An opinion on part of the problem
http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970204731804574384731898375624
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Not just the delta smelt. The smelt are what make the news, but there are a lot of smaller, but similar diversions. Locally on the county level, due to a federal order, we've been diverting enough water to supply an entire city for a year in order to preserve habitat for around 500 steelhead. That's fine when there's ample water. But of course everyone is talking about skipping showers and letting your lawn go brown, but nobody wants to talk about stopping the water diversions for fish that Darwin has dibs on.
Not that there don't need to be some changes in CA farming. It has always boggled my mind the amount of flood irrigation that takes place in CA, especially when I go to state North and East and see wheelines everywhere. Also almonds are taking a good portion of our water, because as happens every couple of decades, some "money from heaven" crop pops up, and everybody tears out what they had and plants that crop. For the last twenty years, it's been almonds. When it's trees, you're screwed if you can't get water. We have row crops, so it's easy enough to skip a planting if needed for a year. Won't make any money, but won't lose hundreds of acres of trees either.