Amended
IN
Assembly
September 01, 2023 |
Amended
IN
Assembly
July 12, 2023 |
Amended
IN
Assembly
June 30, 2023 |
Amended
IN
Senate
May 18, 2023 |
Amended
IN
Senate
April 12, 2023 |
Amended
IN
Senate
March 20, 2023 |
Introduced by Senator Ashby (Principal coauthor: Senator Caballero) (Coauthor: Assembly Member Schiavo) |
February 16, 2023 |
This bill would require a portion of the hearings related to the California Water Plan to be in regions of the state that have been impacted the most by drought, including, but not limited
to, communities with minority populations, communities with low-income populations, agricultural communities, and water disparate communities.
The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a)California’s water usage is highly reliant on capturing the snow melt from the snowpack in the Sierra Nevada Region on an annual basis. That water is stored
in lakes and reservoirs and is then transported throughout the state for environmental, residential, commercial, and agricultural use when needed.
(b)In California’s coastal watersheds, groundwater is a significant contributor to streamflows that support coastal communities and ecosystems.
(c)California has the most
intricate and elaborate system of water conveyance in the world.
(d)The State Water Project and the Central Valley Project are of critical importance to statewide water supply and provide water for approximately 30,000,000 people and nearly 4,000,000 acres of agricultural land.
(e)Most
California cities and farms as we know them today would not exist without the State Water Project and the Central Valley Project.
(f)Climate change is resulting in a snowpack that is no longer
reliable. Instead, California is experiencing infrequent storm events and long periods of drought. California’s precipitation is changing from seasonal snow in the Sierra Nevada Region to periods of substantial rainfall, like those from atmospheric rivers.
(g)Climate change is a serious
threat to the State Water Project and the Central Valley Project, and by extension, to our statewide water supply. These systems are projected to lose 10 percent of their water supplies by 2040. This would constitute a loss of 6,000,000 to 9,000,000 acre-feet of water annually, equivalent to the amount of water used to irrigate approximately 20 percent of all agricultural land in the state, or that is used by all of the residents, businesses, schools, parks, and sports fields in the state.
(h)One necessary solution that can meet the scale of
the problem is groundwater recharge.
(i)The Department of Water Resources describes a statewide
capacity in groundwater basins in the range of 1,000,000,000 acre-feet, or approximately 20 times the total surface water storage capacity statewide.
(j)According to the Department of Water Resources, there is the potential for over 13,000,000 acre-feet of groundwater recharge in any given wet year, and more than 2,500,000 acre-feet of
the currently available existing infrastructure is underutilized.
(k) Groundwater recharge has the greatest capacity to meet the scale of this challenge and is also the lowest cost option per acre-foot.
(l)Groundwater recharge can be environmentally friendly. Its utilization can provide benefits, including, but not limited to, water supply, flood control, and improved environmental conditions for rivers, wetlands, and habitats. For example, in a recent analysis of
a central valley river, it was estimated that full implementation of groundwater recharge projects could simultaneously address 63 percent of water supply shortages and provide a 65-percent reduction in flood risk. Additionally, other groundwater recharge projects would prioritize storage in reservoirs, minimizing demand for surface water in dry conditions when that water is most valuable for environmental flows.
(m)California must make a historic change in how water is provided for environmental, residential, commercial, and agricultural use when needed. Enhancing the ability to recharge groundwater is essential for current and future water management that is consistent with present-day values of equity and environmental stewardship. As the lowest cost option to meet the scale of water supply needs, groundwater recharge can best balanceequity challenges faced between affordability and access.
(n)California must prioritize significantly increasing the recharge of groundwater by 2035 in order to avoid the severe impacts on water supplies coming by 2040.
(5)The plan shall include best practices identified by the department, including, but not limited to, both of the following:
(A)Analysis regarding where groundwater recharge will be effective and protective of access to safe drinking water consistent with Section 106.3.
(B)Mapping that identifies areas where recharge is unlikely to degrade groundwater quality based on consideration of the quality and composition of the source water, the qualities of the soil upon which recharge will occur, and the proximity to drinking water wells.
(b)The department shall include the groundwater recharge action plan as a part of the 2028 update to The California Water Plan. Commencing with the 2033 update, the department, as a part of updating The California Water Plan every five years pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 10004, shall update the groundwater recharge action plan.
(c) The department shall establish a target for additional groundwater recharge capacity creation, to be used for planning purposes only. The target shall be determined with consideration for other beneficial or environmental uses of water and water goals.
(d)
(e)
(a)The department or, at the department’s request, the California Water Commission, shall conduct a series of hearings with interested persons, organizations, local, state, and federal agencies, and representatives of the diverse geographical areas and interests of the state.
(b)The department, commencing on January 1, 2024, for purposes of Section 10004.7, shall conduct a portion of the hearings in regions of the state that have been impacted the most by drought, including, but not limited to, communities with minority populations, communities with low-income populations, agricultural communities, and water disparate
communities.