What if farmers have to pay for using water?

Brian Lockwood, who has been the general manager of the Pajaro Valley Water Management agency for 18 years, visiting one of the farms in Pajaro Valley, California. — ©2024 The new york Times Compan

THE strawberry, blackberry and raspberry fields of the Pajaro Valley stretch for 15km along the coast of California’s Monterey Bay, jewelled with fruit from April through early December.

The valley’s 12,140ha of farmland are also ruffled with emerald lettuces, Brussels sprouts and varieties of kale, bringing in roughly US$1bil (RM4.7bil) in revenue to the region each year.