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We Grow California

Darcy Villere

88 episodes

8 hours ago

In this episode of We Grow California, Darcy Villere sits down with Joaquin Esquivel, Chair of the State Water Resources Control Board, to talk about the future of California water. The episode covers how the Board balances the competing needs of agriculture, communities, and the environment during an era of droughts, floods, and climate uncertainty. Joaquin shares insights on SGMA enforcement, groundwater recharge, and the state’s push to ensure safe, clean drinking water for all Californian...

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In this episode of We Grow California, Darcy Villere sits down with Joaquin Esquivel, Chair of the State Water Resources Control Board, to talk about the future of California water. The episode covers how the Board balances the competing needs of agriculture, communities, and the environment during an era of droughts, floods, and climate uncertainty. Joaquin shares insights on SGMA enforcement, groundwater recharge, and the state’s push to ensure safe, clean drinking water for all Californian...

Show more...

Episodes (20/88)

We Grow California

A conversation with Chairman of the State Water Resources Control Board, Joaquin Esquivel

In this episode of We Grow California, Darcy Villere sits down with Joaquin Esquivel, Chair of the State Water Resources Control Board, to talk about the future of California water. The episode covers how the Board balances the competing needs of agriculture, communities, and the environment during an era of droughts, floods, and climate uncertainty. Joaquin shares insights on SGMA enforcement, groundwater recharge, and the state’s push to ensure safe, clean drinking water for all Californian...

3 weeks ago

48 minutes

We Grow California

CA State Treasurer Fiona Ma – California’s Banker

After a few weeks of hiatus, California State Treasurer Fiona Ma joined Darcy & Darcy for an in-depth discussion on water, ag, infrastructure financing, and public service. If you don’t know what the state treasurer does, think of this position as the state’s primary banker. Treasurer Ma’s office processes more than $3 trillion in payments within a typical year and provides transparency and oversight for an investment portfolio of more than $124 billion, approximately $34.8 billion of whi...

1 month ago

54 minutes

We Grow California

Senator Caballero - Fighting for Water Reliability and Winning with SB 72

Darcy & Darcy welcomed California State Senator Anna Caballero, representing District 14, which stretches across parts of Madera, Merced and Fresno counties. Last year, Senator Caballero joined us and shared with us her efforts on SB 366, a bill that was intended to modernize the California Water Plan and mandated that the Department of Water Resources to set long-term water supply targets.SB366 died in committee, leaving many in the water sector wondering if the water plan would ever hav...

2 months ago

39 minutes

We Grow California

“We’re Fine,” Is a Terrible Cybersecurity Answer, with Dr. Kevin Morley and Director Frank Ury

With growing frequency, water systems, cities, and other water utilities have been held for ransom as a direct result of a cybersecurity attack. These attacks can hold a system hostage for millions of dollars, jeopardizing customer data as well as water and wastewater operations; ultimately impacting public health and safety. Many systems have recently discovered that insurance is no longer covering the bill. For policymakers, believing “We’re fine” is not only naive but also dang...

3 months ago

55 minutes

We Grow California

A Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Win with David Cory

Agriculture scored a win recently when the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California’s ruling that the Clean Water Act’s exemption for “irrigated agriculture return flows” shields projects like the Grassland Bypass Project (GBP) from federal National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting requirements. At the heart of the issue is David Cory, President of the Grasslands Basin Authority. This week David joins Darcy a...

3 months ago

34 minutes

We Grow California

San Joaquin River Restoration Project At Last with Steve Chedester

One of Darcy Villere’s favorite projects is the long-awaited San Joaquin River Restoration Project. And after 16 years, there is some good news! This week Steve Chedester, Director of Policy and Programs for the San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors Water Authority, joins Darcy V. and Darcy B. He provides a great project overview, the benefits, new funding, and of course, the ever-important new project price tag. This is a multi-faceted project, with lots of complexities (Of course, t...

4 months ago

33 minutes

We Grow California

Lean into your Local Farmer with Western United Dairies Anja Raudabaugh CEO

Anja Raudabaugh, Chief Executive Officer of Western United Dairies joins Darcy and Darcy this week and shares how she led the effort to defeat Sonoma Ballot Proposition Measure J a citizen-led initiative which would have banned dairy as well as similar farming operations. The ballot initiative was defeated with 85% of voters, NOT supporting the proposition. Anja was able to get the Republican Party of Sonoma County, but also the Democratic Party of Sonoma County AND the North Coast Regional W...

4 months ago

49 minutes

We Grow California

Keeping It Simple with Jarrett Martin of Central California Irrigation District

The K.I.S.S. method, Keep it Simple (Sweetheart), is easier said than done. This is especially true when you are coordinating 23 Groundwater Sustainability Agencies and their respective plans and consultants into one Groundwater Sustainability Plan. Yes, you read that right, twenty+ agencies! Jarrett Martin, General Manager of Central California Irrigation District (CCID), took on that task for the Delta-Mendota Subbasin and believes that after two failed attempts they are close to approval. ...

5 months ago

44 minutes

We Grow California

Assemblyman David Tangipa – Applying Common Sense to California’s Problems

Assemblyman David Tangipa joins Darcy and Darcy for a great conversation that covers a wide range of California issues and topics! For those that don’t know him yet, David is the youngest person serving in the California legislature. He was elected to the California State Assembly in 2024 and represents District 8, which includes Calaveras, Fresno, Inyo, Madera, Mariposa, Mono, and Tuolumne counties. Darcy & Darcy discuss with David his perspective on the business of California’s le...

5 months ago

42 minutes

We Grow California

Karla Nemeth, Director of the California Department of Water Resources, Leading, Learning & Adapting

Karla Nemeth, Director of the California Department of Water Resources, a verifiable Woman of Water – aka a WOW - joins Darcy and Darcy this week and the conversation never stops! Karla shares her experiences and how relationships are the key to California’s water response success – especially in a crisis. She tells the Darcys how she has learned and adapted. Those lessons and adaptations came from weather uncertainty, regulations, legislation, and serving four (Yes FOUR!) Governors, each wit...

6 months ago

1 hour 7 minutes

We Grow California

Adán Ortega’s Call to Action on the Governor’s DCP Budget Trailer Package

Time is of the essence for the Delta Conveyance Plan (DCP) studies and to help us understand what’s going on and the urgency, Metropolitan Water District of Southern California’s Chairman Adán Ortega joined Darcy and Darcy. Recently Governor Newsome included the DCP as part of his Budget Trailer Package. Adán sets the record straight on how this legislation simply finishes the studies that are necessary so that decisions can be made with good data, rather than propaganda, misinformation, and ...

7 months ago

39 minutes

We Grow California

Dan Keppen – A Seat At The Table

Darcy and Darcy are back from the Association of California Water Agencies’ (ACWA) Spring Conference! They had the pleasure of meeting Dan Keppen, the Executive Director at the Family Farm Alliance (Alliance). This week Dan joins them and discusses his upcoming retirement, his successes, challenges, and accomplishments. After twenty years with the Alliance, and over thirty years in agriculture and water, Dan shares some advice and insights for our next generation leaders, as well as tho...

7 months ago

36 minutes

We Grow California

Catching Up with Darcy & Darcy

Did you miss them? Darcy B. has literally been traveling the world, and Darcy V. has been planting acres and acres of tomatoes. They are finally back in the studio and are catching up on everything that happened while Darcy B. was globe-trotting including the Central Valley Project (Federal) and the State Water Project allocations, Metropolitan’s new General Manager (Deven Upadhayay), Metropolitans Climate Adaptation Master Plan and Business Model, another Canyon Lake Fish Kill, future guests...

8 months ago

38 minutes

We Grow California

Thank you, Mr. Mayor

It’s March and newly elected officials have settled into their seats. At the state level, one third of all legislators are new. Locally, that percentage could be higher or lower. Regardless, newly elected officials rarely have an understanding about California’s water complexities nor the importance of Agriculture and its unique challenges. To get a newly elected perspective, Darcy and Darcy welcome Canyon Lake Mayor, Mark Terry. Mayor Terry was appointed to City Council two years...

10 months ago

51 minutes

We Grow California

Sarah Woolf - A Change Maker

Sarah Woolf, a California Ag and Water icon, joins Darcy and Darcy and discusses Water Wise - a water management company for farmers in the central San Joaquin Valley, the Change Coalition, the San Joaquin Blueprint, the San Joaquin Valley Water Collaborative Action Program, and family farming – just to name a few! Sarah shares her perspective on California water and agriculture, how it has changed, and where it may be going over the next decade or two. What was clear, was there is so m...

10 months ago

29 minutes

We Grow California

Westlands Water Works Harder

Darcy and Darcy welcome back Westlands Water District's Assistant General Manager, Jose Gutierrez and for the first time, welcome Kitty Campbell, Supervisor of Resources. Westlands has been doing some innovative groundwater sustainability efforts and in this episode, Jose and Kitty talk about their Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) Program. This program works with Westlands growers to use their existing wells and convert them to dual purpose, meaning they recharge the deep aquifer beneath Co...

10 months ago

49 minutes

We Grow California

Brave New World

Vivian Welsh, Founder and CEO of Vivians.io, a firm that develops Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions, joins Darcy and Darcy and discusses what AI is, how utilities or farmers use this technology, what guardrails (If any) are in place, and what’s been the biggest barrier to AI implementation. Vivian shares great success stories, answers tough questions, and provides wonderful tips for getting started. Young, old, or in-between, this is an episode you can’t miss. Join the conversation...

10 months ago

43 minutes

We Grow California

Changing by the Second

It’s finally February, and true-to-form, January has been the longest year! Los Angeles fires were and still are devastating. On the bright side, water, particularly, California Water, has been front and center. Darcy V. and Darcy B. discuss how the information is evolving, and in some cases, literally changing by the second! They also emphasize the importance of educating electeds at all levels on how California’s state, federal, and local water systems work, what they are actual...

11 months ago

26 minutes

We Grow California

Is your water safe to drink after a wildfire?

With Los Angeles and the surrounding areas still ablaze, the media is capitalizing with headlines like Washington Post’s recent article, “L.A. fires may have brought cancer-causing chemicals into drinking water.” Causing further concern are the various public health water notices including Do Not Drink and Do Not Boil. Ultimately, people want to know, is their water safe to drink after a wildfire? What are local water systems doing to ensure the water is safe, and how are these efforts ...

11 months ago

34 minutes

We Grow California

It's Carry-Over Season

First, Darcy and Darcy send their concern and sympathy for those impacted by the horrific southern California fires. We hope you're safe, and the fires are extinguished soon. To start 2025 off, Mitch Partovi, a water broker from The Water Agency, is back! Mitch joins Darcy and Darcy and discusses California’s current water supply, what activities are going on in California’s water market, and what might be expected. As our listeners have learned, the federal, or Central Valley Pr...

12 months ago

35 minutes