I don't have links handy but I have seen some documentaries and interviews that showed California has less of a drought problem and more of a water storage prob

I don't have links handy but I have seen some documentaries and interviews that showed California has less of a drought problem and more of a water storage problem. Most of the water ends up in the ocean. Water storage is expensive and getting approval to build it is often met with legal battles that drag out for decades. My own take on it is that the system is paralyzed by conflicting interests leading to the existing exacerbated problems, making what would be a mild drought into a major issue. To answer your question, should we really be farming in the desert, I think that depends on when/if the problem of water storage is solved. Assuming that gets solved, I would expect things like water reclamation and making sea water usable for crops to follow. Without storage all of those systems would have to be over-engineered to keep up with demands, I think.