Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Water Resources Reporting topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
South Central water officials outline new static water-level reporting and penalties; Lake County seeks annual updates
Summary
South Central Region Water Resources Manager Tom Skiles and South Lake County Watermaster Matthew Anderson briefed commissioners on new static water-level reporting requirements for rights issued from the 1990s onward, described escalating penalties for nonreporting and said monitored wells in the area show minimal decline and recent rebound.
Water officials told the Lake County Board of Commissioners on Nov. 5 that new static water-level reporting requirements will require many water-right holders to submit regular measurements and that enforcement will escalate for noncompliance.
Tom Skiles, manager for the South Central Region Water Resources Department, said the rules apply to water rights issued from the 1990s to the present. He told the board the agency has cut back on travel budgets, which may reduce in-person monitoring; the department will lean on reported data. Skiles outlined the enforcement sequence he said the department will follow: after the first year of nonreporting a water user would receive a Notice of Violation; after the second year a Notice of Assessment with a civil penalty; and, by statute, continued nonreporting into a third year could lead the department to take control of the user’s well.
South Lake County Watermaster Matthew Anderson told commissioners that domestic and agricultural wells are included in monitoring and estimated about 20–30 wells in that part of the county are being tracked. He said recent measurements show minimal decline and some rebound, which he attributed to a good water year. Commissioners pressed for examples of over-appropriation and for clarity on enforcement; Manager Skiles said enforcement is complaint-driven and asked residents to report suspected violations to the department. Commissioner Albertson requested at least an annual report from the water resources office; Skiles agreed to provide an annual update and to bring additional staff and data to future briefings.
Commissioner James Williams noted a local moratorium effort in the north end of the county aimed at conservation and described community frustration with residents who water roadways; the watermaster confirmed the department investigates complaints about misuse. The briefing closes the board’s request for more detail on how reporting and enforcement will apply locally and sets an expectation that the county will receive further, more detailed reports.
