Focus
State puts second San Joaquin Valley groundwater basin on probation, with two exceptions
SJV Water – September 17
Farmers in southern Tulare County will face greater scrutiny for groundwater pumping after the state placed the region on probation following a lengthy hearing in Sacramento on Tuesday. Probation is the first step toward a potential state pumping takeover if problems cannot be remedied within a year. During that time, most farmers will have to meter and register their wells, pay additional fees per acre foot pumped, and begin reporting extractions by Feb. 1, 2026. State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) members acknowledged a new groundwater plan submitted by water managers in August had made great strides in many areas, but remained concerned about subsidence, or land sinking, in the area. Calling the situation a “crisis,” SWRCB members voted unanimously to put the Tule groundwater subbasin on probation based on a staff report that showed subsidence continues to plague the region, causing ongoing damage to the vital Friant-Kern Canal. However, the SWRCB voted to exempt two groundwater sustainability agencies (GSAs) from pumping reporting requirements and fees, and left the door open for two other GSAs to possibly be exempted in 60 days.
News
State suffers big setback in water lawsuit filed by growers
CalMatters – September 16
In a scathing ruling, a Superior Court judge lambasted state water officials for going too far and invoking “underground regulations” when they penalized Kings County water managers for failing to protect overpumped groundwater in the San Joaquin Valley. Kings County Superior Court Judge Kathy Ciuffini last week granted a preliminary injunction that bars the State Water Resources Control Board from requiring growers to pay fees and report how much water they pump from the county’s severely overdrawn aquifers. The injunction could last through a trial, which has not yet been scheduled.
EPA says it has no obligation to regulate PFAS in biosolids in federal lawsuit
WasteDive – September 16
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is pushing to dismiss a lawsuit that would compel the agency to identify and regulate several polyfluouroalkyl (PFAS) compounds in sewage sludge under its Clean Water Act authority, per a filing from the federal case last week. The lawsuit, filed by a group of farmers and ranchers in Texas in June, alleges that their health, livestock, and land have been substantially harmed by the spreading of sludge contaminated with PFAS. The use of sludge, known in the industry as biosolids, as a fertilizer on agricultural lands has been a common practice in the U.S. for decades.
After more than a decade in limbo, San Diego County has a new climate plan
The San Diego Union-Tribune – September 14
After more than a decade of challenges, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors approved a new climate action plan on Wednesday. The climate action plan will be used as a blueprint for reducing greenhouse gas emissions at county facilities and in unincorporated areas to reach net-zero emissions by 2045. The new document includes 70 action items aiming to reduce emissions across five sectors — energy, water and wastewater, solid waste, the built environment and transportation, and agriculture and conservation. Among the top changes from previous iterations of the plan is a commitment to shift to electric-powered buildings in county jurisdictions, as well as a new program with San Diego Community Power that aims to achieve 90 percent renewable energy for unincorporated areas by 2030.
San Francisco is trying to restore the river it drinks from — but environmentalists say it’s not enough
San Francisco Chronicle – September 13
San Francisco and the Turlock and Modesto irrigation districts have long relied on the Tuolumne River for water supplies, and they have often fought over who gets what. Now the three parties are working in tandem to revive the river’s struggling salmon population, which is close to being wiped out in large part because of the water draws. The restoration of 7.5 acres of historical spawning grounds is the first of many fish projects that the water suppliers have committed to undertake. The parties expect to spend $80 million on the river through the end of the decade on efforts including the restoration of flood plains to expand salmon rearing habitat and possibly the removal of nonnative striped bass, which prey on the young fish and have been partly blamed for their decline.
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