Congress urged to revive drought relief for Valley

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Valley growers are urging Congress not to give up on drought relief.

All signs may be pointing to another year of drought, and drought relief may be delayed in Congress, but Valley water interests are trying to keep the message alive.

Aubrey Bettencourt, director of the California Water Alliance, says the goal is to keep the drought on the front burner.

"It's important to keep the momentum up again and keep the voice up again," she said.

A news conference brought Bettencourt and other concerned parties together to remind everyone of the need for action.

Fresno County Farm Bureau Director Ryan Jacobson says another year like this will be devastating.

"If we don't have that water supply, and if we are not able to have some of those regulatory fixes in place, we are in a very detrimental state were there will be billions of dollars lost from this Ag economy," he said.

The legislation pulled by Senator Diane Feinstein included steps to divert more of what little runoff from snowmelt the Valley might get this spring to farms, by easing some environmental restrictions. Irrigators say several hundred thousand acre feet of water was lost last year, and they don't want the same thing to happen again.

In a recent interview, Rep. Jim Costa, D-Fresno, told Action News the effort is not dead.

"We must stay focused on this. I will continue to urge Senator Feinstein and Senator Boxer and others that we have a responsibility not just for the Valley but for the entire state," he said.

But with the clock ticking, Mike Wade of the California Farm Water Coalition says it may be too late for Congress to help capture more water for the next growing season.

"I don't think even if Senator Feinstein wanted to reintroduce the legislation today there's time to get that wrapped up and through, so we've lost another year," he said.

That may be a gloomy assessment but the only hope for relief is a wetter than expected winter, and a Congress that will at least pass some short-term emergency drought relief.