California Water Allocation for 2013

Taylor Hillman General

Water Allocation
News for California farmers from the water front. Recent storms may help out growers next year. Sabrina Hill reports.
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The state Department of Water Resources announced farmers can expect to receive more of the water they need for 2013. The snowpack is built up and reservoirs are refilled, thanks to early storms around the sate. State Water Project contractors will get 40 percent of their requested deliveries for 2013. That number was just 30 percent at the end of November. The water goes to nearly a million acres of farmland and more than 25 million residents. For 2012 the final water deliver was 65 percent of the requested amount. Even in especially wet years, the state has difficulty reaching higher allocation rates, due to restrictions enforced to protect endangered fish.