September 16, 2024 marked the 10th anniversary of SGMA, the landmark legislation aimed at bringing California’s groundwater basins to sustainable conditions by the early 2040s.  As you may know, OID is located within two groundwater subbasins, the Eastern San Joaquin (ESJ) Subbasin and the Modesto Subbasin, and is required to participate in both.   

The ESJ Subbasin is two years ahead of the Modesto Subbasin because the ESJ Subbasin was declared critically overdrafted. As such, the first Groundwater Sustainability Plan (GSP) was required to be submitted in 2020 and we’re currently cooperatively working on the 5-year update that is required to be submitted to the Department of Water Resources (DWR) by the end of January 2025. The State is requiring the GSP contain procedures that would allow for demand reduction, if the basin is not already headed towards sustainability, and to have procedures in it for dry well mitigation. If it is determined that excessive pumping is the cause of a well going dry, the GSA(s) will be required to mitigate the issue. These two programs will continue to require a considerable amount of time and effort to develop, implement and administer.

The STRGBA GSA, in the Modesto Subbasin, submitted their initial draft of the GSP in January 2022, but was deemed incomplete by DWR in January 2024. Much like the ESJ Subbasin, DWR is requiring the GSA to commit to a well mitigation program and a demand reduction/management actions program in the revised GSP, which was submitted to DWR on July 11, 2024.

Both GSA’s are diligently working on behalf of their respective agencies and constituents on these plans/programs. These plans didn’t exist five years ago and careful consideration is required to make sure they’re equitable and that all beneficial uses and users of groundwater are accounted for.  Your participation and involvement as we continue to work together with other GSAs and member agencies to formulate future policies and procedures for sustainable groundwater management is encouraged and appreciated.  Please visit STRGBA.org and/or esjgroundwater.org to get involved.