Truckee Basin Study Basin Study Report

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) | August 8th, 2015

The Truckee River Basin (Basin) provides a compelling demonstration for how changes in demands and/or a region’s climate could influence both natural and human water us

The Truckee River Basin (Basin) provides a compelling demonstration for how changes in demands and/or a region’s climate could influence both natural and human water uses. Packed into this relatively small Basin is every form of water use and every type of water user that exists in the Western United States, including: tribal lands and trusts; irrigated agriculture; municipalities and industry; mining and geothermal energy exploration; Federal water projects; hydropower generation; lake, stream, and reservoir recreation; and restoration efforts for diminished wetlands and endangered aquatic species. Correspondingly, the diversity of water uses within its borders has made the Basin home to every type of water resources conflict. Despite this natural conflict, communities in the Basin have actively managed and adapted to water scarcity for as long as the arid region has been inhabited. Management activities include a number of massive water resource facilities, built through both Federal and local investment over the past century-and-a-half. In parallel with the construction of these facilities, regulations to govern their use have been promulgated in response to demands and to provide the flexibility to deal with highly variable weather patterns. Thus, like many basins in the West, water management practices, including diversion regulations, have been developed through a century of infrastructure improvements followed by decades of litigation. But unlike most basins, the closed hydrologic condition of the Basin creates a zero-sum game for water. The Truckee River has never had surplus water: each drop from its headwaters at Lake Tahoe to its terminus at Pyramid Lake serves important human uses and ecological functions. As a result, even small changes in future conditions (e.g., increases in demand or changes in climate) are perceptible and potentially contentious.

Truckee River Operating Agreement

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) | September 6th, 2008

Click here for USBR home page for the agreement and related documents.

Click here for USBR home page for the agreement and related documents.

Tulare Lake Basin Hydrology and Hydrography: A Summary of the Movement of Water and Aquatic Species

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) | April 12th, 2007

This report provides a summary of the historic and current hydrology of the Tulare Lake Basin (Basin) and describes past, present and potentiai future movement of water o

This report provides a summary of the historic and current hydrology of the Tulare Lake Basin (Basin) and describes past, present and potentiai future movement of water out of the Basin, and potential movement of bioiogical organisms and toxicants within and outside of the Basin. This study was initiated at the request of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA).

Tulare Lake Fact Sheet

California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) | October 12th, 2023

Tulare Lake Hydrologic Region Groundwater Update

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | April 1st, 2015

The primary goal of the Tulare Lake Hydrologic Region (Tulare Lake region) groundwater update is to expand information about region-specific groundwater conditions for Ca

The primary goal of the Tulare Lake Hydrologic Region (Tulare Lake region) groundwater update is to expand information about region-specific groundwater conditions for California Water Plan Update 2013, and to guide more informed groundwater management actions and policies. A second goal is to steadily improve the quality of groundwater information in future California Water Plan (CWP) updates to a level that will enable regional water management groups (RWMGs) to accurately evaluate their groundwater resources and implement management strategies that can meet local and regional water resource objectives within the context of broader statewide objectives. The final goal is to identify data gaps and groundwater management challenges meant to serve as guideposts for prioritizing future data collection and funding opportunities relevant to the region. This regional groundwater update is not intended to provide a comprehensive and detailed examination of local groundwater conditions, or be a substitute for local studies and analysis. However, where information is readily available, the update does report some aspects of the regional groundwater conditions in greater detail.

Tulare Lake Subbasin Groundwater Sustainability Plan

Kings County Farm Bureau | January 29th, 2020

Tulare Lake Subbasin Groundwater Sustainability Plan -- Amended

Mid-Kings River Groundwater Sustainability Agency | July 26th, 2022

The Tulare Lake Subbasin submitted a single GSP in January 2020 to the Department of Water Resources (DWR). DWR was required to determine whether the GSP conformed to the

The Tulare Lake Subbasin submitted a single GSP in January 2020 to the Department of Water Resources (DWR). DWR was required to determine whether the GSP conformed to the specific requirements of SGMA. In a letter dated January 28, 2022, DWR determined that that the GSP is incomplete. DWR stated that the GSP was considered incomplete as it “does not define undesirable results or set sustainable management criteria for groundwater levels, subsidence, and water quality in the manner consistent with SGMA and the GSP regulations.” Upon receiving the incomplete determination, the Subbasin had 180 days to address the identified deficiencies and submit a revised GSP by July 27, 2022. The GSAs are submitting this 2022 Amended GSP to address the three deficiencies outlined in the determination letter. The 2022 Amended GSP consists of clean and redline strike out versions of the 2020 GSP and the attached 2022 GSP Addendum. The 2022 GSP Addendum was prepared to specifically address the incomplete determination letter from DWR. Sections of this document have been edited since the original submittal in 2020 and direct the reader to the Addendum for further details. Due to size, this file has been divided. Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6

Tulare Lake Subbasin Probationary Hearing Draft Report

California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) | October 12th, 2023

The State Water Board recognizes that significant efforts were made by local public agencies in the Tulare Lake Subbasin since the passage of SGMA to form groundwater sus

The State Water Board recognizes that significant efforts were made by local public agencies in the Tulare Lake Subbasin since the passage of SGMA to form groundwater sustainability agencies (GSAs) and then develop detailed technical and other information supporting the adoption and implementation of a groundwater sustainability plan (GSP) for the subbasin. Despite those efforts, in January of 2022, DWR reviewed the GSP to determine if it met SGMA’s requirements and found it to be incomplete. Following revisions made by the GSAs in the subbasin, DWR reevaluated the GSP in March of 2023, determined it to be inadequate, and referred the subbasin to the State Water Board, as required by SGMA. Consistent with SGMA, the State Water Board may now consider whether to designate the Tulare Lake Subbasin as a “probationary basin,” a term that is used in SGMA to describe the first stage of state intervention. Click here for Appendix to the report.

Tulare Lake Subbasin Probationary Hearing Draft Staff Report, Appendix A Summary Table of Proposed Deficiencies and Potential Actions to Address Deficiencies

California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) | October 12th, 2023

Click here to see the main related draft report.

Click here to see the main related draft report.

Tulare Lake Subbasin Probationary Hearing Final Staff Report

California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB)nia | March 29th, 2024

State Water Board staff have identified specific deficiencies in the Tulare Lake Subbasin 2022 GSP and have outlined potential corrective actions to address those specifi

State Water Board staff have identified specific deficiencies in the Tulare Lake Subbasin 2022 GSP and have outlined potential corrective actions to address those specific deficiencies. The Final Staff Report also incorporates deficiencies identified by DWR’s determination. Deficiencies that have been identified within the GSP relate to: * Chronic lowering of groundwater levels with insufficient management criteria. * Continued land subsidence (sinking). * Further degradation of groundwater quality.