Idaho’s growth is often a focus of conversation to those who live here, but it seems to become even more so when an election year rolls around. Who are these people? Where are they coming from? Are they going to change Idaho? Or, in other words, what way will they vote?

While chatting with a grower recently, he shared a saying he once heard: “You can mess with a guy’s wife, but you can’t mess with his water.” Depending on your sense of humor, that saying might come across as a bit crude, but I use it because it paints a picture of the realities of Western water disputes.

Since Ag Proud – Idaho started in 2019, we’ve been committed to delivering content that’s all ag, all Idaho, all the time. Covering a state as diverse and influential in agriculture as Idaho is no easy task. To enhance our magazine for the next five years, we’ve created a survey to gather your thoughts and preferences.

While this agreement is a significant step forward, it does not address the underlying issues in managing the aquifer. It merely buys some time for the state to formulate a more practical and effective management strategy before we find ourselves in a similar situation in the next growing season.

On June 20, the Idaho Department of Water Resources (IDWR) announced the approval of a comprehensive agreement between the Surface Water Coalition (SWC) and the groundwater districts in the Eastern Snake Plain region for the 2024 irrigation season.