North Kings GSA prepares for future wet years, continuing to develop projects that improve drought resiliency
Despite the drought conditions, North Kings GSA and its member agencies are moving ahead to prepare for wet years, developing projects in preparation to capture and recharge high surface water flows in the future.
Increasing recharge capacity creates a buffer of groundwater supply for use during dry years like this one, with Kings River runoff projected to be 25% of average for the April-July snowmelt period.
Using this time to develop infrastructure for groundwater recharge in wet years will improve the water supply resiliency the next time a dry year comes. North Kings GSA member agencies are actively taking steps in this direction.
This last year, the Fresno Irrigation District (FID) acquired and began construction on 150 acres of new groundwater recharge basins and construction is substantially completed.
The Fresno Metropolitan Flood Control District secured Prop 1 funding for a flood control basin intertie project that will recharge water during summer months to help achieve sustainability while improving groundwater levels for the neighboring community, Malaga County Water District.
Two additional recharge projects, FID’s Savory Pond and City of Kerman’s Lyons Park Basin (watch video of project highlights!), recently received $1.4 million in grant funding from DWR that will add an additional 1,035 acre-feet of annual recharge capacity.
In addition, the City of Fresno saw its first full year of operation (2020) at its Southeast Surface Water Treatment Plant helping significantly reduce the City’s dependence on groundwater. The City’s shift to using more surface water to meet its demands is the most significant change to groundwater/surface water use in the area for the last 40+ years.
The North Kings GSA and its member agencies will continue to execute projects that can capture water when snowmelt is more plentiful, helping bring a consistent and secure water supply for its landowners and residents.
