Bodega
agriculture over Klamath flows
By Carol Benfell, staff writer
Fishermen belong to the Bodega Bay Grange, calling themselves "farmers of
the sea." But an overwhelming majority of the state's 215 granges,
including the
The granges - fraternal farm organizations - belong to the California State
Grange, which recently launched a series of lawsuits to assure water rights for
hay, grain and vegetable farmers in the
But those lawsuits hurt the members of the fishermen-focused Bodega Bay Grange
by reducing the amount of water available in the river for salmon, grange
members said.
A die-off of Klamath salmon in 2002, when river flows were low, led to a
drastically shortened fishing season this year, fishermen said.
The fishermen are so incensed about the lawsuits that they are dropping out of
the local grange, said Dave Lewis, vice president of the Bodega Bay Grange.
"We have about 120 members, but membership is dropping off fiercely,"
Lewis said. "Our members are saying they won't pay dues to have the State
Grange file lawsuits that hurt us."
The Bodega Bay Grange has submitted a resolution to the State Grange, to be
acted on at the annual convention in October.
The resolution calls on the State Grange to stop funding legal actions and
taking positions that enhance the occupation of one group of grange members at
the expense of another group, Lewis said.
Lewis called the actions of the State Grange "in using our dues to employ
lawyers to assist in our demise ... both unjust and unfair."
Wrong on both counts, said Leo Bergeron, past master of the State Grange and a
cattle rancher in
For one thing, the grange isn't paying the costs of the lawsuit. Pacific Legal
Foundation is doing the work pro bono, Bergeron said.
Bergeron also wants to know where fishermen were in 2001 when federal agencies
turned off the taps to 1,400 thirsty farms and ranches in order to save the
salmon.
The lawsuits are farmers' attempts to defend themselves and their livelihoods,
Bergeron said.
"The National Marine Fisheries Service shut the water off to farmers, who
had already invested millions of dollars, just four days before the water was to
flow," he said.
Bergeron said he doubted the
Nevertheless, the 140-year-old State Grange has bucked traditional agriculture
in the past, when it took a diplomatic stand supporting grange members who
oppose genetically modified food crops.
"The national grange supports GMOs, but in
The same kind of compromise could happen with the
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