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Four Decades
San Joaquin Valley
improving water quality in the san joaquin valley
Clean Water Action has worked to improve water quality in the San
Joaquin Valley for nearly a decade. Hundreds of small communities there
lack safe drinking water and do not have the resources to treat or
replace their contaminated source water. Despite myriad projects and
bond initiatives to address these problems, the list of contaminated
water systems continues to grow.
Nitrate is the most common contaminant in the region. In drinking water, nitrate can make it hard for the blood stream to absorb oxygen, causing “blue baby syndrome” in infants. Other health effects linked to nitrate are cancer, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and thyroid disruption.
San Joaquin Valley dairies, food processing plants, irrigated farms and other agricultural activities use or produce vast quantities of nitrogen. Nitrogen is converted into nitrate as it leaches through the soil and ultimately into the groundwater on which a majority of Valley residents rely for all or part of their drinking water. With more than seven million irrigated acres under production, this region is farmed more intensively than any other on the planet. Serious nitrate pollution problems are among the results.
Nitrate levels in Valley groundwater are increasing. Unless action is taken now to prevent further pollution, more communities there will lose access to safe drinking water.
Before 1999, waivers granted under state water quality laws meant that this kind of agricultural pollution was not regulated. In 1999, California lawmakers passed legislation requiring State and Regional Water Boards to begin protecting water from agricultural discharges. In 2003, the Central Valley Water Board began requiring farms to monitor surface water quality. Groundwater monitoring is still not required, however, and regulations to require reduced fertilizer use are still being developed.
Meanwhile, on the Central Coast, where strawberries, spinach, baby lettuce, and nitrate in groundwater are all common, the Regional Water Board is poised to adopt a pollution reduction program. That can happen once Board vacancies are filled. The governor is expected to begin making appointments before year-end.
Once in place, programs like these can begin to protect and restore water quality through reduced fertilizer use and improved irrigation methods. Additional benefits will include cost savings on fertilizers and water use, as well as reduced greenhouse gas pollution. Over-fertilization of fields can have 300 times the climate-changing impact of carbon dioxide pollution.
More on Sustainable Agriculture solutions and how you can help is available here.
Clean Water Action has worked to improve water quality in the San
Joaquin Valley for nearly a decade. Hundreds of small communities there
lack safe drinking water and do not have the resources to treat or
replace their contaminated source water. Despite myriad projects and
bond initiatives to address these problems, the list of contaminated
water systems continues to grow.Nitrate is the most common contaminant in the region. In drinking water, nitrate can make it hard for the blood stream to absorb oxygen, causing “blue baby syndrome” in infants. Other health effects linked to nitrate are cancer, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and thyroid disruption.
San Joaquin Valley dairies, food processing plants, irrigated farms and other agricultural activities use or produce vast quantities of nitrogen. Nitrogen is converted into nitrate as it leaches through the soil and ultimately into the groundwater on which a majority of Valley residents rely for all or part of their drinking water. With more than seven million irrigated acres under production, this region is farmed more intensively than any other on the planet. Serious nitrate pollution problems are among the results.
Nitrate levels in Valley groundwater are increasing. Unless action is taken now to prevent further pollution, more communities there will lose access to safe drinking water.
Before 1999, waivers granted under state water quality laws meant that this kind of agricultural pollution was not regulated. In 1999, California lawmakers passed legislation requiring State and Regional Water Boards to begin protecting water from agricultural discharges. In 2003, the Central Valley Water Board began requiring farms to monitor surface water quality. Groundwater monitoring is still not required, however, and regulations to require reduced fertilizer use are still being developed.
Meanwhile, on the Central Coast, where strawberries, spinach, baby lettuce, and nitrate in groundwater are all common, the Regional Water Board is poised to adopt a pollution reduction program. That can happen once Board vacancies are filled. The governor is expected to begin making appointments before year-end.
Once in place, programs like these can begin to protect and restore water quality through reduced fertilizer use and improved irrigation methods. Additional benefits will include cost savings on fertilizers and water use, as well as reduced greenhouse gas pollution. Over-fertilization of fields can have 300 times the climate-changing impact of carbon dioxide pollution.
More on Sustainable Agriculture solutions and how you can help is available here.