Presentations 2016

California’s New Groundwater Management Laws, and Strategies to Avoid Adverse Impacts on Agriculture in Urbanizing Communities

Jackson, DeMarco, Tidus & Peckenpaugh

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On September 16, 2014, California enacted the first comprehensive program for managing and regulating groundwater extraction and use in its history (AB 1739 (Dickinson), SB 1168 (Pavley) and SB 1319 (Pavley)). The policies and regulations set in motion by the new laws will impact existing and future agricultural wells and land uses throughout the State. This presentation will educate attendees about California’s new sustainable groundwater management policies, and provide practical strategies for agricultural businesses in urbanizing areas to join with their local water district, city and county to focus regulatory efforts on increasing the yield of local groundwater basins, and avoid unintended consequences that could reduce available water supplies and restrict existing and future agricultural production. The presentation will discusses key changes that the new laws set in motion, opportunities for agricultural groundwater users in urbanizing areas to have a voice in how the State and local agencies will implement them, and examples of emerging groundwater governance structures that urbanizing communities would be wise to follow or avoid. Groundwater accounts for about a third of all water used in California in an average year, and more than half in a drought year when surface water supplies are unavailable. Some communities are totally reliant on groundwater. Yet, efforts to allocate and manage groundwater in California have often been reactionary, initiated after groundwater use was already impaired by an existing or imminent overdraft condition or groundwater quality degradation. The new laws establish a State policy requiring all groundwater resources to be managed “sustainably”. They also establish a new Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. The Act gives groundwater sustainability agencies broad authority to regulate the extraction and use of groundwater supplies under their groundwater sustainability plans. Any local public agency having water supply, water management or land use responsibilities within a basin (such as public water suppliers, flood control districts, cities and counties) may elect to be the basin’s groundwater sustainability agency. The Act also allows cities and counties to participate in a groundwater sustainability agency. Their participation could bring broader public perspectives to the planning process and help alleviate the concerns of agricultural landowners, who hold superior overlying water rights, potentially being subjected to the control of municipal water agencies in urbanizing areas that operate wells competing for the same limited groundwater supplies and are primarily concerned with their own customers’ interests. The Act defines sustainable groundwater management to include the use of groundwater. By January 1, 2017, the California Department of Water Resources is to publish Best Management Practices to be included in groundwater sustainability plans. Groundwater sustainability plans are also to specify efficient water management practices. Once the BMPs and efficient water management practices are included in a local groundwater sustainability plan, they can be enforced against groundwater users. The presentation will discuss the importance of including agricultural groundwater users in the local groundwater management process in order to maintain production of food and fiber in urbanizing areas.