State regulators have ordered the city of San Francisco and scores of San Joaquin Valley farmers to stop pulling water from Valley rivers, the latest sign of worsening conditions in California’s drought.
The water-rights “curtailment orders” issued by the State Water Resources Control Board affect San Francisco’s ability to pull water from the Tuolumne River, one of its most important water sources. Others affected include the Modesto and Turlock irrigation districts, which deliver water to farmers and residents in the northern San Joaquin Valley from the Tuolumne. All told, 212 public water systems are affected by the move.
Erik Ekdahl, the state board’s deputy director, said Tuesday the move amounts to “significant, very deep cuts and curtailments.”
