During the current drought, the public will hear a lot about water management in California. Unfortunately, Californians are being presented with a false dichotomy – that California's water problems are about fish vs. people. It's what large corporate agribusinesses from the Westlands Water District and Kern County Water Agency have been pushing on the public since 2009. While we agree with these opposing groups that we have a water management problem that is harming everyday people, the facts show that the causes and solutions are different than what they claim.
Barbara Barrigan-Parilla presents key issues and suggests less expensive alternatives than the tunnels. Over the past ten years Westlands and Kern hasve taken moe water from the Delta than Los Angeles and Santa Clara Districts combined. Reservoirs in southern Califirnia are near 100% full while those in the north are near empty. Farmworker communities in the valley suffer high unempoyment evn when there is plentiful water in the system. Read her Viewpoint and understand her basis.