Public outrage about mining groundwater on Stanislaus County’s east side peaked a little over a decade ago. Directed first at local farmers and farm developers, it soon focused on Trinitas Partners, a Bay Area investment group that surreptitiously bought thousands of groundwater–dependent acres of east side grazing land before converting it to almond orchards.

As Trinitas became the focal point for the environmental destruction brought about by draining the east side aquifer, local farmers engaged in the same practices benefitted from the lack of attention to their own depredations. One of those local farmers — more accurately described as a “farm developer” — was Tyler “Ty” Angle, whose purchase or leases of thousands of acres of east side cattle land featured many of the multiple LLC ownership smokescreens as Trinitas Partners.

As early as 2015, Angle was partners with Stanislaus County Supervisor Terry Withrow in a farming operation in Westlands Water District. Around that same time, Angle took in Modesto Irrigation District (MID) Board Member Larry Byrd as a partner on the AB La Grange Ranch, just west of La Grange in southeastern Stanislaus County. Byrd’s brother Tim, a career Gallo attorney, also became a partner in that same operation.

Larry Byrd has admitted he put no money into the “partnership” with Angle. Given recent exposure of Byrd’s lies about his irrigation practices on the AB La Grange Ranch, it would be interesting to know whether his brother’s or Withrow’s partnerships were also “no money down” propositions.

Falling almond prices and depleted Valley aquifers have resulted in thousands of acres of uprooted trees and billions of dollars’ worth of environmental destruction. As always, taxpaying citizens will be stuck with the bill.

Prior to the establishment of the almond monoculture, the rolling cattle land in eastern Stanislaus County was one of the best habitats for wintering raptors in the American west. The creeks, ponds and vernal pools served a vast array of native wildlife and plants even while the grazing cattle provided sustainable incomes for generations of family farmers and ranchers. The east side aquifer was stable.

Many of the speculators who gambled that draining Valley aquifers would be a small price to pay for the millions of dollars to be gained during the almond boom profited handsomely. In what was very likely a planned strategy, Trinitas Partners recently declared bankruptcy; creditors and local citizens were stuck with the costs while Trinitas walked away. Meanwhile, Valley citizens are left with drained aquifers, widespread subsidence and severe compaction.

As for the eastside almond orchards, Director Byrd’s ongoing attempts to gift their owners and lease holders with basement-rate surface water from MID appear to have failed. Last Tuesday, MID Board Members unanimously approved a rate of $200 an acre-foot for the district’s Groundwater Replenishment Program (GRP). Byrd had argued for a price of $60 an acre-foot, all the while denying he had any conflicts of interest due to his partnership with Angle.

After Byrd recused himself from voting, Board Member John Boer pointed out that nearby farmers west of the San Joaquin River were paying $350 an acre-foot. Given that fact, east side farmers should be grateful; they’ve been offered a more than fair price. So far, all they’ve done is demand ratepayers subsidize their business ventures while they continue draining the last viable aquifer in the San Joaquin Valley.

After over a decade of wanton plunder, the message from Stanislaus County’s east side water miners has been simple: Subsidize our business ventures or we destroy the aquifer.

Fortunately for MID ratepayers and in-district farmers, MID Board Members seem committed to fair rates and serious reform of the practices that have enabled speculative farming operations to hedge their bets and losses with public money. Let’s hope they hold firm against Director Byrd’s attempts to gift his partner with public resources at bargain-basement prices.