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Groundwater authority receives 2025 annual report showing pumping well above sustainable yield
Summary
The Groundwater Authority received the 2025 water‑year annual report showing estimated pumping of about 20,200 acre‑feet, roughly 2.6 times the basin’s stated sustainable yield of 7,650 acre‑feet, and a six‑year estimated storage loss of about 18,000 acre‑feet. Staff said monitoring sites remain above minimal thresholds and projects remain on a path to implement remedies.
Heather, an engineer with Stson Engineering, told the board the annual report covering Oct. 1, 2024, through Sept. 30, 2025, estimates total pumping in water year 2025 at about 20,200 acre‑feet and a six‑year cumulative storage loss of roughly 18,000 acre‑feet. The report compares measured levels at representative monitoring sites against the Groundwater Sustainability Plan’s sustainable management criteria and finds those sites remain above the minimum thresholds, so the report’s authors did not identify 'undesirable results' at the representative locations.
The report shows estimated pumping for 2025 is approximately 2.6 times the established sustainable yield (7,650 acre‑feet), a gap the presentation said the authority intends to close over time through projects and management actions, principally the imported water project and shallow‑well mitigation and consolidation projects. Heather said hydrograph and water‑quality data and additional plots are posted on the authority’s data management system and included in the annual report for public review.
Board members and staff discussed next steps before the April 1 DWR submission deadline. Several directors requested additional staff and consultant review; Director Sanond asked staff to schedule a special meeting if needed to consider any last‑minute adjustments prior to filing. Heather said spring groundwater level monitoring is planned for mid‑March and that the authority will continue data collection in water year 2026.
Public commenters raised concerns about why the reported pumping remains high despite reported reductions by large agricultural operators and the water district’s allocation changes. Heather and staff responded that agricultural pumping and transient pool allocations continue to contribute to overall pumping and that additional declines are expected as transient pools are exhausted and consolidation projects come online.
The board moved to receive and file the 2025 annual report. The motion passed on the authority’s recorded vote; the transcript records that the water district separately recorded a 'no' vote.
