This is the third and final post of our series on the California drought. Read parts one and two of this series.

As we are all very much aware, California is now faced with an historic drought. Farmers generally have two choices when it comes to watering their crops: Surface water, which comes from sources like streams, rivers, and storm runoff, and groundwater, which is generally accessed through wells. At the moment, farmers in California have much less of the former, but may be unable to sufficiently and sustainably substitute groundwater. There are, however, many things farmers can do save water, or practice good ‘water stewardship’ practices to optimize farm production, save money, and benefit people and the environment.

What Can Farmers Do?

A water stewardship approach takes and integrated view of water’s place in the farm’s ecosystem. It’s also effective, relatively inexpensive, and if it’s put in place the Department of Water Resources (DWR) estimates that California agriculture can save 1 million acre-feet of water every year (without growing less food!).

Many of these tools and techniques are not new. But according to the Pacific Institute, farmers have been slow to adopt on-farm water stewardship practices. There are many reasons why: American Farmland Trust surveyed growers and found that risk, cost, and a lack of information are the biggest barriers to adopting new practices. The cost of water has also been relatively low in California, which is a disincentive to conserve. On top of all this, the programs that provide much-needed education, outreach, and technical assistance are underfunded and understaffed. For example, with only 200 farm advisors, the number of UC Cooperative Extension staff was down 40% in 2010 compared to what it was in the 1990s.

On the bright side, this means there are still opportunities for farmers to adopt these practices and make their farms much more resilient in the face of drought.

So what can farmers do? Below are a few on-farm practices featured in the California Agricultural Water Stewardship Initiative (CAWSI) online resource center:

Irrigation:

• More efficient systems. Micro/drip irrigation can reduce water use by 30-50 percent.
• Irrigation scheduling. Based on crop water needs, growers can use some combination of soil moisture monitoring, weather station information, and crop data as appropriate.
• System maintenance. Regular inspections and upkeep improve the efficiency and uniformity of irrigation equipment.
• Plan ahead. Farmers can also work with local Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) staff to create irrigation plans and consult the NRCS Guide to Effective Irrigation Practices.

Recycled Water:

• Growers can use treated municipal wastewater, reuse agricultural runoff or tailwater from irrigation events, or even use household grey water or roof runoff for small scale crop irrigation. For instance, farm advisors estimate in California’s Marin County that with 40,000 square feet of roofing, growers in the Chileno/Hicks Valley area could collect over an acre-foot of roof runoff for reuse.

Soil Management:

• By better managing their soil, growers can help soil hold more water, while decreasing erosion, and filtering more water faster. Some options include tilling the fields less (a practice known as “no-till farming” or “conservation tillage”), using soil amendments such as mulch or compost, and planting winter cover crops (though these do require winter rains to grow). Through these techniques, growers can build soil organic matter (SOM); studies have shown that for every one percent increase in SOM, soils can hold an additional 16,000 gallons of water in the top foot of soil.

On-Farm Ponds: