Forum in Lodi focuses on state groundwater act

The North San Joaquin Water Conservation District and the Lodi District Grape Growers Association held a forum focusing on the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act on Thursday at the Lodi Grape Festival’s Jackson Hall.

Attendees were treated to a panel of experts who led a crash course on groundwater sustainability issues. The meeting opened with local grape grower John Ledbetter encouraging individuals to learn about the state mandate.

“SGMA is obviously something that many people in this room might not know about, but it is a mandate and I am here to encourage everyone to understand as much about it as possible,” Ledbetter said.

In 2014, the state of California passed legislation requiring local water agencies to form groundwater sustainability agencies and develop plans to address shrinking groundwater tables by

Jan. 31, 2020.

Lodi is one of 17 water districts in the Eastern San Joaquin Groundwater Basin. The agencies all worked together to develop a single plan to address the basin’s overdrafted status and other water-related issues. Many of the agencies have already adopted the Eastern San Joaquin Groundwater Basin Groundwater Sustainability Plan — which was completed by the joint agencies in July.

The GSP framework is broken into seven chapters that provide background information about each basin, its groundwater conditions, and its sustainability goal. The purpose of the GSP is to define sustainability goals, create measurable objectives, meet those objectives, and outline how each GSA and joint-powers authority will coordinate with neighbors, including monitoring and reporting.

As part of the plan, the GSAs have outlined evaluation criteria to monitor water level progress. There will be annual reports and periodical evaluations made by the GSAs. Monitoring networks are also included in the plan to assess and compile data about groundwater levels.

The GSAs will also develop interagency and basin-wide agreements to prevent issues like chronic lowering of groundwater tables due to overuse, seawater intrusion and reduction of stored water.

San Joaquin County Water Resources Coordinator Matt Zidar said that once all 17 GSAs adopt the plan the California Department of Water Resources will evaluate and provide feedback on each plan.

“If a plan is not approved by the state board they can fine a GSA for being out of compliance and put you on probation, which means that is the first step for them crawling into your business with a microscope,” Zidar said.

He added that the state’s agencies must collect and compile data on historic and current groundwater levels, water quality, the interaction of ground and surface water, and historic and projected supply and demand.

All plans include a five–year review process that allows GSAs to update their plans and water specifications — such as a grower switching crops from grapes to nuts — according to Jennifer Spaletta, owner of the Spaletta Law.

Zidar believes once the state approves the Eastern San Joaquin plan, the next steps for the agencies include creating more capturing systems that will collect stormwater during wet years, reducing overall water use, recharging groundwater, and repairing existing water infrastructure to reduce waste.

“This is all going to be about cutting back, and the state board will be looking at GSAs to create capital projects to get to that sustainable level,” Zidar said.

According to Zidar, the state will provide grant opportunities for GSAs looking to fund capital projects.