Complex sentence: At the time California farmers were criticized for their water usage, making the state's drought worse: the agriculture sector uses at least 80 percent of the state's water, often on water-intensive crops such as almonds.
Split into simpler sentences: At the time California farmers were criticized for using most of California's water, making the state's drought worse. The agriculture sector uses at least 80 percent of the state's water, often on water-intensive crops such as almonds.