Open AccessWater Budget Development for SGMA Compliance, Case Study: Ukiah Valley Groundwater Basin
Author(s) -
Marquez Maritza Flores,
SandovalSolis Samuel,
DeVicentis Alyssa J.,
Partida Jose Pablo Ortiz,
Goharian Erfan,
Britos Bruno R.,
Jordan Pablo T. Silva,
McGourty Glenn T.,
Lewis David J.,
Elkins Rachel B.,
Harper John M.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
journal of contemporary water research and education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1936-704X
pISSN - 1936-7031
DOI - 10.1111/j.1936-704x.2017.03263.x
Subject(s) - groundwater , water resource management , structural basin , environmental science , hydrology (agriculture) , sustainability , drainage basin , geology , geography , ecology , paleontology , geotechnical engineering , cartography , biology
The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) is the first comprehensive legislative effort to reform groundwater management in the state of California after years of uncoordinated and voluntary governance of this resource. The objective of this study is to a) describe the SGMA in California, b) describe a method for estimating a water budget, and c) present the implementation of this method for the Ukiah Valley Groundwater Basin (UVGB). An estimated water budget, done on a monthly time step from 1991 to 2015, was developed in order to characterize the UVGB. Results suggest that the groundwater basin is not in overdraft, and that a portion of the Russian River is a gaining river (approximately 18,952 AF/y) from November to June, and a losing river (approximately 393 AF/y) from July to October. Furthermore, lateral groundwater movement is identified through the groundwater mass balance. Based on previous work and the results of this study, the observed later groundwater losses signify connectivity between the UVGB and the Sanel Valley Groundwater Basin (SVGB). Local groundwater managers and users can use this information to inform proposed action plans and monitoring protocols that will allow them to achieve and maintain groundwater sustainability in the UVGB by the year 2040.