Groundwater
Advisory Committees and Scott Valley:
In 1997, the Glenn
County Board of Supervisors established the Glenn County Water Advisory Committee (GCWAC.)
It was established to answer questions about safe groundwater yield and to help resolve
conflicts between users of groundwater. As a result of committee and public input, in
2000, Glenn County adopted a Groundwater Management Plan (GMP) establishing “Basin
Management Objectives” (BMOs) or action trigger points to protect minimum groundwater
levels, minimum water quality and prevent subsidence. (Triggers might call for groundwater
recharge and replenishment activities.) In 2005, a public presentation on the GCWAC was
given in Scott Valley by the former Glenn County Agricultural Commissioner. Since that
time, the Glenn County model has been used as an example of a way to maintain local
control over groundwater resources
In 2005, the Siskiyou Resource
Conservation District (RCD,) Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS,) Scott River
Watershed Council (SRWC,) U.C. Extension Service, Siskiyou County and many others designed
a voluntary 20 year groundwater study strategy (“static well study.”) It separated sections of Scott Valley into a honeycomb
grid. Landowner's volunteered nonproduction wells in each cell to measure static water
levels. (The study does not measure the influence of pumping on well levels.) The study
shows the watersheds response seasonally and over time to precipitation, how water travels
through the soil to the rivers and how the groundwater is recharged. The data resides with
UC Davis and is reported in the aggregate.
The Scott River is “303(d)
listed” for water temperatures that exceed tolerances for salmonids. Preliminary
studies of the surface water of the Scott River appear to indicate that subsurface flows
into the river may provide a cooling effect. In addition, groundwater may play a role in
the successful establishment of riparian vegetation for shade. In 2006, the State Water
Resources Control Board (SWRCB) approved the TMDL (water quality pollutant Total Maximum
Daily Load) Action Plan for the Scott River. It was requested that Siskiyou County and
others develop a study plan to determine the connection between groundwater and surface
water, answer water temperature related questions and identify conflicts and management
solutions. Dr. Thomas Harter from U.C. Davis completed the study plan. It was approved by
the Siskiyou RCD and the County and was submitted to the SWRCB. http://groundwater.ucdavis.edu/ScottValley.htm
Subsequently, grant funding has been acquired for Ryan Hines (U.C. Davis) to proceed with
the collection of data and the development and refinement of a model of the Scott River
groundwater basin.
The State of California does not
currently regulate the use of groundwater. There have been several legislative bills to
require individual well metering and reporting, but these have been vetoed by the
Governor. There are many local jurisdictions, like Glenn County, that are now managing
groundwater use. Even Siskiyou County currently has a groundwater ordinance in place. It
limits the export of groundwater out of its basin of origin to only those amounts that can
be shown are surplus to local need. In addition, a portion of the riparian area along Scott
River was included in the Scott River water adjudication as “supporting
underflow and interconnected ground water.”
Currently, the Board is considering
an ordinance that would allow for the creation of a Groundwater Advisory Committee in each
groundwater basin in the County. This would be done at the request of local community
members. Each Committee would be created by resolution. The Board of Supervisors will
fully retain its regulatory jurisdiction. The Committee would not have any regulatory
authority. It could assist in the collection of data, the review of studies, the
establishment of objectives and the creation of recommendations to the Board of
Supervisors for voluntary management strategies. It would be a conduit for regional
knowledge and public input. (It should be
noted that many areas of the County have ongoing groundwater conflicts, not just Scott Valley.)
The question arises – Why
might we need a Groundwater Advisory Committee in Scott Valley? I recently read a quote
that I found stated the reason very well: “The best way to predict the future is to
invent it.” (Alan Kay) There is a foreseeable likelihood that the state legislature
or agencies will step forward and: (1) regulate groundwater use under a permit; (2)
require well metering; (3) require groundwater
users to show that their use does not hurt other beneficial uses under the TMDL; or (4) dictate and enforce groundwater management
plans written by the State agencies. On the other hand, if Scott Valley folks are involved
in the studies and write their own voluntary groundwater management plan, then there may
be a better opportunity for protecting private property rights and maintaining local
control over groundwater use.
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