Westlands Water District has lost its case against the US Government, where the nation’s largest water district had been asking for damages related to the governments failure to provide adequate drainage for irrigation. The lack of drainage has caused problems for farmers, wildlife, and birds for decades.
The ruling from the US Court of Federal Claims didn’t settle the issues at the heart of the case. Instead, it focused on legal technicalities and the statute of limitations to vacate the suit. The question remains: how should contaminated irrigation water be drained out of agriculture land, and who is responsible for it.
Westlands gave the government two options in its suit, the first being the $1 billion claim. The other option was to reduce future water purchasing fees to account for the government’s failure to provide proper drainage.
Read the full article at the Fresno Bee.