1-24 IAT Water Fight
The Canyon County Farm Bureau (CCFB) has voted unanimously to call on the City of Caldwell to drop its eminent domain lawsuit against Pioneer Irrigation District, Officials with the group recently announced. The Canyon County Farm Bureau’s 11-member Board of Directors took a unanimous vote for the action at a recent meeting. The CCFB represents more than 7,000 members in Canyon County including approximately 1,500 farming and ranching families. Farm Bureau officials point out that agriculture has been the cornerstone of Canyon County’s economy and its social fabric for nearly 150 years and that water is the absolute key to that process.
“The Board’s message is clear and unequivalent: if it isn’t broken, then let’s not try to fix it until it is,” said Roger Batt, CCFB Executive Director.
“Agriculture has been and continues to be the absolute lynchpin in the success of Canyon County’s economy. The county ranks 17th out of 44 Idaho counties in terms of land area in agriculture, but ranks 4th in the state in terms of the overall cash receipts from agriculture which exceeds some $520 million. Producing food to feed global populations means we are first dependent upon being provided a reliable and affordable source of irrigation water. Pioneer has been meeting that obligation in an outstanding manner for 110 years. Despite the City of Caldwell’s claims, the Board simply does not believe the City can ever deliver the same quality of service and affordability that water users are currently receiving from Pioneer.”
