Report predicts how water losses will hit SJ Valley

San Joaquin Valley farmers say they hope a newly released report will capture the attention of Californians about the potential impact of water shortages in the region.

The report, released last week, said water shortages could cause 1 million acres of San Joaquin Valley farmland to be fallowed and cost as many as 85,000 jobs. The water shortages would result from the state’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, which requires local agencies to bring groundwater supplies into balance by the 2040s, combined with restrictions on surface water supplies.

Written by University of California, Berkeley, economists David Sunding and David Roland-Holst, the report says the 1 million acres of land would be fallowed during a period of two to three decades and would represent about one-fifth of San Joaquin Valley land currently in cultivation…