Living in a hostile regulatory environment is nothing new to California. This is the perspective and viewpoint of Geoffrey Vanden Heuvel, director of regulatory and economic affairs at Milk Producers Council.
“California dairies are managing,” he says. “Right now, we have the water we need, but we are dependent on having at least an average water year to keep things going. A very dry year would make our situation very difficult quite quickly.”
Earlier this year, Senator Anna M. Caballero introduced SB 72, California Water for All, to modernize water planning by establishing statewide water supply targets, enhancing long-term planning, and promoting stakeholder collaboration to address the state’s water challenges.
Symbolism in Legislation
Vanden Heuvel believes SB 72 is great symbolism.
“I don’t believe there are any enforcement mechanisms in the bill to give it weight,” he says, noting that symbols can be important. “But the same legislature that passed SB 72 is also on the verge of passing AB 1319, which will give State of California Endangered Species protection to any species that the Federal Endangered Species Act regulations lessen protection for.”
According to Vanden Heuvel, the Federal Endangered Species Act regulations have significantly reduced the supply of water available to California’s communities and farms.
Impact on Water Supply
“These regulations have reduced the water supply by tens of millions of acre feet over the past 30 years by requiring fresh water that used to be delivered to urban and agricultural use to the ocean to allegedly help fish,” he says. “The tragedy is that the species are in worse shape now than when these regulations took effect. Nothing has been achieved for the environment at a huge cost to society.”
Vanden Heuvel fears that with strong differences among California’s administration and President Donald Trump’s, AB1319 will advance.
“The reality is that there are no consequences in SB 72 for failure,” he says. “It is an aspirational goal.”
The nation’s largest milk-producing state, home to 1.71 million milk cows, continues to navigate regulations that add layers of complexity, costs and concerns toward producers.
Farmers Perspective
For Ryan Junio, owner of Four J Jerseys in Pixley, Calif., his No. 1 concern is the states’ ongoing water crisis.
“As a dairy producer, this is an ever-growing challenge,” he says, reflecting the sentiments of his fellow producers in the state.
David Lemstra relocated his dairy farm from central California to South Dakota due to constant headaches farming in California caused. He said three pivotal factors — feed availability, easier permitting and processing capacity — led them to their new home where they now milk 4,000 cows.
“It’s not one blow that took us out of California,” he says. “It was death by 1,000 cuts.”
The intricate and often burdensome regulatory environment in California continues to shape the landscape of the dairy industry. The multifaceted challenges faced by producers emphasize the need for practical and enforceable legislative solutions to secure the future of dairy in California.
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