although agriculture's water use includes provision of important terrestrial environmental values (as discussed in the “water footprint of products” section above), and much “green water’ is used in maintaining forests and wild lands, there is also direct environmental use (e.g. of surface water) that may be allocated by governments. for example, in california, where water use issues are sometimes severe because of drought, about 48 percent of “dedicated water use” in an average water year is for the environment (somewhat more than for agriculture). such environmental water use is for keeping streams flowing, maintaining aquatic and riparian habitats, keeping wetlands wet, etc.