REPORT TO THE CITY COUNCIL
April 30, 2015
FROM: THOMAS C. ESQUEDA, Director
Department of Public Utilities
SUBJECT
Title
Approve the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for Implementation of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) in the Kings Subbasin between the Kings River Conservation District (KRCD), Alta Irrigation District, Consolidated Irrigation District, Fresno Irrigation District, County of Fresno, County of Tulare, City of Clovis and City of Fresno
Body
RECOMMENDATION
The Administration recommends that the Fresno City Council approve the SGMA MOU.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City of Fresno and the above-mentioned agencies desire to enter into an MOU to facilitate a response to the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), which was passed September 14, 2014. The SGMA recognizes that excessive groundwater extraction causes numerous challenges, and requires agencies in high and medium-priority groundwater basins to take specific actions to correct overdraft on an expedited timeline. This MOU is intended to allow the City of Fresno to enter into discussions with other public agencies in the Kings Subbasin to review and evaluate water management opportunities. The MOU is non-binding upon the City. The Administration recommends that Council approve the SGMA MOU.
BACKGROUND
On September 14, 2014, the Governor of California signed into law three bills that are collectively referred to as the SGMA. The SGMA recognizes that excessive groundwater extraction causes overdraft, failed wells, deteriorated water quality, environmental damage, and irreversible land subsidence - all of which exist in the City of Fresno. In January 2015, the State Department of Water Resources (DWR) ranked the San Joaquin Valley Groundwater Basin and the Kings Subbasin, over which the City of Fresno is located, as the 17th most overdrafted groundwater basin in California out of 515 groundwater basins. Accordingly, the San Joaquin Valley Groundwater Basin is a high-priority groundwater basin, and the SGMA requires corrective action.
The SGMA explicitly states that groundwater resources are most effectively managed at the local or regional level and that local and regional agencies require the necessary support and authority to effectively and sustainably manage groundwater basins and subbasins. Pursuant to the SGMA, any local agency (or group of local agencies) may serve as the Groundwater Sustainability Agency (GSA) for all, or a portion of, the groundwater basin in which it is located. To become a GSA, a local agency files a Notice of Intent, and follows specified procedural steps specified in the SGMA. Once the GSA is designated for all, or a portion of, a groundwater basin, the GSA is responsible for preparing a Groundwater Sustainability Plan (GSP). A GSP may be any one of the following:
1. A single plan covering the entire basin developed and implemented by one groundwater sustainability agency.
2. A single plan covering the entire basin developed and implemented by multiple groundwater sustainability agencies.
3. Multiple plans implemented by multiple groundwater sustainability agencies and coordinated pursuant to a single coordination agreement that covers the entire basin.
The Administration has yet to recommend whether the City of Fresno should serve as the GSA for the City of Fresno's municipal corporate limits and sphere of influence, or whether the City should enter into a Joint Powers Agency (JPA) that would include other public agencies and cover a larger portion of the Kings Subbasin. Pursuant to the SGMA, the City of Fresno and other public agencies must comply with the following schedule of events:
1. By January 1, 2017, the City - if it so desires - shall submit an alternative GSP pursuant to the SGMA;
2. By June 30, 2017, a GSA must be designated for the City of Fresno service area; and
3. By January 31, 2020, all basins designated as high- or medium-priority basins by the State shall be managed under a GSP.
The MOU presented in this Agenda Item is intended to allow the City of Fresno to enter into discussions with other public agencies in the Kings Subbasin to review and evaluate the features, benefits, advantages and disadvantages of (1) collaborating with other agencies, or (2) proceeding independently to comply with the requirements of the SGMA. Key criteria in evaluating the range of options available to the City will include, but not be limited to, capital and operating costs, water supply reliability and resiliency, institutional coordination requirements, regulatory compliance and reporting requirements, and degree of effectiveness in correcting groundwater contamination and groundwater overdraft conditions in the City of Fresno. The City's participation the MOU provides the best opportunity to fully understand and evaluate the range of options available, and to make the most informed decision possible for the City's ratepayers. The MOU is non-binding upon the City.
The Administration recommends that Council approve the SGMA MOU.
ENVIRONMENTAL FINDINGS
This is not a "project" for the purposes of CEQA pursuant to CEQA Guidelines ยง 15378(b)(5), as it is an administrative action that will not result in direct or indirect physical changes to the environment.
LOCAL PREFERENCE
Local preference was not considered because approving the SGMA MOU does not include a bid or award of a construction or services contract.
FISCAL IMPACT
As this is an enterprise operation, there is no impact to the General Fund.
Attachment: SGMA MOU