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In California, 20 farming families use more water than some Western states

Sprinklers water a lettuce field in Holtville, California, on February 9, 2023. (Sandy Huffaker/AFP via Getty Images)
Sprinklers water a lettuce field in Holtville, California, on February 9, 2023. (Sandy Huffaker/AFP via Getty Images)

Water conservation efforts are falling short of fixing the West’s megadrought. A new investigation reveals one reason why — not every water user counts equally.

According to ProPublica and The Desert Sun, just 20 farming families in California’s Imperial Valley use more water than some Western states.

Here & Now‘s Scott Tong speaks with Janet Wilson, senior environment reporter with The Desert Sun, who along with Nat Lash of ProPublica was the first to publicly identify who those big users are.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.