New Groundwater Monitor Wells to be Installed by SVBGSA by Salinas Valley Basin Groundwater Sustainability Agency Nov 9, 2023 Member Submitted News SALINAS — The Salinas Valley Basin Groundwater Sustainability Agency (SVBGSA) is installing four new monitoring wells as part of the implementation of the Groundwater Sustainability Plan (GSP) for the 180/400-Foot Aquifer Subbasin. The subbasin is located in northwestern Monterey County and includes the northern end of the Salinas River Valley. The new monitoring wells will provide required data to a network of existing monitoring wells. In 2022, SVBGSA applied for and was awarded a Sustainable Groundwater Management grant from the Department of Water Resources. The $7.6 million grant supports the implementation of the GSP for the 180/400-Foot Aquifer Subbasin. Construction of four monitoring wells began in September 2023, with the first one drilled to a depth of 1,400 feet, located along the Salinas River west of Highway 68. The second well is currently under construction on Blackie Road between Castroville and Prunedale. It has been drilled to a depth of 1,300 feet and should be completed in mid-November. Additional wells will be drilled southwest of Spreckels and to the west of Gonzales before the end of the year. “Enhancing our ability to monitor groundwater levels will provide essential data about groundwater quality and changes to groundwater levels in the 180/400-Foot Aquifer Subbasin,” said Piret Harmon, General Manager of SVBGSA. “The new data will help us increase understanding of water conditions, and we can use this information to inform specific actions that will increase water reliability.” The 180/400-Foot Aquifer Subbasin covers an area of 89,700 acres (140 square miles). Most of the water from this subbasin is used for agriculture. The subbasin has experienced a long-term decline in groundwater storage due to lowering groundwater elevations, and the area has been subjected to seawater intrusion for more than 70 years. The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act was signed into law in 2014 in response to a scientific understanding that groundwater in California is being used faster than it’s being replenished. The act requires designated groundwater basins to form a public agency to develop a groundwater management plan and implement actions that will help local subbasins reach or maintain groundwater sustainability. The Salinas Valley Basin Groundwater Sustainability Agency was created in 2017. About the Salinas Valley Basin Groundwater Sustainability Agency A core responsibility of SVBGSA is to carry out the implementation of groundwater sustainability plans that were developed for six Salinas Valley subbasins in 2022, with a goal to achieve groundwater sustainability in all six subbasins by 2042. The SVBGSA was formed to develop comprehensive Groundwater Sustainability Plans and implement the plans to achieve groundwater sustainability by 2042, as required by the State of California. The Agency’s 11-member Board is comprised of stakeholders who represent diverse interests from across the Salinas Valley. Learn more at www.svbgsa.org and on Facebook and Instagram. ###