Photo by Chris Austin
Key Information
- Report: An Assessment of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act for Municipal Water Suppliers (Brownstein Hyatt Farber Shreck)
- Public Drinking Water Systems webpage (State Water Board)
SGMA requires groundwater basins that have been designated as high and medium priority to form a Groundwater Sustainability Agency (GSA) and to prepare a Groundwater Sustainability Plan by the year 2020 or 2022, depending on the priority of the basin. The plan must lay out the steps necessary to bring the basin into sustainable management within 20 years.
SGMA requires GSAs to These plans likely will require pumping limitations, water conservation, and introducing supplemental water supplies, so engagement with your GSA is critical.
Resources for Groundwater Providers
The State Water Board regulates public drinking water systems, provides information for system operations, and funding opportunities for drinking water system improvements. Learn more from the State Water Board.
The EPA has programs to build capacity of drinking water systems. Learn more from the EPA.
The Department of Pesticide Regulation’s Groundwater Protection Program tests pesticides to determine if they may contaminate ground water, identifies areas sensitive to pesticide contamination and develops mitigation measures to prevent that movement. Learn more from the Department of Pesticide Regulation.
Developing a GSP
GSAs in critically overdrafted groundwater basins must submit a Groundwater Sustainability Plan to DWR by Jan. 30 2020. All remaining high and medium priority basins must submit GSPs to DWR by Jan. 30, 2022.
- Learn more about developing a GSP and avoiding the six undesirable results central to SGMA.
- Learn more about water budgets under SGMA.
- Learn more about projects and actions to achieve sustainable groundwater management.
- Read case studies of how other regions are successfully managing groundwater basins.