Surface water supply and crop evapotranspiration in the Central Valley

While irrigation is a major factor in California's leading\ud position in agricultural production, irrigation is also\ud responsible for a complex array of water quantity and\ud quality issues in the Central Valley. In addition, irrigation\ud has required development of a complicated network of\ud water delivery systems which involve many legal, economic,\ud social, and institutional factors. Perhaps the foremost\ud water issues in the Central Valley are the spatial maldistribution of surface water on the one hand and the\ud agricultural demand for water on the other. These issues,\ud more than most other water resource questions in the region,\ud emphasize the need for consideration of spatial\ud diversity and scale in achieving comprehensive understanding\ud of the problems