San Luis Obispo Supervisors react to ag board letter regarding Paso basin: “San Luis Obispo County supervisors offered their reactions on Oct. 22 to a recent California State Board of Food and Agriculture letter that levied criticism against the county’s approach to groundwater management in Paso Robles. The Sept. 30 ag board letter shared concerns about “limited” ag industry involvement in developing sustainability plans for the Paso Robles Groundwater Basin, as part of complying with the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). … ” Read more from New Times SLO here: San Luis Obispo Supervisors react to ag board letter
Look out for a helicopter hoisting a giant hexagon over Paso. Here’s what it’s up to: “In the next few weeks, a large hexagon will soar through the sky, dangling from a low-flying helicopter over the rural towns and farms east of Paso Robles. It isn’t the latest trend in skydiving. Rather, it’s the frame for an aerial mapping technology that California is borrowing from Denmark to study how water moves underground. That’s important information to have. … ” Read more from the San Luis Obispo Tribune here: Look out for a helicopter hoisting a giant hexagon over Paso. Here’s what it’s up to
Selma: New laws may result in water rate increases: “In order to keep up with the State’s underground water recharge laws, sooner or later, local water rates will likely need to increase. That was the message local water management officials gave in a joint presentation at the Oct. 21 Selma City Council. … ” Read more from the Hanford Sentinel here: New laws may result in water rate increases
Bakersfield: Farmers urged to think big and small to survive groundwater cutbacks: “The thinking started small and then grew much bigger at a gathering Tuesday in Bakersfield that was intended to provide a “survival toolkit” for farmers and water managers facing drastic restrictions on Central Valley groundwater pumping. Irrigation and other technical specialists opened the meeting by promoting ways to maximize the region’s existing water resources. Discussions ranged from individual investments in desalination to gathering water-use data as a way for farmers to defend against government accusations of over-pumping. … ” Read more from Bakersfield.com here: Farmers urged to think big and small to survive groundwater cutbacks
Lois Henry: Kern groundwater shortfall numbers closer to reality: “New numbers coming in from water districts to the Kern Groundwater Authority show a groundwater overdraft of 249,644 acre-feet a year — and that’s a good thing. “At the last meeting, I admonished water managers to get serious about this, and I’m pleased to report that they have,” said Dennis Mullins, chairman of the KGA, during Wednesday’s meeting. He referred to the Sept. 25 meeting at which he said it was “obvious that some districts have created water with their paperwork” and that the state would not accept such “phony numbers.” … ” Read more from the Bakersfield Californian here: Lois Henry: Kern groundwater shortfall numbers closer to reality
Searles Valley Minerals reasserts water claims to IWVGA board: “Searles Valley Minerals reasserted that its right to pump water from the Indian Wells Valley during public comment at the IWV Groundwater Authority meeting on Oct. 17. Tom Bunn, SVM’s attorney, cited that this right trumps the Navy’s 1943 federal reserve rights, the year that the naval air facility at China Lake was established. … ” Read more from the Ridgecrest Independent here: Searles Valley Minerals reasserts water claims to IWVGA board
Montecito’s ‘lousy’ ground water basin: “The groundwater basins on most of the urban South Coast are drought buffers of last resort, to be conserved for pumping in emergencies. But in Montecito, as many as 1,500 private well owners may have “straws” in the same small basin as the Montecito Water District with its 12 public wells, a team of consultants told the district board this month. … ” Read more from the Santa Barbara Independent here: Montecito’s ‘lousy’ ground water basin