Group 6-lnterest GroupsOctober 20,2001Water Interest Groups in CaliforniaWater is an integral part of life in California, and clean water is the basicright and necessity for all life. Not only is it a source of health for all living things,but it is also very important for recreational and business activities. Nothing inlife is as vital or indispensable as water. Without it, the composition of all livingand non-living things would be impossible. Therefore, it should not seemsurprising to know that many interest groups are solely focused on making surethe quality and distribution of water is strictly controlled.There are hundreds of interest groups in California that are concernedwith water issues, either on a big or a small scale. However there are severalmajor players that have implemented some of the more important water laws inCalifornia. Some of these groups include, but are not limited to: Cal-Fed BayDelta Program, The Water Forum, The FID Water Information Group, The WaterReform Successor Effort, Friends of the River, The Waterkeepers of NorthernCalifornia, and the Groundwater Resources Association.Each interest group, regardless of its purpose and final objective, isformed because the individual members of that group are concerned about howcertain actions will affect them. Some individuals join because water is anessential part of their business or lifestyle and for some members water is themost essential part for their continuation in their field of business, such as theagriculture industry. Today, many interest groups face a variety of issuesregarding how water will be distributed, how it is used, and how it will affect eachindividual. In addition they provide funding and support for many differentprojects that help regulate and conserve water, and thus far have helped keepthe water situation from becoming worse.An interest group that works on behalf of the Central Valley is Friends of theRiver. Friends of the River was founded in 1973. During this time the groupsmajor concern was saving the Stanislaus River from the New Melones Dam.After this, however, Friends of the River became California's statewide riverconservation group. The group is "dedicated to preserving, protecting, andrestoring California's river, streams and their watersheds." With only a budget of$800,000 in 1995, Friends of the River has become the most powerful grassrootsorganization concerning the effects of dams on rivers and ecosystems. IN themid-1980's Friends started the Environmental Water Caucus, or EWC. The EWClobbies to protect the Sacramento Delta, and the San Francisco Bay, as well aspromoting statewide water policies. Friends of the River also brings it's campaignto the public with the newsletter "Headwaters", which is delivered to some 10,000subscribers. Most recently in 1998, Friends defeated the Yuba Dam Study bill,and launched a successful campaign to reform flood management policiesfollowing the floods of 1997.Another interest group that lobbies for water issues on the behalf of allCalifornians is The Waterkeepers of Northern California. Many people areincreasingly concerned with the quality of water they consume on a daily basis.Citizens are often worried about the pesticides that contaminate the water supplybecause of agriculture and other businesses. People buy bottled water thatstates on the label the degree of quality in which it was filled, assuring that it is"spring-fresh from the Rocky Mountains". Growing concern has been set on thefact that pesticides are "threatening drinking water and aquatic life". "TheWaterkeepers Northern California and the California Public Interest ResearchGroup (CALPIRG) filed a challenge on November 28, 2000 with the CentralValley Regional Water Quality Control Board in order to regulate the pesticidesdischarged in the water. They were also looking to close the loophole existing inthe state's implementation of the state clean water act. The challenge seeks toreverse the decision that regulators of Central Valley Water Quality ControlBoard made in 1982, which exempted agricultural businesses in the CentralValley from complying with the state's clean water act." (1999, November 28).Because of this exemption, agricultural businesses have been free to dischargepesticides, fertilizers, and other contaminants to California water without anyconsequences. Pesticides dumped by such agricultural industries have causedwhat has been documented as the most pervasive source of aquatic life toxicityin the Central Valley. Therefore, this seems to many a problem that keepsgrowing and growing. Many fear what will happen to our drinking waters andwaterways if the problems keep surfacing and persisting. For such reasons,supporters of the Waterkeepers and CALPPIRG believe that the agriculturalindustry should take responsibility for their actions (in this case, polluting thewaterways), just like any other industry has to obey regulations that ensure thesafety of the community around them. Many feel that is unfair that they cancause a negative externality on society and not have to bear any costs orconsequence. Unfortunately, everyone has to suffer the consequences whenbusinesses irresponsibly pollute the public water supply. In order to support theirargument, Waterkeepers Northern California and Central Valley Regional WaterQuality Control Board have submitted 20 studies indicating pesticide toxicity inwaters of the Central Valley. Many studies show periods of lethal toxicity fordays, or even weeks at a time. These studies have helped these two interestgroups reach their goal of cleaner, pesticide free water. Their means ofachieving this is by seeking to revoke the exemption that was granted to theagriculture industry more than 18 years ago from the state clean water act (2001,Nov.28). If the exemption were revoked, the agricultural industry would have toattain discharge permits, which would result in monitoring or pollution controlrequirements, which many claim will help reach the goal of purer, cleaner water.Permits for disposal of pesticides would then be granted either individually orthrough general permits. "Almost 20 years later, we know that the agricultureindustry has] done a terrible job of preventing discharges", said Martha Arguelloof PSR-LA (2001, Nov. 28).The Sacramento Water Successor Forum was founded six years ago withthe common goal of providing "a reliable and safe water supply for the region'seconomic health and planned development to the year 2030;