like being one of the coldest beers on the floorboard of your truck.
Melones remains the last water project of significance.
“If you don’t like farmers, quit eating.”
I like farmers just fine. I know a bunch.
It’s dirty corporate farms I stand against in the Big Valley. And if they were all destroyed tomorrow I’d eat just fine. So would you. In fact, I doubt the contents of my pantry or fridge would change at all.
BY FAR the excess ag here is exported internationally.
Every almond takes a gallon of water....all the trillions of ‘em.
And 80% leave the US.
Must be biden’s policies and leadershit...
Use the Federal monies to build desalination plants at the mouth of the rivers!
;)
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