Groundwater rules on tap

California took an unprecedented step toward statewide groundwater management on Friday (Aug. 29) as the state Legislature passed a bill package aimed at long-term sustainable use.

California currently regulates surface water diverted from rivers and reservoirs, but is the only Western state that doesn’t regulate groundwater, according to the Los Angeles Times. But two bills awaiting Gov. Jerry Brown’s signature—Assembly Bill 1739 and Senate Bill 1168—would change that, directing local water agencies to create plans for managing their groundwater. Most agencies would need such a plan in place by 2020; the state would review the plans and assume oversight if local organizations aren’t up to the task.

For its part, Butte County—an area where groundwater is not yet critically overdrafted—would need a sustainable groundwater-use plan by 2022, said Christina Buck, a water-resources scientist for the Butte County Department of Water and Resource Conservation.