Kern County Subbasin avoids probation under SGMA and returns to DWR oversight

SACRAMENTO – Following work by the Kaweah Groundwater Subbasin to address groundwater issues under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), the State Water Resources Control Board today voted to return oversight of the subbasin to the Department of Water Resources.

As with the Kern County and Chowchilla subbasins, the State Water Board’s vote removes the Kaweah subbasin from the probationary process under SGMA, including the potential of state assessed fees and reporting requirements for its groundwater pumpers. Under DWR oversight, all three subbasins implement their groundwater plans and must demonstrate progress toward sustainability goals.

“From the beginning, Kaweah’s groundwater agencies embraced transparent collaboration with the board, their communities, groundwater pumpers and each other to work out a path to planned sustainability. This approach made all the difference for their subbasin in this process,” said E. Joaquin Esquivel, chair of the board. “The concrete progress in the three subbasins that have exited state intervention so far demonstrates how SGMA is helping advance groundwater sustainability, especially in those areas where overdraft has been most severe. Since 80% of Californians rely on groundwater for some part of their water supply, this progress is advancing our statewide water resilience.”

Under SGMA, the board serves as a backstop to protect groundwater sustainability so that groundwater remains available for Californians to use in the future. The legislation directs that the board’s intervention in subbasins should only last until local agencies demonstrate that they are ready to sustainably manage their respective basins. Of the over 90 groundwater basins that initially submitted sustainability plans to DWR by 2022, DWR has referred a total of seven basins with inadequate plans, including Kaweah, to the board for the intervention process.

Since its referral to the board, Kaweah’s groundwater sustainability agencies closely collaborated with staff to improve their sustainability plans by addressing declining groundwater levels and domestic well impacts, creeping land subsidence, groundwater quality degradation and interconnected surface water issues.

This year board staff released an assessment of Kaweah’s 2024 groundwater sustainability plans that recommended the return of the subbasin to DWR. The assessment found that groundwater agencies had significantly improved their plans, especially with respect to the mitigation of impacts to domestic wells through:

• groundwater minimum thresholds that better protect domestic wells while allowing for operational flexibility in the subbasin.
• a robust mitigation plan for dry wells and water quality impacts, including emergency drinking water supplies and well replacement, if necessary.

The assessment also welcomed the agencies’ formal commitment in their plans to conduct community outreach and encourage different voices to participate in advisory roles.

Regarding the other subbasins, referred to the board by DWR, the board has placed the Tulare Lake and Tule subbasins on probation; the Delta Mendota and Pleasant Valley subbasins remain in the state intervention process.

For more information about the Kaweah Groundwater Subbasin, please visit the board’s website.

The State Water Resources Control Board’s mission is to preserve, enhance and restore the quality of California’s water resources and drinking water for the protection of the environment, public health, and all beneficial uses, and to ensure proper resource allocation and efficient use for present and future generations.