Surface Water Quality

Maintaining the quality of surface water in almond growing regions is a top goal of California almond growers. Surface water quality is regulated by the state's  Irrigated Lands Program which has collected three years of data, identified problems with runoff and is conducting specific grower outreach to farmers located next to waterways. The main issues are pesticides, particulate matter, spray drift, and fertilizer/nutrient runoff.  

The Almond Board is working with the Coalition for Urban Rural Environmental Stewardship (CURES) to provide a link between almond growers and the watershed coalitions formed throughout the San Joaquin Central Valley.

Surface Water Mitigation Approaches  

BMP (Best Management Practice) is a broad term describing a wide range of agricultural practices for mitigating the environmental impact of modern farming.  Each orchard or field has multiple characteristics to consider when making a decision on which BMP is best suited to manage runoff. The following websites offer practical surface water mitigation approaches.

On-line Resources