Efforts to protect groundwater are tested by drought
Balancing the state's groundwater supplies for a sustainable future may not be easy due to severe drought and ongoing economic challenges facing fa...
Balancing the state's groundwater supplies for a sustainable future may not be easy due to severe drought and ongoing economic challenges facing farmers.'We've got the lowest prices and highest production costs and the least-reliable water supply that we've had since I've been farming,' said Bill Diedrich of Firebaugh, who farms row crops and permanent crops on the west side in Madera and Fresno counties. 'We've had one or the other but not all three at the same time.'Diedrich, who relies on groundwater for irrigating farmland in Madera County and surface water for ground in Fresno County, said farming at this time 'is very difficult.