California Ricelands and Waterbird Habitat
- Part I:
Overview of Ricelands and Waterbird Habitat - Part II:
Overview of Waterbird Ecology and Conservation
Goals/Needs - Part III:
Sacramento Valley Species Snapshot - Part IV:
Riceland Shorebirds - Part V:
Riceland Wading Birds - Part VI:
Riceland Marsh Birds - Part VII:
Riceland Waterfowl - Part VIII:
Cooperative Partnerships to Enhance Ricelands Habitats - Part IX:
Riceland Waterbirds Future Vision - Part X:
Technical References
Part IX: Riceland Waterbirds Future Vision
Although there is great uncertainty regarding the future effects of development, climate change, increasing competition for water, outside economic forces, and other factors on the rice growing region of the Sacramento Valley, it seems very likely that rice fields will remain of crucial importance to waterbirds, waterfowl, and shorebirds throughout the 21st century.
Development in the Sacramento and Yuba City–Marysville areas is likely to continue to expand into rice country, but any reduction in the extent of rice acreage can be minimized by proper urban planning.
Climate change projections are for future increases in temperatures in the Sacramento Valley, but rice agriculture is still likely to be viable given rice is currently grown elsewhere in the world where temperatures are higher than in the Sacramento Valley. Likewise, soil types in the rice-growing region of the Sacramento Valley are generally only suitable for rice and not for most other crops that require well-drained soils.
Future projections of precipitation in the valley’s watershed are much less certain. If there is less precipitation or if more falls as rain than snow in the Sierra and runoff occurs earlier in the season, this may affect water availability later in the season, but such effects may be mitigated by optimizing upstream dam (storage and delivery) operations. Competition for increasingly scarce water with an expanding human population could affect the availability of water for rice if water is sold at higher prices for use elsewhere.
Given the great economic and cultural importance of rice in the Sacramento Valley and the large coalition of growers, hunters, conservationists, federal and state agencies, and the general public that value the impressive populations of wetland-dependent birds that use rice, it seems likely that threats to rice farming will be offset by innovative practices and solutions.
What remains encouraging is the commitment California family rice farmers have shown to the environment. They appear poised to remain a critical link to the future health of millions of migrating birds along the Pacific Flyway.