By Monserrat Solis, SJV Water
An agricultural water district that serves mostly Hanford-area farmers is looking for ways to preserve its surface supplies for use on crops first by limiting how much can be recharged into the aquifer.
The Kings County Water District at its Dec. 18 meeting approved an amendment to its 2026 Kings River water purchase contract to limit recharge except under certain conditions.
“I think rolling something out like this is one of those things where I would hope that people have internal ethics to try and address this issue and not overuse or misuse or be good stewards,” Board Member Chip Mello said.
According to the new amendment, farmers will be prohibited from using the district’s water for recharge unless:
- The Department of Water and Resources’ water supply forecaster, Bulletin 120, for the Kings River for April-July is more than 125% of average
- The district board approves allocating surface water for recharge
“If you’re playing a game and you’re calling it spilled water and it’s really recharge then we’re going to enforce this.”
– Kings County Water District General Manager Dennis Mills
DWR’s Bulletin 120, which measures snowpack and water content across the Sierra Nevada mountains, was last updated in May and predicted run off for the Kings River below Pine Flat Reservoir would be 79% of average. That percentage will fluctuate throughout the winter.
“While the District encourages recharge in flood years, if a party intentionally delivers non-flood year surface water to recharge, the effort reduces local available surface water supplies and may not be permitted under existing water rights,” the district’s new purchase contract states.
General Manager Dennis Mills said that the district is in contact with the nearby Mid-Kings River Groundwater Sustainability Agency (GSA) about its new recharge restrictions.
“They’re willing to work with us and make sure that that contract gets enforced.”
In May, Mid-Kings passed a recharge policy, allowing growers to recharge surface water in order to get groundwater credits that can be used to increase how much they’re allowed to pump.
That could be in conflict with the newly approved recharge restrictions amendment instituted by the Kings County Water District.
The amendment also states that farmers may not use People’s Ditch Company water to intentionally recharge during dry years then use the district’s surface water to increase their water supply.
If a farmer is caught disregarding the new recharge restriction, the district will limit water access in the next dry year.
Farmer Brian Medeiros asked the board about “spill water,” or excess irrigation water that seeps into the ground.
“If there’s a lot of it, it’s not spilled, right? You and I both know that,” Mills said. “If you’re playing a game and you’re calling it spilled water and it’s really recharge then we’re going to enforce this.”
Medeiros said he wasn’t planning on taking district water and sinking it for recharge, but was posing a theoretical question.
He also argued that the district should keep in mind a farmer’s historical water usage.
Mello, who sits on the Mid-Kings advisory board with Medeiros, said the restriction is not to limit a farmer’s water demands but to limit the use of surface water and groundwater pumping.
While the board approved this contract with the recharge restriction, it agreed to look at modifications, if needed, in the future.
“I think letting some of this kind of play out and understand where we really need to address the rules and start to try and put some weight on that, because we’re going to roll this thing out,” Mello.
