Agricultural Drainage Water—How Should it be Regulated in California?

The problem of managing the saline agricultural drainage water drained from San Joaquin Valley California farmland has confronted farmers and water developers for years. As the irrigated area in the valley has expanded, drainage problems have intensified, creating a need to manage an increasing volume of drainage water in an economically feasible and environmentally safe way. At Kesterson Reservoir near Los Banos, California, deaths and deformities of waterfowl have been linked to the existence of the trace element selenium (Cleanup and abatement order No. 85‐1 1985). Selenium in drainage water has compounded the problem of managing the water and has led to increased public concern over the safety of disposing of the water. Laws governing toxic waste disposal have become more restrictive as public concern over toxic issues has increased (Johnston et al. 1986). Laws governing the disposal of liquid hazardous wastes have become particularly onerous. High selenium concentrations in drainage water trigger the imposition of hazardous waste laws. It is therefore conceivable that some Valley drainage water will be considered a hazardous waste.