Wednesday Top of the Scroll: California cracks down on a second farm region for groundwater pumping
As California’s groundwater supplies face a furious decline, state regulators on Tuesday assumed oversight of pumping in a farm region accused of taking too much water from the ground. The state’s crackdown on the Tule subbasin in the southern San Joaquin Valley marks increasing enforcement of California’s landmark groundwater law, which seeks to shore up declining aquifers – despite a few legal hiccups recently. In the Tule subbasin, where groundwater levels have dropped an average of 2 feet a year because of overpumping, most water users will be required to install meters on pumps, report groundwater draws and pay pumping fees as a result of the state intervention. If the situation doesn’t improve, the state could set hard limits on pumping.
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