Groundwater plans could cause up to 12,000 drinking water wells to run dry: “If all goes according to plan — actually 26 groundwater sustainability plans — between 46,000 and nearly 130,000 Central Valley residents could be out of water by 2040, according to a new report released by the Water Foundation. Those sustainability plans are supposed to bring the valley’s depleted aquifers into balance, per the state’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. But, the Water Foundation report asserts, groundwater sustainability agencies, governed mostly by members of agricultural water districts, are planning for water tables to decline to the point they could dry up between 4,000 and 12,000 domestic wells over the next 20 years. ... ” Read more from SJV Water here: Groundwater plans could cause up to 12,000 drinking water wells to run dry
New USGS geonarrative pinpoints domestic well locations in United States: “A new U.S. Geological Survey geonarrative illustrates where domestic (private) water wells are located and how many people are using them, based on the results of a 2019 USGS study. Nearly 40 million people in the United States rely on a domestic well for their drinking-water supply. The geonarrative displays interactive maps that allow the user to view the number of people who rely on domestic wells per square kilometer, and the number and percentage of people by state using domestic wells. Users can zoom in on any area, although the maps are not intended to be used at the scale of a single house. … ” Read more from the USGS here: New USGS geonarrative pinpoints domestic well locations in United States
Groundwater accountability sparks clash of Central Valley ag titans: “Two giant Central Valley farming companies are slinging serious mud at one another over groundwater. And, in a rare break with tradition, they’re doing it in public. The fight has spilled out in public comments on the Tulare Lake Subbasin Groundwater Sustainability Plan, which covers most of Kings County. The titans behind the comments are J.G. Boswell Company and Sandridge Partners, owned by John Vidovich. … ” Read more from SJV Water here: Groundwater accountability sparks clash of Central Valley ag titans
Napa County taps citizens to plan groundwater sustainability plan: “Napa County’s annual groundwater “snapshot” for 2019 depicts a subbasin under the floor of world-famous wine country that isn’t being sucked dry by wells. Water users pumped 18,005 acre-feet of water from the Napa Valley subbasin last year. That is within the annual sustainable yield of 17,000 to 20,000 acre-feet, according to the Luhdorff & Scalmanini consulting firm. ... ” Read more from the Napa Register here: Napa County taps citizens to plan groundwater sustainability plan