This week, in response to water legislation he introduced last month, Western Growers sent a letter to  California congressman Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) objecting to a crop sustainability provision that would set a dangerous precedent for the agriculture industry. While the bill includes some interesting ideas, WG expressed concern over that particular provision and explained why trying to measure the sustainability of crops absent irrigation water was a poor idea. 

As proposed, the bill requires the federal government to determine whether “water intensive, permanent crops” have been planted from federally developed water supplies and would require a report to be filed to Congress about the details of those plantings. This language is problematic because it could potentially be used to dictate the types of crops that farmers are allowed to grow.

In the letter, Western Growers asked Rep. Huffman to remove the provision from the bill. For more information, contact Dennis Nuxoll at (202) 296-0191.