In the Sacramento Valley, irrigation water is vital to agriculture and agriculture is vital to local economies. Nearly all of this farm-related economic activity depends on irrigation water. The effects are not uniform. A reduction in one input alters a production system in complex ways.
Irrigation is vital, yet there are measures that growers take to mitigate losses.
This research investigated such adjustments and traced the resulting economic impacts at the county level. Sacramento County, largely urbanized, has two-thirds of the entire region's population. Butte and Yolo counties also have proportionately large urban populations. The other counties are smaller in population and tend to be more dependent on agriculture. In total value of crop and livestock production, the lineup of counties in the study area appears somewhat different.