California acts to halt groundwater overpumping in San Joaquin Valley

Kings County growers will face millions of dollars in fees and a mandate to report groundwater pumping after California officials voted unanimously Tuesday to put local agencies on probation for failing to protect the region's underground water supply.

The unprecedented decision is a first step that could eventually lead to the state wresting control of a groundwater basin in a severely depleted part of the San Joaquin Valley.

Before issuing the probation order, the State Water Resources Control Board had repeatedly warned five groundwater agencies in Kings County that their management plan for the Tulare Lake basin is seriously deficient, failing to rein in the dried-up wells, contaminated water and sinking earth worsened by overpumping.

Located in the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley, the Tulare Lake basin is the main source of drinking and irrigation water for 146,000 residents and the agriculture that sustains Kings County's economy. Five other overdrafted San Joaquin Valley basins also may face probation.

Small farmers spoke up during the marathon, 9-hour hearing, saying that the state fees — on top of fees proposed by local agencies — could drive them out of business.

“If the family farms go under, we will have a crisis on our hands,” said Julie Freitas, a Lemoore resident from a multi-generational farming family who traveled to Sacramento to speak to the board. “Most family farms cannot absorb the added cost.”

The state's pumping fees of $20 per acre foot alone could reach almost $10 million a year in Kings County, according to a CalMatters analysis based on average groundwater use reported between 2015 and 2022. The state also can levy an annual fee of $300 per well, and heavy water users may have to install meters on their wells.

State water board Chair E. Joaquin Esquivel acknowledged the pain and frustration that small farmers expressed at the hearing.

“The goal here is to not be punitive in the least, and simply see probation as a step within a process,” he said. The purpose of the fees, he said, is “not to punish those basins — although I know it can feel that way — but to pay for the additional workload.”

Several small farmers said they've been excluded from the local planning process and placed the blame for the overdraft on the region's large agricultural companies.

“While I will admit that the small acre farm has certainly played a part in the water crisis, I do not believe that it has been the major culprit,” Jacky Lowe, a small grower near Hanford, told the board. “I think we have to look now at the large corporate farms in Kings County that have for decades changed the natural pattern of waterways, built dams to divert water for their use, and drained areas that historically retained excess water in wet years.”

Agricultural giants J.G. Boswell Co. and Sandridge Partners, controlled by Bay Area developer John Vidovich, have a powerful influence on groundwater policies in Kings County, with representatives on at least three of the five boards managing the basin.

Representatives of the local agencies told the board an updated plan is about 90% complete. Two — including the manager of an agency chaired by Vidovich — tried but failed to convince the board to exempt them from probation under a “good actor” provision because of measures they've already taken to reach sustainability.

Yet in the decade since the state enacted its landmark groundwater act, Kings County has shown little change in its management of groundwater. Though field crop acreage has decreased, water-intensive fruit and nut crops have increased. Meanwhile, roughly the same amount of groundwater was pumped in 2022 as in 2015, varying from year to year. New irrigation wells have been drilled even as household wells go dry.

State water officials said under the deficient local plan, several hundred household wells could go dry, many would struggle with worsening water contamination and the ground would keep sinking.

“I want to ensure my nephews and nieces never lose access to water in their homes, and their water is always potable and safe,” Nataly Escobedo Garcia, policy coordinator for the nonprofit group Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability, told the board.

Though state officials issued their warnings six months ago, the local agencies failed to update their plan after a process marked by infighting. Now if they don't improve it within a year, state officials can begin the process of taking over management of the basin.

California enacted the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act 10 years ago to regulate the state's precious groundwater stores during a prolonged drought, when growers ramped up pumping and thousands of household wells across the San Joaquin Valley went dry.

The law requires local agencies managing critically overdrafted basins to develop plans to prevent the consequences of overpumping by 2040. Included are dry wells, contaminated supplies and sinking land that can damage canals, roads, buildings and levees.