discussion paper groundwater data in the sgma context · 2 workshop objectives stanford...

DiscussionPaper

GROUNDWATERDATAINTHESGMACONTEXTIdentifyingGroundwaterDataNeeds,Challengesand

PotentialSolutions

Preparedby:TaraMoranandJannyChoy

Thisreportwaspreparedasbackgroundinformationforthesecondworkshopinafour-partseriesfocusingongroundwaterdataintheSGMAcontext.Thisseriesis

hostedbyStanfordUniversity’sWaterintheWestProgramandtheGouldCenterforConflictResolution,inconjunctionwithCaliforniaStateUniversitySacramento’s

CenterforCollaborativePolicyatStanfordUniversity.

January28-29,2016

GroundwaterDataunderSGMA:BackgroundReport Jan.28-29,2016

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TableofContents

1 IntroductiontoGroundwaterManagementinCalifornia.................................32 WorkshopObjectives.....................................................................................................4

3 DataRequirementsunderSGMA...............................................................................5Box1.AvoidingUndesirableResultsunderSGMA

Box2.Groundwater-SurfaceWaterConnectivityinCalifornia

4 SummaryofGroundwaterDataSurveyResults...................................................75 References.........................................................................................................................8

6 AdditionalReadingonGroundwater-SurfaceWaterInteractions.................8Cover photos courtesy of the Bureau of Reclamation, Chris Austin, and DWR, 2015/Kelly M.Grow.


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1 IntroductiontoGroundwaterManagementinCaliforniaGroundwateriscriticaltoCalifornia’swellbeing.Itprovides40to60percentofthestate’swatersupply,contributestostreamflow,andsupportsadiversityofplantsandanimals.California’saquifersalsostoreagreatdealofwater–aboutanorderofmagnitudemorethantotalsurfacestoragecombined(DWR2003).Theseunderground“reservoirs”aretypicallyreferredtoasreservesforuseduringtimesofscarcity.However,fouryearsofextremedroughtcombinedwithalong-termoverrelianceontheresourcehaveleftgroundwaterlevelsinmostgroundwaterbasinsinthestateatall-timehistoricallows(DWR2014).Despitegroundwater’simportancetothestate’swatersupplysystem,thestatelackedacomprehensiveregimeforregulatingtheresource1untilpassageoftheSustainableGroundwaterManagementAct(SGMA)in2014.SGMAprovidesastatewideframeworkforthemonitoringandmanagementofCalifornia’s515alluvialgroundwateraquifers.Thelegislationrequiresallhigh-andmedium-prioritygroundwaterbasinslistedinCaliforniaDepartmentofWaterResources(DWR)Bulletin118tobemanagedunderagroundwatersustainabilityplan(GSP)byJanuary31,2022.2Ofthe515basinsidentifiedinBulletin118,43areclassifiedashigh-priorityand84asmedium-priority.Takentogether,these127basinsencompassapproximately96percentofgroundwateruseand88percentofpopulationinthestate(DWR2014).Remainingbasinsareclassifiedaslow-orverylow-priority.3PriortopassageofSGMA,groundwatermanagementinCaliforniawasapatchworkoflocalmanagementarrangements.Thelackofacomprehensiveframeworkhasresultedinfragmentedmanagement.GroundwaterinCaliforniaiscurrentlymanagedbyapproximately2,300independentlocalagencies(Nelson,2012).Despitehavingoverlappingjurisdictionsoradjacentboundaries,manywatermanagementagenciesdonotcoordinategroundwaterdataormanagementefforts,resultinginmanagementfragmentation,inefficiency,difficultyinevaluatingwatershed-scaleimpacts,competitionforlimitedstatefundingandtechnicalassistance,andinconsistencyinplanning(Blomquist1992;Heikkila2004;GerlakandHeikkila2011;Nelson2012).Previouseffortstoaddressthisfragmentationhavebeenlimitedbythevoluntarynatureofgroundwatermanagementprograms(e.g.,theIntegratedRegionalWaterManagementProgram,AB3030,AB1938)andthelackofconsistentresources(HughesandPincetl2014).ImplementationofSGMAprovideswatermanagersandthestatewithauniqueopportunitytoachievesustainablegroundwatermanagementandensurelong-termprotectionofthiscriticalresource.Inmanycases,SGMAwillrequireactionsthathavebeennecessaryformanyyears,orinsomecasesdecades,buthavenotbeenpoliticallyfeasiblewithoutastatemandate.TheformationofGroundwaterSustainabilityAgencies(GSAs),theagenciesresponsibleforthedevelopmentandimplementationofGSPs,willitselfbeadifficulttask.ItwillrequirelocalagenciestomakedifficultdecisionsupfrontaboutwhowillgovernastheGSA,andhenceberesponsiblefordeveloping,implementing,andenforcingtheGSP.

1Withexceptiontoadjudicatedgroundwaterbasinsandspecialactdistricts.221ofthestate’shigh-andmedium-prioritybasinsaresubjecttocriticalconditionsofoverdraftandmustbemanagedunderaGSPbyJanuary31,2020.3Lowandverylow-prioritybasinsmustdevelopaGroundwaterSustainabilityAgency(GSA)orreportgroundwaterextractionsannually,butarenotrequiredtodevelopandimplementaGroundwaterSustainabilityPlan(GSP)(Cal.WaterCode§5202.2).


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TheseentitieswillalsohavetoworkcollaborativelytoensurethatGSPsarecoordinated,whileincorporatingtheuncertaintyofchanginglandusepractices,watersupply,populationgrowth,climatechangeandotherfactorsoverthe50-yearplanningandimplementationhorizondefinedinSGMA.SuccessfulimplementationofSGMAwillrequireadetailedunderstandingofexistinggroundwaterconditionsineachbasin,thedevelopmentofmeasurableobjectivestoaddressundesirableresults,andtheabilitytoevaluateprogresstowardthoseobjectives.Developinggroundwaterdatacollectionandmanagementprotocolsthatsupportdecision-makingarecrucialforeffectiveandsustainablegroundwatermanagement.

2 WorkshopObjectivesStanfordUniversity’sWaterintheWestProgramandtheGouldCenterforConflictResolution,inpartnershipwithCaliforniaStateUniversity’sCenterforCollaborativePolicy,areundertakingadataworkshopserieswithwatermanagers,groundwaterconsultants,waterlawyers,facilitators,stateagencyofficials,academics,NGOsandotherstoseeksolutionstothechallengesthatwateragenciesarelikelytofaceinintegratingdataandwaterplanningtoolsunderSGMA.Thegoalsofthedataworkshopseriesare:

1) Toexchangeinformationandpromoteopendiscussionregardinggroundwaterdataneeds,andthebestavailablescienceandtechnologytomeettheseneeds.TousethisinformationtosupportthedevelopmentofregulationsandbestmanagementpracticesunderSGMAandtosupportlocalagenciesduringthedevelopmentofgroundwatersustainabilityplansrequiredundertheSustainableGroundwaterManagementAct(SGMA).

2) Toidentifythemajordata-relatedissuesorchallengesstateandlocalagenciesarelikelytofaceduringSGMAimplementationandpotentialsolutionstoaddressthesechallenges.

Theworkshopserieswilldiscussthesetopicsduringfourworkshopscovering(1)groundwatermodels(November16,2015),(2)groundwaterdataandgroundwater-surfacewaterinteractions(January28-29,2016),(3)decisionsupporttools(June3,2016)and(4)geophysicalmethods(October,2016).Thisreportisintendedtoinformthesecondworkshopintheseries.ThefirsthalfofthisoneandonehalfdayworkshopwillfocusonanewlegislativerequirementunderSGMA–groundwater-surfacewaterconnectivity.Thelegal,regulatory,andenvironmentalconsiderationsofthesurfacewaterandgroundwaterconnectionwillbeexplored,alongwithapproachesandmethodsformeasuringandmonitoringtheseinteractions.Thesecondhalfoftheworkshopwillexplore1)thekeydataneedsandchallengesthatlocalagenciesarelikelytofaceduringimplementationofthenewgroundwaterlegislation,2)approachestointegratingandcoordinatingdataatavarietyofscales,3)issuesofdatatransparency,and4)potentialsolutionsandnextstepstoaddressthesedata-relatedchallenges.ThisworkshopseriesistakingplacewhiletheDepartmentofWaterResources(DWR)isdraftingregulationsforimplementingandevaluatingGSPsunderSGMA.Whilepartofabroaderresearchprogram,discussionsatthisworkshopseriesmayhelptoinformregulationdevelopment.


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Toinformthisworkshopseries,agroundwaterdatasurveywasconductedduringthefallof2015.Thesurveytargetedlocalagencystaff4andgroundwaterconsultantswiththegoalofdevelopingamorecomprehensiveunderstandingofthecurrentstateofgroundwaterdatacollection,use,andsharingpracticesacrossthestate,aswellastherolethatgroundwatermodelsandadvancedtechnologiesplayingroundwatermanagementdecisions.KeyfindingsfromthegroundwaterdatasurveyarepresentedinSection4.Agroundwaterdatasurveyreportcanbefoundhere.5

3 DataRequirementsunderSGMAGSAformationiscurrentlyunderwayinmanypartsofthestate.Onceformed,GSAswillneedtodevelopGSPs,whichmustavoidundesirableresults(Box1)andachievesustainabilitygoalswithin20yearsofplanadoption.6ImprovingdatacollectionandunderstandingaboutgroundwaterisanexplicitintentofSGMA(Cal.WaterCode10720.1(f)).

GroundwaterdataandthedevelopmentofrobustgroundwatermonitoringandmanagementprotocolsareakeycomponentinGSPdevelopment(Cal.WaterCode10727.2).ThenewgroundwaterlegislationrequiresGSPstoincludedataonrechargeareas,groundwaterlevels,groundwaterquality,subsidence,andgroundwater-surfacewaterinteraction(Cal.WaterCode10727.2).Agenciesmustalsodevelopmonitoringprotocolsdesignedtogenerateinformationthatpromotesefficientandeffectivegroundwatermanagement(Cal.WaterCode10727.2(f)).Thesemonitoringprotocolsfocusspecificallyondetectingchangesingroundwaterlevels,waterquality,landsurfacesubsidence,andflowandqualityofinterconnectedsurfacewaters.Additionalplanelementsonsalinewater

5Findthecompletegroundwaterdatasurveyreportathttp://waterinthewest.stanford.edu/news-events/news-insights/new-report-assesses-adequacy-data-needed-implement-landmark-ca-groundwater621ofthestate’shighandmediumprioritybasinsaresubjecttocriticalconditionsofoverdraftandmustbemanagedunderaGSPbyJanuary31,2020.AllremaininghighandmediumprioritybasinshaveuntilJanuary31,2022tobemanagedunderaGSP.

Box1.AvoidingUndesirableResultsunderSGMA

SGMArequiresGSAtomanagetheirbasininamannerthatdoesnotcause“undesirableresults”,whicharedefinedinthelegislationas:

…oneormoreofthefollowingeffectscausedbygroundwaterconditionsoccurringthroughoutabasin:

1. Chronicloweringofgroundwaterlevelsindicatingasignificantandunreasonabledepletionofsupplyifcontinuedovertheplanningandimplementationhorizon….

2. Significantandunreasonablereductionofgroundwaterstorage.3. Significantandunreasonableseawaterintrusion.4. Significantandunreasonabledegradedwaterquality,includingthemigrationof

contaminantplumesthatimpairwatersupplies.5. Significantandunreasonablelandsubsidencethatsubstantiallyinterfereswithsurface

landuses.6. Depletionsofinterconnectedsurfacewaterthathavesignificantandunreasonable

adverseimpactsonbeneficialusesofthesurfacewater.

http://waterinthewest.stanford.edu/news-events/news-insights/new-report-assesses-adequacy-data-needed-implement-landmark-ca-groundwater


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intrusion,wellheadprotectionareas,contaminanttransportandremediationefforts,wellconstructionand/ordestructionpolicies,conservationefforts,conjunctiveuseorundergroundstorage,andimpactsongroundwater-dependentecosystemsarerequiredwhereapplicable.Inbasinsdevelopingmorethanonemanagementplan,coordinationisrequiredtoensurethatthesamedataandmethodologiesareusedinalltheplans.Thisincludesdataongroundwaterelevation,groundwaterextraction,surfacewatersupply,totalwateruse,changeingroundwaterstorage,waterbudget,andsustainableyield(Cal.WaterCode10727.6).GiventheexistingfragmentationingroundwatermanagementinCalifornia,thisbasin-scalecoordinationofdataandgroundwaterplanningtoolswillbeamajorundertakingrequiringnewapproaches,toolsandtechnologies.

Box2.Groundwater-SurfaceWaterConnectivityinCaliforniaCaliforniawaterlawviewsandregulatessurfacewaterandgroundwaterasseparateentities,contrarytoscience.Thenewgroundwaterlegislationforthefirsttimerequirestheagenciesmanaginggroundwatertoaddresstheimpactsofgroundwaterpumpingonsurfacewaters.TheCaliforniaDepartmentofWaterResourcesiscurrentlyintheprocessofdraftingregulationsforimplementingandevaluatingGSPsunderSGMA.Becausegroundwaterandsurfacewaterconnectivitywasnotnecessarilyacommonconsiderationinlocalgroundwatermanagement,thereareinadequatedatainmanygroundwaterbasinspertainingtogroundwaterandsurfacewaterinteractions.Inmanycases,thereisnoinformationonwhetherconnectivityevenexists.AccordingtosurveyresultsofCaliforniawaterpractitioners,only38percentofrespondentscollectdataongroundwaterandsurfacewaterconnections,while20percentcollectdataongroundwater-dependentecosystems.Ourworkshopfirstexaminestheenvironmental,legal,andregulatoryconsiderationsofgroundwaterandsurfacewaterconnections,includinghowotherwesternstateshaveaddressedsuchinteractions.Itthenexploresseveralapproaches,tools,andmethodsformeasuringandmonitoringstreamflowdepletions.

Groundwater-SurfaceWaterInteractionsunderSGMAUnderSGMA,agroundwatersustainabilityagencymustconsidertheinterestsofallbeneficialusesandusersofgroundwater,includingenvironmentalusersofgroundwater,andsurfacewaterusers,ifthereisahydrologicconnectionbetweensurfaceandgroundwaterbodies(Cal.WaterCode10723.2(e)and(f)).Atitscore,SGMArequiresGSAstoavoidthesixundesirableresults(Box1).SGMArequirementspertainingtosurfacewaterandgroundwaterconnectivityincludeatleasttwoundesirableresults.Thefirstisthechronicloweringofgroundwaterlevelsthatresultinsignificantandunreasonabledepletionofsupply(Cal.WaterCode10721(w)(1)).Inadditiontoaffectingsurfacewaterrightsholders,areductionofsupplymayimpactgroundwater-dependentecosystemsandotherenvironmentalusers.Thesecondundesirableresultisdepletionsofinterconnectedsurfacewaterthathavesignificantandunreasonableadverseimpactsonbeneficialusesofthesurfacewater(Cal.WaterCode10721(w)(6)).Ofnote,theterm“interconnectedsurfacewater”isnotdefinedinthelegislation;policyfromtheDepartmentofWaterResourcescouldhelpclarifythelegislativeintent.Inadditiontoavoidingundesirableresults,SGMArequiresGSPstoincludeimpactsongroundwater-dependentecosystemswhereappropriate(Cal.WaterCode10727.4(l))andtodevelopmonitoringandmanagementprotocolstodetectchangesinsurfaceflowandsurfacewaterqualitythatdirectlyaffectgroundwaterlevelsorqualityorarecausedbygroundwaterextractioninthebasin(Cal.WaterCode10727.2(d)(2)).


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4 SummaryofGroundwaterDataSurveyResultsInthesummerof2015,StanfordUniversity’sWaterintheWestProgramandTheGouldCenterforConflictResolutionconductedagroundwaterdatasurvey.Thesurveytargetedlocalagenciesandgroundwaterconsultantswiththegoalofdevelopingamorecomprehensiveunderstandingofthecurrentstateofgroundwaterdatacollection,useandsharingpracticesacrossthestate,aswellastherolethatgroundwatermodelsandadvancedtechnologiesplayingroundwatermanagementdecisionsinCalifornia.Amorecompletesummaryofsurveyresultscanbefoundhere.7Keyfindingsfromthesurveysuggeststhat:1. Groundwaterdataisofteninadequatefordecision-makingpurposes.Despitethe

factthatmorethan80percentofsurveyrespondentscollectgroundwaterlevelsdata,onlyslightlymorethanhalfconsiderthegeographiccoverage(54percent)andmonitoringfrequency(56percent)ofthesedatatobeadequatefordecision-makingpurposes.Similarresultsareobservedwithwaterqualitydata.Inthiscase,76percentofsurveyrespondentscollectedwaterqualitydataintheirjurisdictionalarea,butlessthanhalfofsurveyrespondentsconsideredthegeographic(44percent)andmonitoringfrequency(40percent)ofthesedatatobeadequatefordecision-makingpurposes.

2. Manydatanecessaryforeffectivegroundwatermanagementaremissingorhighlyuncertain.Surveyrespondentsindicatedthatmissingorhighlyuncertaindatasetshindertheirabilitytomanageeffectively.Missingoruncertaindatasetsincludedgroundwaterrechargepotential(38percent),thelocationofgroundwaterrechargeareas(28percent),sustainableyield(36percent),groundwater-dependentecosystems(26percent),groundwaterextractions(24percent)andgroundwaterlevels(22percent).

3. Manylocalagenciesdonothavededicatedgroundwatermonitoringwells.Some12percentofrespondentswithestablishedgroundwatermonitoringnetworksdidnothaveasinglededicatedmonitoringwellintheirnetwork.Productionwellsaccountedfor54percentofthewellsindedicatedgroundwatermonitoringnetworks.

4. Groundwatermanagementagenciesneedmoredatathatcanbereadilysharedatavarietyofscales.Nearly60percentofsurveyrespondentstoanopen-endedsurveyquestionindicatedtheneedforstandardizeddatacollectionmethodsandacommondata-sharingplatform.

5. Localagenciesrelyondatafromotheragencies(local,stateandfederal)tosupplementdatacollectedintheirjurisdictionalarea.Groundwaterlevel,waterquality,landusedataandgeologyarethedatamostcommonlysharedbetweenlocalagencies.Some62percentofsurveyrespondentsreportusinggroundwaterlevelandwaterqualitydatafromotherlocalagencies.Localagenciesalsorelyonstateandfederalagenciesforabreadthofdata,includinggroundwaterlevelandwaterqualitydata,climatedataandgeology.

7Findthecompletegroundwaterdatasurveyreportathttp://waterinthewest.stanford.edu/news-events/news-insights/new-report-assesses-adequacy-data-needed-implement-landmark-ca-groundwater

http://waterinthewest.stanford.edu/news-events/news-insights/new-report-assesses-adequacy-data-needed-implement-landmark-ca-groundwater


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5 ReferencesBlomquist,W.A.(1992).DividingtheWaters:governinggroundwaterinsouthernCalifornia,ICS,Lanham,MD.

[DWR2003]CaliforniaDepartmentofWaterResources.(2003).California’sGroundwater.Bulletin118,Update2003,CaliforniaDepartmentofWaterResources,Sacramento,CA.

[DWR2014]CaliforniaDepartmentofWaterResources.(2014).PublicUpdateforDroughtResponse:GroundwaterBasinswithPotentialWaterShortagesandGapsinGroundwaterMonitoring,April30,2014,CaliforniaDepartmentofWaterResources,Sacramento,CA.

Gerlak,A.K.,andT.Heikkila.(2011).BuildingaTheoryofLearninginCollaboratives:EvidencefromtheEvergladesRestorationProgram.JournalofPublicAdministrationResearchandTheory,21:619-644.doi:10.1093/jopart/muq089

Heikkila,T.(2004).InstitutionalBoundariesandCommon-PoolResourceManagement:ACompartiveAnalysisofWaterManagementProgramsinCalifornia.JournalofPolicyAnalysisandManagement,23(1):97-117.

Hughes,S.,andS.Pincetl.(2014).Evaluatingcollaborativeinstitutionsincontext:thecaseofregionalwatermanagementinCalifornia.EnvironmentPlanningC:GovernmentandPolicy,32:20-38.doi:10.1068/c1210.

Nelson,R.L.(2012).Assessinglocalplanningtocontrolgroundwater-depletion:Californiaasamicrocosmofglobalissues.WaterResourcesResearch,48:W01502.doi:10.1029/2011WR010927.

6 AdditionalReadingonGroundwater-SurfaceWaterInteractionsBarlow,P.M.,andS.A.Leake.(2012).Streamflowdepletionbywells—Understandingandmanagingtheeffectsofgroundwaterpumpingonstreamflow:U.S.GeologicalSurveyCircular1376.(Availableathttp://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/1376/)Galloway,D.L.,W.M.Alley,P.M.Barlow,T.E.Reilly,andP.Tucci.(2003).EvolvingIssuesandPracticesinManagingGround-WaterResources:CaseStudiesontheRoleofScience:U.S.GeologicalSurveyCircular1247.(Availableat:http://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/2003/circ1247/pdf/Circ1247.pdf)Reeves,H.M.,D.A.Hamilton,P.W.Seelbach,andA.J.Asher.(2013).Ground-Water-WithdrawalComponentoftheMichiganWater-WithdrawalScreeningTool:U.S.GeologicalSurveyScientificInvestigationsReport2009-5003.PreparedincooperationwiththeMichiganDepartmentofNaturalResources.(Availableat:http://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2009/5003/pdf/sir2009-5003_web.pdf)

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