Rally demands state face up to water crisis

Chanting "agua, agua, agua," busloads of farmworkers joined politicians at the Capitol Wednesday to demand that lawmakers spend state money on dams and canals to ease a growing water crisis.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger wants $9.3 billion for water supply and conservation projects. But the proposed bond has gotten a lukewarm response from Democratic leaders who say lawmakers should focus on negotiating a state budget, now 24 days late.

Wednesday's rally was designed to give a human face to the state's water woes. At least 300 farmworkers, most from the Valley's parched west side, marched and carried homemade signs declaring "agua es vida," or water is life, and "agua = trabajo," water equals work.

The event was organized by farm labor contractor Piedad Ayala and the California Latino Water Coalition, a group of city and business leaders.

Schwarzenegger addressed the workers from the Capitol's steps just below the Assembly chambers. He blamed legislators for the impasse.

"When will they finally get it upstairs?" he asked. "Everyone needs water," he added. "This is not a political issue."

A drought and court-ordered pumping cutbacks from the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta have forced some growers to abandon crops and lay off workers. Total farm losses statewide reached $245 million as of July 11, including $73.5 million in Fresno County, according to state figures.

Efren Salceda, a farmworker from Firebaugh who came to the rally, said conditions are as bad as he has seen in his 30 years on the job. He said he's working fewer hours, leaving his monthly paycheck about $400 short of what it usually is.

He came to Sacramento to "talk to the governor," he said. "We need water."

Schwarzenegger has been trying to broker a water deal since early 2007 but has run into resistance from Democrats, who have opposed using state money for dams. Environmentalists say that all of the good sites for dams are taken and that the projects would benefit only a few select users.

Schwarzenegger's latest proposal calls for dams to compete with groundwater storage and other supply projects for $3 billion.

The biggest priority for west Valley farmers is money for the long-debated peripheral canal to pump water around the Delta southward. Schwarzenegger's plan does not earmark money for a canal. Rather, the bond would be used to "assist the Delta's sustainability."

The governor is targeting the proposal for the Nov. 4 ballot. At the latest, lawmakers have until Aug. 16 to get a bond on the ballot, Secretary of State Debra Bowen said in a letter Wednesday.

Fresno Mayor Alan Autry promised an "all-out fight."

"Today the revolt has begun," he said in a fiery speech.

On Tuesday, Autry told the Fresno Bee editorial board that he would stop paying income taxes until the state and federal governments send more water to the Valley.

"Don't pay your income taxes if our farms don't get their fair share of water," Autry said. "I won't."

The governor, a good friend of Autry, disagrees with him on that point but he "understands the mayor's frustration," said Schwarzenegger spokesman Aaron McLear.

About the writer:

• Call E.J. Schultz, Bee Capitol Bureau, (916) 326-5541.