From the California Water Commission:
The California Water Commission today approved a white paper that contains its findings and the potential next steps for State engagement in shaping well-managed groundwater trading programs with appropriate safeguards for vulnerable water users: natural resources, small- and medium-size farms, and water supply and quality for disadvantaged communities.
The white paper will be shared with the Secretaries for Natural Resources, Environmental Protection, and Food and Agriculture, who requested the Commission’s engagement on this topic. The paper will guide the continued work on Water Resilience Portfolio Action 3.6 by the California Departments of Water Resources, Fish and Wildlife, and Food and Agriculture, and the State Water Resources Control Board.
Through extensive outreach and input that involved learning from the experience of others around the state, country, and world, the Commission’s paper frames the basic elements of well-functioning, protective groundwater trading programs. Those elements start with trust, access to accurate data, and a sound, well-implemented groundwater sustainability plan that fully considers all beneficial groundwater users when setting sustainable conditions.