Sonoma County drills wells to study groundwater sustainability: “The shallow wells Sonoma County’s water agency is drilling near 11 waterways have nothing to do with delivering water to 600,000 residents of Sonoma and Marin counties. Instead, the 21 wells will serve as measuring sticks to determine whether pumping groundwater in the county’s three basins — the Santa Rosa Plain, Petaluma Valley and Sonoma Valley — is curbing the flow in creeks inhabited by federally protected fish and other species. ... ” Read more from the Santa Rosa Press Democrat here: Sonoma County drills wells to study groundwater sustainability
Supervisors submit letter supporting Sierra Valley groundwater grant: “Members of the Plumas County Board of Supervisors ratified a letter in support of the Sierra Valley Groundwater Management District application for grant funding Tuesday, Nov. 5. The letter is for a Sustainable Groundwater Management (SGM) Grant, Round 3 SGM planning. “Plumas County strongly supports the Sierra Valley Groundwater Management District application for Round 3 program funding as this funding is critical to achieving sustainable groundwater management in the Sierra Valley Groundwater Basin,” said supervisor and Board Chairperson Kevin Goss in the letter. … ” Read more from Plumas County News here: Supervisors submit letter supporting Sierra Valley groundwater grant
Fresno County: A new era in groundwater management begins: “A new era in the sustainable management of groundwater in a portion of Fresno County for the next 20 years and beyond was initiated by the McMullin Area Groundwater Sustainability Agency (MAGSA) Board of Directors with the unanimous adoption of a Groundwater Sustainability Plan (GSP) at their November 6 meeting. ... ” Read more from ACWA’s Water News here: Fresno County: A new era in groundwater management begins
Paso Robles area farmers share opinions on water management districts: “Farmers Dana Merrill and Jerry Reaugh talk about the need for water management in the Paso Robles Groundwater Basin basin, which suffers from overdraft. They worry that if extreme restrictions are imposed it will impact the local economy.” Watch the video from the San Luis Obispo Tribune here: Paso Robles area farmers share opinions on water management districts
SLO County supervisors fire back at state ag board: “A confrontational morning session of the Nov. 5 San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors meeting ended in the narrow approval of a written retort to the California State Board of Food and Agriculture, which recently criticized SLO for its handling of water policy over the Paso Robles Groundwater Basin. The supervisors’ 3-2 vote delivered the four-page response letter, in which Chief Administrative Officer Wade Horton wrote that the county “adamantly disagrees” with the state ag board’s complaint that commercial agriculture was insufficiently involved in the development of a groundwater sustainability plan. ... ” Read more from News Times SLO here: SLO County supervisors fire back at state ag board
Kern farmland values begin to stabilize as investors absorb groundwater restrictions: “A new report shows market conditions in local agriculture are generally stabilizing — though not improving much — as investors in Kern County farmland take in the bad news about upcoming restrictions on groundwater pumping and, to a lesser degree, lower commodity prices and a continuing labor shortage. Thursday’s update from Bakersfield’s Alliance Ag Services Inc. points to big year-over-year drops in the value of properties with minimal surface-water supplies, and more modest decreases in areas with more reliable access to irrigation. ... ” Read more from Bakersfield.com here: Kern farmland values begin to stabilize as investors absorb groundwater restrictions
Kern County: Underground water impacting farmland property value: “Kern County is seeing a drop in agricultural property value. The water crisis plaguing the state is also affecting the value of farms here in Kern County. Michael Ming, Lead Appraiser for Alliance Ag Services, said groundwater sustainability efforts have proven to be a big challenge. … ” Read more from Bakersfield.com here: Kern County: Underground water impacting farmland property value
Palmdale Water District agrees to take on monitoring costs: “Continuing an ongoing, joint effort to monitor groundwater levels and quality in the Antelope Valley, the Palmdale Water District on Oct. 28, agreed to fund its portion of the costs for the next year. A group of several Valley water agencies annually contract with the U.S. Geological Survey to perform the monitoring duties, using a series of established wells from various points in order to create a picture of the water levels beneath the ground and the overall water quality. … ” Read more from the Antelope Valley Press here: Palmdale Water District agrees to take on monitoring costs