Amid discussions by a state water agency that agricultural users with senior water rights would soon face significant cutbacks, a group of California farmers have voluntarily agreed to a 25 percent reduction in water use in exchange for no further cuts this year.

The voluntary plan was approved May 22 by the California State Water Resources Control Board with participating farmers required to submit their water reduction plans by June 1.

In April, the state announced mandatory cutbacks for urban users, and local water agencies have been busy establishing and implementing those plans ever since. Homeowners are required to cutback at least 25 percent with various penalties being established for non-compliance.

However, when Gov. Jerry Brown announced the mandatory cutbacks, he initially stated that agriculture was exempt, as it had already been at the forefront of reductions by fallowing thousands of acres over the past couple of years, as well as implementing other water-saving plans. But as the drought worsens, there has been much public debate as to how much agriculture should be spared, as it does use about 40 percent of the total water utilized in the state for all sources.

Urban users take about 10 percent while about 50 percent is used for environmental reasons, such as pumping fresh water out to sea to limit saltwater intrusion.

With this as the backdrop, the State Water Resources Control Board began discussing curtailment plans for senior water right holders. While these holders, mostly agricultural water districts with rights dating back prior to 1914, are typically exempt from any curtailment except in those most dire circumstances, it has been determined that the current crisis has reached that draconian level for the first time in almost 40 years.

On May 1, junior water rights holders – water rights dating back no further than 1914 when the water rights plan was established – received curtailment notices ordering them to stop diverting water from rivers. Experts have estimated that agriculture has lost about one-third of its surface water this year.

Most growers and districts, however, plan well ahead and most farmers – especially fruit, vegetable and nut growers that rely on irrigation – have plans in place to get them through this year. Last year, it was estimated that more than 400,000 acres were fallowed, which represented about 5 percent of the total. More land than that is expected to be fallowed this year.

The deals with farmers in the water-thirsty Delta region in the northern part of the San Joaquin Valley has a real impact, as well as a public relations one.

Felicia Marcus, chairwoman of the state water board, applauded the efforts of this group of senior water rights holders, saying, “They’re handing us some water … We really appreciated the creative approached offered to us by Delta farmers.”

It’s a voluntary program with hundreds of growers in the Delta eligible for participation by the June 1 deadline. Though she would not predict how many growers would participate, Marcus told reporters that there is significant incentive to join the program. Those who participate will be assured they’ll get 75 percent of their normal supplies. Those who don’t could face more stringent cutbacks as the summer unfolds and the agency rolls out its curtailment orders.

It was estimated that 500 growers representing tens of thousands of acres attended a planning meeting and expressed interest in joining the effort as it was being developed. The Delta has about 600,000 acres, which represents about 8 percent of the state’s farmland. This deal, however, could serve as template for other agricultural areas.

As California moves into what is normally a very hot summer with virtually no precipitation, 98 percent of the state is in drought conditions with the vast majority of stream flows at 25 percent or less of normal.

The state is in its fourth consecutive year of drought. However, some are pointing to the recent heavy rains in Oklahoma and Texas, which has effectively ended the drought in that part of the country, as a meteorological sign that the drought could end this winter with the same El Niño conditions poised to bring rain to the West. But it should be noted that the same level of optimism for the same reason existed last summer.