A settlement between a desert mining company and groundwater authority in eastern Kern County will erase $24 million in past groundwater fees by allowing the company to use other sources, including 2,000 acre feet of reclaimed water. In exchange Searles Valley Minerals agreed to drop its lawsuits against the Indian Wells Valley Groundwater Authority and not oppose its planned pipeline project to import water from the Antelope Valley, according to recent press releases. Searles will, however, continue to “actively participate” in a larger legal action, known as an “adjudication,” in which a judge will ultimately determine how much water can be pumped from the Indian Wells Valley basin and who has rights to that water.