Opinion: As another dry year looms in California, key steps will make a resilient water future

On issues ranging from climate policy to immigration and health care, the past four years have been full of discord between California and Washington, D.C. Unfortunately, water users throughout California have not escaped the conflict, including in the Central Valley, where our communities have suffered as a result. Now, with drought conditions returning and the impacts of climate change intensifying, it is time to advance a solution for statewide water policy that will transition us from an era of conflict to one of collaboration.

California’s complex water system brings water to approximately 35 million Californians, 5.7 million acres of the most productive agricultural land in the world, and iconic ecosystems. Unfortunately, conflicts that arose during the previous administration stymied the ability of California’s water managers to work together to achieve shared goals in a sustainable way. The rift betweenthe federal and state governments also hampered efforts to update California’s water quality control plan. If California is to achieve its water reliability goals under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, meet the future water needs for a growing state, and combat the effects of climate change, we must move on from this harmful stalemate.

Now, with a new federal administration in place, state and federal policymakers must come together to complete negotiations, end the cycle of policy-making by litigation, and enact voluntary agreements that are rooted in data, the best-available science, and a shared desire to actually get something done for all Californians. If completed, they will result in a more collaborative and holistic approach to improving the ecological health of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers and the Delta. The proposed voluntary agreements also better serve the wildlife, families, communities and businesses that rely on California’s vast water management system.

Voluntary agreements — an effort begun in 2018 — will establish a common framework among state and federal agencies, public water agencies, and nongovernmental organizations to improve California’s ecosystems by implementing fish and wildlife habitat restoration projects, combined with additional flows for threatened fish populations, while preserving the vitality of California’s economy. This balanced approach creates stability that benefits not only the environment, but also the communities that depend on water. Voluntary agreements would be a generational shift that includes new governance structures to more effectively meet California’s environmental and economic goals — and it’s exactly the kind of solution the Central Valley needs now more than ever.

At a time when California is facing yet another dry winter, weather extremes due to climate change, and the prospect of water scarcity extending across the state, we need all parties working together to ensure the health and well-being of our communities. This can begin with leaders in Sacramento and Washington completing negotiations and to start implementing the agreements.

The Central Valley has lived through many droughts before. Tragically, this risks becoming the new normal due to climate change. We know droughts and water fights bring not only fallowed fields, but dry drinking water taps, thousands of lost jobs, and long lines at food banks. We cannot afford to fall into what Gov. Newsom previously referred to as the “old binaries, like farmers versus environmentalists.” We must solve this problem now, and we have to do it together.

The Central Valley can’t afford to wait, and Californians deserve nothing less.

Rep. Jim Costa (D-Fresno) has represented the San Joaquin Valley in the U.S. House of Representatives since January 2005; costa.house.gov. Rep. John Garamendi (D-Walnut Grove) has represented the Sacramento Valley in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2009; garamendi.house.gov.