Calif. Farmers Struggle with Reduced Water Supply

Severe droughts have combined with an unexpected culprit — a tiny fish — to put the squeeze on Southern California's water supply. Farmers in places like San Diego County are the first to feel the pinch.

Last month, the Metropolitan Water District, which supplies water to 18 million mostly urban customers in Southern California, started cutting water supplies to most agriculture customers by 30 percent. Urban users still have unlimited water.

Deal with the Devil

The cutbacks have their roots in California's last big drought, which took place in the late 1980s and early '90s. After that, the Metropolitan Water District invested in big water-storage projects, and to pay for them, it doubled water prices over a short time.

To keep their businesses afloat, most farmers made a kind of "deal with the devil."

"The deal was that, in exchange for a discount on the water rate, we would be willing to take the first cutbacks in an emergency situation," says Al Stehly, who manages about 450 acres of avocado trees for himself and other landowners in the county.

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