Murray Darling Basin water usage

It’s not only Australian grape growers who are crying foul about plans to radically change water availability and use in the Murray Darling Basin. Reports say that plans to restrict water use in vineyards across California’s Sonoma and Mendocino counties could cost the local economy up to $2 billion per year. The report, commissioned by the iconic pinot noir-producing winery, Williams Selyem, said that up to 8000 jobs could be lost as a result of the move by California’s State Water Resources Control Board, which wants to restrict the wineries’ use of Russian River water for frost protection.