FEATURE STORY BUILDING A MORE RELIABLE WATER FUTURE By Taylor Lauson, Communications Manager
In California, the nation’s leading producer of fresh fruits and vegetables, the importance of water could hardly be overstated. And we certainly can’t ignore the obvious: California needs a water system growers can rely on. This is where the California Farm Water Coalition (CFWC) comes in. Founded in 1989, in the midst of a six-year drought, the organization was formed to increase public awareness of agriculture’s efficient use of water and serve as a collective voice for California farmers and water users. At the helm of the coalition is Michelle Paul, CFWC Executive Director. While Paul considers herself an “inductee into the agriculture community,” she has spent years building a career at the intersection of communications, agriculture and water policy. “I fell into the agriculture industry when I found myself working in support of state commodity group export programs,” said Paul. “It really was my first taste outside of my formal education at Fresno State.” Graduating with a master’s degree in international affairs, Paul ultimately found a way to capitalize on her political acumen, spending a few years working in the Capitol. She later moved to AgWest Farm Credit (then known as Farm Credit West), where she supported member outreach programs and became increasingly engaged in the storytelling and advocacy work the organization used to support its members and the agriculture industry. She is also a graduate of the California Agricultural Leadership Program. As she continued on her path of professional development, she had a yearning to get into the driver’s seat to have a greater impact on the industry at large. When longtime CFWC Executive
Director Mike Wade announced his retirement, she saw an opportunity to step into that role and secured the position in November 2025. According to Paul, “it’s been full speed ever since.” That mix of communications experience and policy exposure now shapes how Paul approaches one of California agriculture’s most persistent challenges: making water issues understandable outside the industry. And in her view, water may be the most critical issue facing the state’s next administration. Beyond “Not Enough Water” The conversation around California water is often distilled into a simple question: Does the state have enough water? According to Paul, the answer is considerably more complicated. “We often think of water as simply a supply issue,” she said. “People say, ‘California doesn’t have enough water.’ But the conversation is much broader than that.” Paul broke the state’s water situation into three interconnected components. The first is legal: who has the right to divert water and for what purpose. The second is operational: how that water is stored, moved and ultimately delivered. The third is physical supply: the water actually available in reservoirs, rivers and canals, snowpack and groundwater. Paul said the current system inherently creates variability in the water allocations delivered to farmers, making it incredibly challenging, if not impossible, for growers to plan and continue operating a business under these conditions. “We have increasing climate volatility, or weather whiplash, where the swings in precipitation and snowpack from year to year
38 Western Grower & Shipper | www.wga.com October – December 2026
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