The South Fork Kings Groundwater Sustainability Agency (GSA) approved a pumping allocation during a Jan. 15 board meeting. The policy will allow Lemoore-area pumpers to extract a base amount of .86 acre feet per acre of land.  “I think it’s a necessary evil, but it scares me and it’s going to be real expensive and I don’t know how long it’s going to last. I don’t think it’s sustainable for the farmer. It might be sustainable for the groundwater, but it’s not sustainable for the farmer,” Board member Ceil Howe said before the vote. The pumping allocation policy is just one piece of the puzzle to ensure that the GSA complies with the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA), which aims to have local entities bring aquifers into balance by 2040.

Other groundwater news:

• The Sacramento Bee (Calif.): Opinion: How groundwater banking today secures Sacramento’s water future​
• California State University Long Beach: Blog: At CSULB, researchers trace climate threat rising beneath California