Kern County Subbasin Staff Review of 2025 Draft of Groundwater Sustainability Plans

California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) | September 5th, 2025

The Kern County Subbasin (subbasin or basin) is a critically overdrafted subbasin in the southern portion of the San Joaquin Valley with an area of about 1.78 million acr

The Kern County Subbasin (subbasin or basin) is a critically overdrafted subbasin in the southern portion of the San Joaquin Valley with an area of about 1.78 million acres. The subbasin is currently managed by 20 GSAs. DWR determined the subbasin’s 2022 GSPs were inadequate and referred the subbasin to the State Water Board in March 2023, which initiated the state intervention process. The subbasin GSAs submitted their revised, adopted GSPs to the Board in December 2024, and Board staff determined that these updated GSPs did not resolve all the deficiencies identified by staff in the previous GSPs. On February 20, 2025, the State Water Board held a hearing to determine whether to designate the subbasin as probationary. In recognition of the substantial progress the subbasin made, the Board continued the hearing to September 17, 2025, giving the GSAs additional time to resolve the remaining deficiencies and directing the GSAs to submit revised draft GSPs to the Board by June 20, 2025 for review. On June 20, 2025, the GSAs submitted seven amended draft GSPs to the Board (2025 Draft GSPs). Board staff reviewed the 2025 Draft GSPs and conclude that the GSAs substantially, though not completely, address the deficiencies identified in the previous GSPs. Staff recommends returning the subbasin to DWR for review of the updated GSPs pursuant to Water Code section 10733.4 if the GSAs resolve three of the remaining issues: (1) providing an adequate mitigation program for drinking water wells impacted by any constituent for which a minimum threshold is established in the GSPs, including 1,2,3-TCP, where groundwater management activities cause concentrations to exceed those minimum thresholds; (2) providing an adequate mitigation program for state small water system wells (or domestic wells with more than four service connections) impacted by groundwater management activities; and (3) eliminating the Kern Non-Districted Land Authority GSA Joint Exercise of Powers Agreement May 2026 sunset provision, which would result in unmanaged areas of the subbasin that are a potential basis for state intervention.

Kern Groundwater Authority Groundwater Sustainability Plan

Kern Groundwater Authority | January 30th, 2020

Kern Groundwater Authority Groundwater Sustainability Plan (Amended)

Kern Groundwater Authority | July 27th, 2022

The Kern Groundwater Authority (KGA) Groundwater Sustainability Agency (GSA) covers approximately 1.2 million acres of the Kern County Subbasin’s (Subbasin) approximate

The Kern Groundwater Authority (KGA) Groundwater Sustainability Agency (GSA) covers approximately 1.2 million acres of the Kern County Subbasin’s (Subbasin) approximate 1.8 million acres, as defined by the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) Bulletin 118 (see Figure E-1). DWR has identified the Kern Subbasin as a “critically overdrafted basin.” The Kern Groundwater Authority includes 12 member entities made up of water districts/agencies, groundwater banking projects, and organized nondistricted lands. The 12 member entities also constitute the KGA Board, with one representative from each member entity. Its boundary stretches along the northwest, northeast, and southern parts of the Subbasin. The KGA was formed for the purpose of:  Coordinating groundwater management programs and activities;  Identifying and addressing issues pertaining to sustainable groundwater management;  Establishing a framework for local groundwater management; and  Coordinating with other GSAs in the Subbasin Due to size, only a portion of this GSP has been uploaded. For the full file, follow "get document" link to download it at DWR

Kern River Groundwater Sustainability Agency Groundwater Sustainability Plan

Kern River Groundwater Sustainability Agency (KRGSA) | December 5th, 2019

Kings River East GSA Groundwater Sustainability Plan

Kings River East Groundwater Sustainability Agency (KREGSA) | December 13th, 2019

Kings River East GSA Groundwater Sustainability Plan (Revised)

Kings River East Groundwater Sustainability Agency (KREGSA) | July 5th, 2022

Klamath Basin Settlement Agreements

Congressional Research Service (CRS) | October 21st, 2015

The Klamath River Basin on the California-Oregon border is a focal point for local and national discussions on water allocation and species protection. Previously, water

The Klamath River Basin on the California-Oregon border is a focal point for local and national discussions on water allocation and species protection. Previously, water and species management issues have exacerbated competition and generated conflict among several interests—farmers; Indian tribes; commercial and sport fishermen; federal water project and wildlife refuge managers; environmental groups; hydropower facility operators; and state, local, and tribal governments. Drought conditions and a call for water by senior water rights holders in 2013 have again brought these issues to the forefront. In 2010, the Secretary of the Interior and the governors of Oregon and California, along with multiple interest groups, announced the results of a multiyear negotiation process to resolve long-standing issues in the basin: two interrelated agreements, supported by the federal government and signed by the two states and numerous other parties. These agreements, known as the Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement (KBRA) and the Klamath Hydroelectric Settlement Agreement (KHSA), together aim to provide for water deliveries to irrigators and wildlife refuges, fish habitat restoration, and numerous other related actions. Generally, the KBRA provides for actions intended to restore Klamath fisheries and for assurances for water deliveries to wildlife refuges and federal project irrigators under certain circumstances, among other things. The KHSA lays out a process that could lead to the removal of four privately owned dams on the Klamath River. This dam removal would be one of the largest and most complex projects of its kind ever undertaken. Some parts of the Klamath agreements are being carried out under existing authorities. Studies to inform a determination on dam removal under the KHSA by the Secretary of the Interior are complete, and some restoration actions have been initiated. However, congressional authorization is required for the most significant components of the agreements to be implemented. The KBRA and KHSA did not address all outstanding issues in the basin. A water rights adjudication by the state of Oregon (in progress since the 1970s) is ongoing. In 2013, the adjudication reaffirmed “time immemorial” tribal water rights in the upper part of the Klamath Basin, confirming that tribal water rights are senior to those of other water rights holders. This resulted in a “call” on water rights (i.e., notice by senior water rights holders that their demands exceed available flows), and led to reductions to water supplies for some junior users during the low water year of 2013. To resolve these issues and prevent such a scenario from occurring again, a separate settlement agreement (the Upper Klamath Basin Settlement Agreement) was negotiated by stakeholders and finalized in April 2014. To be implemented, the agreement would need to be authorized along with the KBRA and KHSA. The KBRA and KHSA were originally set to expire in 2012 if no authorizing legislation was enacted, but they have since been extended (most recently through 2015). Parties may also withdraw individually from the agreements, and several parties initiated this process of withdrawal. In the 114th Congress, S. 133 would authorize the Klamath agreements, including a suite of new federal actions that have received support from disparate parties and are required for the agreements to be implemented. Previous legislation in the 113th Congress (S. 2379) was ordered to be reported out of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on November 13, 2014.

LA Sustainable Water Project: Los Angeles City-Wide Overview

University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) | February 1st, 2018

This report assesses the potential to improve water quality standards while integrating complementary One Water Management practices that can increase potential local wat

This report assesses the potential to improve water quality standards while integrating complementary One Water Management practices that can increase potential local water supplies for the City of Los Angeles (the City).  This final report summarizes the current practices and future opportunities at the City-owned Water Reclamation Plants and underlying groundwater basins and highlights the importance of considering all aspects of integrated water management even when dealing with water quality or supply-focused projects. Implementing watershed-scale best management practice programs to meet stormwater permit requirements will significantly improve water quality in all watersheds.  However, additional mechanisms such as increasing Low Impact Development implementation and comprehensive source tracking and source control mechanisms will be required to potentially eliminate water quality exceedances.  There are multiple efforts occurring in the City and the region to increase the recharge of recycled water into the ground and the volumes of remediated groundwater extracted. This research further assessed the impacts of potential water supply portfolios, with greater volumes of locally-supplied water, on GHG emissions and energy needs of supplying LA’s water.  Conservation will be another powerful tool to decrease our dependence on imported water.  This research demonstrates the complex interrelationships between all aspects of urban water management, including, for example, stormwater management and local water supply.

LA Sustainable Water Project: Los Angeles River Watershed

University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) | September 1st, 2017

The LA Sustainable Water Project: Los Angeles River Watershed report explores the potential to improve water quality standards while integrating complementary One Water M

The LA Sustainable Water Project: Los Angeles River Watershed report explores the potential to improve water quality standards while integrating complementary One Water Management practices that can increase potential local water supplies for the City of Los Angeles (the City) in the highly urbanized Los Angeles River (LAR) watershed.To assess the integrated water landscape in this watershed, the report also looks at current practices and future opportunities at the Donald C Tillman, LA Glendale, and Burbank Water Reclamation Plants (WRPs) and in the underlying Upper LA River Area (ULARA) adjudicated groundwater basins. Implementing watershed-scale best management practice programs to meet stormwater permit requirements will significantly improve water quality. However, additional mechanisms such as increasing Low Impact Development implementation and comprehensive source tracking and source control mechanisms will be required to potentially eliminate water quality exceedances. The 3 WRPs in the watershed currently discharge more than 30 million gallons per day of treated wastewater into the River; an increased focus on increasing local water supply could lead to a reduction in these discharges. The combination of increased stormwater capture and increased use of recycled water in the LAR watershed could lead to lower flows in the LAR and impact habitat and recreational uses; further study is needed to characterize potential impacts and identify optimal flows for the future of the LAR. The City is leading efforts in ULARA to increase the recharge of recycled water into theground by 30,000 acre feet per year and increase the volumes of remediated groundwater extracted by around 120,000 acre feet per year. This research demonstrates the complex interrelationships between all aspects of urban water management, including stormwater management and local water supply.

Land subsidence in the San Joaquin Valley, California, USA, 2007–2014

Copernicus Publications | November 12th, 2015