Groundwater Management Program

Groundwater Management Plan
SGA adopted a revised groundwater management plan in December 2008. The authority to prepare a plan is granted to SGA through the Joint Powers Agreement executed between the County of Sacramento and the cities of Citrus Heights, Folsom, and Sacramento to use their commonly held police powers to manage the basin. The plan was prepared in compliance with Water Code Section 10753.7 resulting from the passage of SB 1938 in 2002.

The plan establishes a goal, management objectives, and the primary components needed to manage the basin. These components include:

• Stakeholder Involvement
• Monitoring Program
• Data Management and Analysis
• Groundwater Resource Protection
• Groundwater Sustainability

Download the Groundwater Management Plan (6 MB pdf)

Basin Management Report
The Basin Management Report (BMR) summarizes conditions and management activities in the groundwater basin underlying Sacramento County north of the American River. The BMR reports on hydrologic conditions and management activities, and includes the status of each of the action items in the SGA Groundwater Management Plan (GMP). The BMR is published biennially.

Download the BMR (5.5 MB pdf) for 2006/2007

Water Accounting Framework
The Water Accounting Framework (Framework) adopted by the SGA Board establishes policies and procedures to encourage and support conjunctive use operations within the SGA area. The Framework was developed in three phases, in part due to the complexity of resolving the issue of establishing an equitable conjunctive use program with a variety of interested parties, and in part because of evolving conditions in the basin. Phase I of the Framework was completed in July 2006, and involved developing a white paper to establish the purposes of a Framework and to identify the current conditions in the basin that would influence the development of the Framework. Phase II was completed in April 2007, and included technical analysis and additional stakeholder outreach. Phase II resulted in identifying the primary elements of the Framework and recommended developing a Model Banking Program for SGA members interested in potential banking and exchange operations. Phase III was completed in June 2010, and establishes a set of policies and procedures that will encourage and support conjunctive use operations within the SGA area of jurisdiction to facilitate the long-term sustainability of the underlying groundwater basin as source of public water supply. The Framework recognizes investments by the SGA member agencies in the development of conjunctive use programs and supports groundwater banking programs that enhance the long-term sustainability of the groundwater basin. With adoption of Phase III, the SGA Board established that the Framework is a living process and must include regular review to evaluate whether the Framework is accomplishing its intended objectives.

Download the July 2006 Framework White Paper (pdf)
Download the April 2007 Phase II Framework Document (pdf)
Download the June 2010 Phase III Framework Document (pdf)

Data Management System (DMS)
In its effort to manage the North Area Groundwater Basin, SGA has collected a multitude of groundwater-related data from both water-purveyor member agencies and other agencies such as the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) and the U.S. Geological Survey. To better manage the extensive groundwater data and to assess local groundwater conditions, SGA developed a data storage and accounting tool, the DMS. The DMS is a stand-alone application that allows entry, storage, retrieval, and presentation of groundwater and surface water data. The tool was developed partially through a cost share agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). Funding for the work was made possible through a cost sharing agreement between the USACE and local sponsors. Local sponsors include SGA members, the DWR Integrated Storage Investigation Program, and a grant awarded to SGA in 2002 from the Local Groundwater Management Assistance Act of 2000 (AB 303).