John Mendosa: Wealthy nut farmers didn’t care when his well went dry

Good luck with this fight for water. I understand better then most the loss of water. My well went dry in June, 2014 (“Rush to drill is uneven,” Front Page, June 29, 2014), caused by groundwater pumping. I had lived here for 23 years without a problem with my water supply, but because of the massive over planting of water-thirsty trees, and the loss of river water for irrigation and the need for water to keep production up, farmers pumped more water – sucking the water my well could reach dry.

I got a lot of “I’m sorries” and “it’s too bad your well was so shallow,” and “maybe we can help with a low-interest loan for a new well.”

While I waited for a new well to be drilled (it took 18 months), it became news that there had been “record profits for nut farmers.”

I generally love the farming community because I’m from the same self-reliant stock. But when you take from one to profit another, I have issues with that. Fight the good fight for your water, but mark my words, there are dead trees in your future.

This story was originally published December 30, 2016 at 2:19 PM with the headline "John Mendosa: Wealthy nut farmers didn’t care when his well went dry."