Yuma, Arizona (3TV/CBS 5) ――Will it become increasingly difficult to obtain lettuce that is lined up in stores not only in Arizona but all over the country? This is at risk given the ongoing water problems and the potential for further water disruptions in Yuma. It all depends on whether an agreement is reached and what that agreement looks like.
The water outages that the Bureau of Reclamation has made to the Colorado River that affect Pinal County farmers will not affect Yuma farmers. Still, the agency said water would have to be cut millions more times, and Yuma’s farmers could bear the brunt.
Big picture problem: Yuma provides 90% of the nation’s leafy greens like lettuce and spinach during the winter months, but that may now be endangered.
Anyone driving from the desert of the Valley to the beaches of San Diego passes through extensive farmland along Interstate 8 (Yuma, Arizona). Chelsea McGuire, Director of Government Relations, Arizona Department of Agriculture, said:
Yuma offers some of the largest winter produce in the nation, including romaine lettuce, spinach, broccoli and onion seeds, but that could change. “Not all sides of the produce counter are full all year round,” says McGuire.
Earlier this month, the Bureau of Reclamation announced a water cut for the Colorado River to farms in Arizona during a drought. It didn’t affect Yuma Farms, but it could affect something else. It said it would need an additional two to four million acre-feet to stay on the river to avoid a crash.
McGuire said farmers in Yuma are trying to help as elderly people use the river’s water. She said Yuma’s farm is considered an “advanced user” based on legal and political agreements made over the years and the use of river water.
McGuire said a Yuma farmer came up with the plan for the Bureau of Rehabilitation. This totals about 925,000 acre-feet of water outages, which is a significant amount, but well below the agency’s set number of 2 million to he’s 4 million.
“They basically came to the decision that it was as good as it could be, stay in business and continue producing,” McGuire said.
What do all these numbers mean for you at the grocery store? “The most basic result is a huge drop in availability and a huge increase in prices,” McGuire said. I’m here. “You can always buy romaine lettuce in the store.
Ultimately, McGuire said, the Department of Rehabilitation can always decide how much to cut from Yuma’s farmers. she said behind the scenes. This comes down to a lot of politics. Negotiations are underway between Yuma farmers, some California farmers, and the agency itself, but there is no timetable at this time when this will all be figured out.
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