The South Fork Kings board meeting will take place on Thursday, March 18, 2021.
5:30 P.M. Meeting Convenes
Remote Only Via Zoom
Meeting link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84177525108?pwd=R2dZOFJ2RFR6UnRXbHpWaFRKTjgxUT09
Call-In: +1 669 900 6833 ; Meeting ID: 815 4145 5898 ; Password: 213733
One-tap Mobile: +16699006833,,81541455898#,,,,*213733#
Following the adoption of a Groundwater Sustainability Plan (GSP), the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) requires Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (GSAs) to submit annual reports to the California Department of Water Resources on April 1st of every year.
The Annual Report serves to inform and update both the State and stakeholders on groundwater conditions and sustainability progress in the entire Tulare Lake Subbasin. GSA managers in the Tulare Lake Subbasin are coordinating to ensure important data is included in this year’s Annual Report. The Report will include information from the Tulare Lake Subbasin’s five GSA’s monitoring networks, data on groundwater extraction, surface water supply, total water use, water quality, and changes in groundwater storage. View last year’s report here.
You can also explore the Department of Water Resource’s SGMA portal here. This portal allows local agencies and GSAs to submit, modify, and view the information required by SGMA, and allows the public to view submitted information and provide comments when applicable.
Frank Gornick, City of Lemoore Council member, joined the SFKGSA Board of Directors filling Seat 1.
In 2019, Gornick was honored by the Lemoore Chamber of Commerce as the city’s Citizen of the Year for his service as the Chancellor of the West Hills College District. According to The Leader, “Gornick’s leadership transformed the local district.” SFKGSA is honored and excited to welcome Director Gornick to the Board.
At the January 21, 2021 Board meeting, Director Gornick was nominated and appointed as the Secretary of the Board. Click HERE to learn more about the SFKGSA Board of Directors.
Since approved to conduct an Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) test in November, the South Fork Kings GSA has made substantial progress to pilot the high priority project.
Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) is an innovative groundwater management method used in many parts of the United States to inject water for underground storage to be withdrawn later when surface water is limited, especially during periods of drought. The South Fork Kings GSA included ASR in its Groundwater Sustainability Plan as a high priority among the portfolio of projects to bring groundwater supplies into balance and received a grant to test the concept locally.
To date, the South Fork Kings GSA purchased transducers and hired a contractor to modify wells for the test. An aquifer pump test is scheduled for early February to determine key parameters for this project. Lemoore Canal Company has agreed to provide up to 75 acre-feet of water for the pilot test which will consist of three main phases. Water will be injected for a three-month period, stored for two months, and then taken out and used on surrounding fields.
The ASR Pilot Test is funded by the Climate Resilience Grant, a grant that was awarded by the Bay Area Council Foundation in June 2020 to help local communities across California strengthen their resilience to climate change. Read more about how SFKGSA obtained this $200,000 grant here.
The South Fork Kings board meeting will take place on Thursday, January 21, 2021.
5:30 P.M. Meeting Convenes
Remote Only Via Zoom
Meeting link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84177525108?pwd=R2dZOFJ2RFR6UnRXbHpWaFRKTjgxUT09
Call-In: +1 669 900 6833 ; Meeting ID: 841 7752 5108 ; Password: 761325
One-tap Mobile: +16699006833,,84177525108#,,,,*761325#
Preparations are being made to apply for round one of the CA Department of Water Resources (DWR) SGMA Implementation Grant, available to critically overdrafted subbasins. South Fork Kings GSA will work to submit a letter of support on the Tulare Lake Subbasin’s grant funding application for recharge projects that bring basin-wide benefits.
The Subbasin is currently considering which projects in the Groundwater Sustainability Plan, a joint document outlining sustainability in the Tulare Lake Subbasin, to submit for funding. Groundwater recharge projects under consideration are outside of the South Fork Kings GSA but bring a benefit by meeting subbasin-wide sustainability objectives. Groundwater recharge is a primary tactic for improving groundwater conditions by which extra surface water, rainfall and snowmelt, is captured to sink below the soil into the groundwater aquifer.
The SGMA Implementation Grant is funded by Proposition 68, with the first round providing $26 million for critically overdrafted subbasins. The Subbasin has not yet determined its funding request amount. The maximum award is $5 million, and minimum is $2 million.
Another $77 million will be available in round 2 for medium-priority, high-priority, and critically overdrafted subbasins. The South Fork Kings GSA is in the Tulare Lake Subbasin, designated under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) to be critically overdrafted.
The Groundwater Data Protection Policy was adopted unanimously by the South Fork Kings GSA Board at their December 3, 2020 meeting. The draft was available for a 30-day public comment period beginning October 19 and ending November 18 and was revised under the direction of the Policy Committee after receiving one comment.
The policy outlines the South Fork Kings GSA’s duties and obligations in the process of acquiring data from landowners within its service area, with intent to keep any data collected private to the fullest extent allowed by the law. The South Fork Kings GSA will use publicly available information to learn about groundwater wells and pumping data, while working to engage in cooperative relationships with landowners to gather critical data for successful groundwater management.
The South Fork Kings GSA Board approved the appointment of Steve Jackson to the Policy Committee at its December 3rd meeting. Jackson is involved in ongoing SGMA efforts in the South Fork Kings GSA and serves on the Board of two Tulare Lake Subbasin GSAs, Tri-County Water Authority and Southwest Kings.
The Policy Committee is tasked with the development of policies that will guide the South Fork Kings GSA in its efforts to achieve groundwater sustainability in the area. A Groundwater Data Protection Policy adopted by the Board was developed under the guidance of the Policy Committee. The Committee will continue its work to draft policies in the coming months.