We Grow California

California’s water challenges are getting tougher; they are not just complicated, but more complex.  If your water agency is going “with the flow,” you are most likely headed for very turbulent water ahead. Even Darcy V’s small community water system is embarking on its first metered water rate study. They know they can’t continue doing business the way they always have and expect different outcom...

Darcy and Darcy are back – finally – from their unplanned sabbatical! Darcy V has been doing what farmers do: farming and solving major problems in the field.  He’s also been coaching Tee Ball and busy with life.  Darcy B has been doing what she does best – influencing water policy at all levels, preaching water quality and public health—and is super excited to bring Darcy V, and you, up to speed....

Darcy and Darcy welcome back Westlands General Manager Allison Febbo to discuss their Valley Clean Infrastructure Plan. Joining them is Westlands' solar/energy partner, Patrick Mealoy from Golden State Clean Energy. Darcy V, a Westlands grower, shares that he is excited about this project.  Darcy B. takes a little more time to warm up to what she thinks is just another mega solar install, but...

Chris White, Executive Director of the San Joaquin River Water Authority Exchange Contractors, joins Darcy Villere in the studio and kicks off 2026 with A LOT of information.  There are changes on how the Central Valley Project and State Water Projects are operating and Chris does his best to break it down for Darcy refreshes his memory and making sense out of all the moving parts – water being ju...

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,...

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 ov...

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. SB...

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 cove...

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 th...

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 p...

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 Part...

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 th...

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 counti...

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 fro...

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 nec...

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 an...

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), Metropolitan...

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 welc...

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 change...

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 th...

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...

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 level...

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 wildfir...

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,...

Darcy B. and Darcy V. thought you could use a little refresh from all the election advertising, conversation, and in some instances, drama.  Just in time for the biggest food holiday of the year, Darcy V. and Darcy B. go over some fun Thanksgiving Dinner food facts.  Darcy V.  has been waiting to do this episode for over a year!  The Darcys share where the most popular holiday food comes from, how...