Groundwater levels are rising significantly across the basin despite below-normal rainfall, indicating strong recovery due to reduced pumping and previous wet years. The board approved a new pumping credits policy that eliminates time limits and sets volume-based caps at four times users' sustainable allocations, moving to a "water bucket" system for greater drought management flexibility. Staff will intensify outreach to private well owners next year to develop required inventory and...
The groundwater management agency is developing a simplified "water bucket" reserve policy to replace the current pumping credit system, allowing water users to build up reserves when pumping below their sustainable allocation without expiration dates. Private well users pumping more than 25 acre-feet annually may be eligible to participate in this program with proper metering and reporting requirements. The reserve policy would be suspended during drought-triggered management actions...
The groundwater management agency advisory is going to recommend transitioning from time-based pumping credits to a volume-based "bucket" system that caps credit accumulation at 5 times an entity's sustainable yield allocation. Credits can only be earned through actual water conservation efforts like importing supplemental water or reducing usage below allocated amounts, ensuring they represent real water savings rather than unused allocations. Historical data analysis revealed the basin naturally maintained sustainability over 50+ years without regulations, with pumping fluctuating dramatically during droughts before returning to equilibrium during wet periods.
Agency reported strong basin recovery with water levels up 100 feet and all zones pumping below sustainable limits. The board debated changing pumping credit expiration periods from 5 years to between 3-50 years to prevent "paper water" accumulation. DWR approved their sustainability report while workshops on credit reforms are scheduled for August and September.
