It's no secret that California is possibly facing the worst drought year in its history. Two critically dry years combined with Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta pumping restrictions, climate change, and population increases have left California in a severe water shortage situation, with water supplies in major reservoirs and the groundwater basins in the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California at or below historical lows To help address the state's water needs, the California Department of Water Resources unveiled its 2009 drought water bank. This is the first time the state has established a drought water bank since the last major statewide drought in 1994.

The function of this state government plan is to buy water primarily from local water agencies and farmers upstream of the Delta, and make the water available for sale to public and private water systems expecting to run short of water in 2009 due to ongoing drought conditions and regulatory restrictions. Sounds great? To some maybe, but to others, it is concerning.

A key concern is that expectations for water transfers are high. The state's and buyers' expectations are that about 600,000 acre-feet of water will be available for transfer. Yet water supplies in major upstream reservoirs have been stressed following the past two years of critically dry conditions. Given normal rainfall for this year, and restrictions that the state has placed on sellers' potential participation in the 2009 drought water bank, about 150,000 acre-feet of water may be a more realistic expectation.

However, even that amount may be optimistic.

Some claim that the 2009 drought water bank will be a "catastrophe to tributaries" and that there isn't enough water for transfers and still meet in-basin needs. This is not likely; people need to realize that Northern California's local water needs are considered top priority before any water is transferred out of the region.

There are a number of policies regarding participation in the drought water bank, including criteria for transfers that are designed to minimally impact Northern California's communities, economy and the environment. Any transfers under the 2009 drought water bank will be made in accordance with state and federal environmental law, as well as local ordinances consistent with state law. This means farmers and other water rights holders in the Northern California region cannot arbitrarily sell water to other entities without regard to the effects of the water transfer on their local environment and economy.

While the 2009 drought water bank is merely one component in addressing our state's water woes, it is only a short-term means of addressing the problem and not part of a long-term fix. We need to address our state's aging water infrastructure that has seen little, if any, improvement over the last 40 years despite the state's growing population.

California's current and future water needs cannot be addressed in a piecemeal or reactionary manner. A comprehensive program that includes increased surface storage options, environmental water programs, flood protection, groundwater management, intra-regional water transfers and exchanges, fish passage enhancement, waterfowl habitat, watershed management and regionally tailored water use efficiency needs to be implemented.

Steve Danna and his family farm in Sutter and Yuba counties, growing a variety of tree and row crops. He is chairman of the Northern California Water Association, which represents agricultural water districts and agencies, private water companies, and individual water rights holders.