Presentations 2016

Napa County Groundwater Resources: A Comprehensive Program to Ensure Sustainability

Luhdorff & Scalmanini Consulting Engineers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNFNbppOeqo&index=5&list=PLZC-5vj9_JAbO3tkvEE9MOGPRCroFc-XN

Groundwater and surface water are highly important natural resources in Napa County. Together, the County and other municipalities, water districts, the agricultural community, commercial and industrial operations, and the general public are stewards of the available water resources. Everyone living and working in Napa County has a stake in protecting the county’s groundwater resources, including groundwater supplies, quality, and associated watersheds and ecosystems. Without sustainable groundwater resources, the character of the County would be significantly different in terms of its economy, communities, rural character, ecology, housing, lifestyles, and especially its worldwide acclaim for its vineyards and wines. Similar to other areas in California, businesses and residents of Napa County face many water-related challenges, including sustaining the availability, reliability, and quality of water supplies; preparedness for resources management during drought conditions; and changes in long-term availability due to climate change. In 2009, Napa County embarked on a comprehensive, multi-faceted groundwater program to develop a sound understanding of groundwater conditions through development of an updated hydrogeologic conceptualization and an expanded groundwater monitoring, including designated facilities to assess surface water/groundwater interaction. The program provides the foundation for future coordinated, integrated water resources planning and dissemination of water resources information. In 2011, the Napa County Board of Supervisors adopted a resolution to establish a Groundwater Resources Advisory Committee (GRAC). The County Board of Supervisors appointed 15 residents to the GRAC, which represented diverse interests, including environmental, agricultural, development, and community interests. The GRAC was created to assist County staff and technical consultants with recommendations, including synthesis of existing information and identification of critical data needs; development and implementation of an ongoing groundwater monitoring program; development of groundwater sustainability objectives; and building community support for these activities and next steps. Monitoring provides the metrics that support the larger goal of sustainability. Key objectives of the Napa County Groundwater Monitoring Plan (2013) include addressing data gaps, regular evaluation of groundwater level and/or quality and surface water level and quality trends and factors that warrant further examination to ensure sustainable water resources, and public dissemination. The Napa County monitoring program relies on both publicly-owned and volunteered private wells. To fulfill its mission and garner community interest and support, the GRAC developed an outreach brochure and a series of fact sheets on specific topics, designed to implement the Monitoring Plan through voluntary participation. Ensuring groundwater sustainability is an adaptive process that maintains the ability of future generations to make choices about how they use groundwater resources. Monitoring is one of many steps in a larger adaptive cycle, along with evaluating progress toward meeting objectives, learning from whole systems data evaluation, revising objectives and activities, developing and implementing best management practices (BMPs), and adjusting BMPs as needed. This presentation describes the approaches that Napa County undertook to integrate water resources sustainability into County policies and programs in advance of California’s 2014 Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). The County has developed an important foundation upon which to respond to SGMA requirements with community involvement and support.