Groundwater News

February 27, 2020

By Cresencio Rodriguez-Delgado, Cal Matters Water is scarce and dirty for many in Fresno County’s small West Park community. They’re...

SJV WATER: State refuses to accept groundwater plans for the Madera subbasin

February 26, 2020

By Lois Henry, SJV Water In the first indication of how strict state officials will be with new groundwater sustainability agencies, the Department of Water Resources has refused to accept groundwater plans covering the Madera subbasin because one of those...

CA IRRIGATION INSTITUTE: Implementation strategies for SGMA

Groundwater News Notebook News and Features

February 26, 2020

Hydrologist Derik Williams discusses the different paths GSAs are taking to get to sustainability, plus the three things every GSP...

SJV WATER: SoCal water managers want to know who – exactly – is sinking the California Aqueduct

February 21, 2020

By Lois Henry, SJV Water A state report released in December pinned blame for sinking along the California Aqueduct on...

SGMA IMPLEMENTATION: Water rights permitting options for groundwater recharge projects

Groundwater News Notebook News and Features Policy and regulation

February 20, 2020

ACWA/State Water Board webinar presentation outlines temporary and permanent options, including a new streamlined permitting pathway for standard water rights permits Almost five years ago, in the midst of a historic drought, the legislature passed the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act...

METROPOLITAN WATER DISTRICT: Subsidence of the California Aqueduct in the San Joaquin Valley

Groundwater News Notebook News and Features Policy and regulation

February 19, 2020

Plus a brief update on the voluntary agreements, and good news on the Colorado River Recently, the Department of Water...

SJV WATER: Irrigation water prices under SGMA causing sticker shock

February 6, 2020

By Lois Henry, SJV Water Reaction was hushed when Rosedale-Rio Bravo Water Storage District General Manager Eric Averett asked the...

SJV WATER: Salty water spat erupts over “no man’s land” of Mendota Pool

Groundwater News Water quality

February 6, 2020

By Lois Henry, SJV Water The federal government has OKed a 20-year extension of a water exchange program for one Central Valley water district that another district says will illegally foul its water. The Bureau of Reclamation billed the exchange...

SJV WATER: Kern’s final groundwater plan approved

February 6, 2020

By Lois Henry, SJV Water After months of fireworks over low-ball pumping numbers and concerns that some groundwater agencies wouldn’t...

SJV WATER: Nuts getting a bad rap for sinking the California Aqueduct

February 6, 2020

By Lois Henry, SJV Water State water officials are blaming almond and pistachio orchards for sinking the California Aqueduct before...

SJV WATER: Extreme ag pumping threatens California’s main water artery

Department of Water Resources (DWR)

February 6, 2020

By Lois Henry, SJV Water Heavy groundwater pumping to sustain a massive increase in orchards and vineyards in the San Joaquin Valley has brought the state’s main water artery to the brink of permanent damage, according to report released by...

THIS JUST IN … California Marks Key Step Toward Achieving Sustainable Groundwater Management

Department of Water Resources (DWR)

January 31, 2020

Critically overdrafted groundwater basins are required to submit groundwater sustainability plans to the state by January 31, 2020 that outline...

THIS JUST IN … Public Comment Opens for Groundwater Sustainability Plans

January 31, 2020

DWR releases list of GSPs available for public comment on the SGMA portal Groundwater sustainability plans received earlier this month...

SGMA IMPLEMENTATION: Groundwater Sustainability Plan evaluation and State Water Board intervention