The San Luis Obispo grand jury has released its report on the Paso Robles groundwater basin.
Groundwater sustainability agencies previously drafted a groundwater sustainability plan that was approved by the state of California in March of this year. The plan is a roadmap towards groundwater sustainability by 2040.
In its report, the grand jury states that in spite of the rainfall earlier this year, drier years will continue. Their investigation found that about 700 thousand acre-feet of groundwater has been depleted since 1998, and that data and current plans for sustainability by groundwater sustainability agencies are insufficient for decision making.
The grand jury recommended groundwater sustainability agencies to intensify outreach for public input, impose user fees, establish voluntary land fallowing, and improve data collection methods.
