Overview of Indian Wells ValleyHydrogeology and Management

Presenters

Location

DWR B-118Basin 6-54

• Kern, Inyo and San Bernardino Counties

• 382,000 acres (597 sq mi)

• 4-inch ave ppt• 2,150-2,400 feet

elevation valley floor• Closed, internally

drained basin

Institutional Setting

City of Ridgecrest

• Incorporated 1963 - Population ~30,000• Major Employers

--NAWS - 3500 --Searles Minerals - 600--School District - 600 --Hospital – 300

• General Plan encourages--LID approaches --Expand recycled water--Increased conservation --Protect groundwater

• Provides 1.4MGD reclaimed water to NAWS golf course

Indian Wells Valley Water District• Formed in 1955 as Ridgecrest County Water District by

consolidating several smaller domestic services water companies under CWC Division 12, and modified through several Improvements Districts (Assessment District 82-1, 87-1 & 91-1)

• Service area 38 sq mi (8 sq mi public lands)• Services domestic, residential, institutional water; construction of

rights of ways; fire protection; recreation; and emergency water restrictions.

• Provides water to approximately 12,000 connections• Operates 10 active water supply wells• Actively pursuing water conservation and water use efficiency,

addressing arsenic, and improving water supply

China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station

Kern County Water Agency

Searles Valley Minerals

Indian Wells ValleyCooperative Groundwater Management Group• Water levels have declined in areas within the Valley.• As depth to groundwater increases, production and distribution

costs will increase.• As depth to groundwater increases, the potential exists for poorer

quality water to mix with and degrade higher quality water.• Some portion of the recharge to the Valley from the Sierra Nevada

may be lost to evaporation in the China Lake playa.• Our understanding of the geohydrology of the Valley is based on

groundwater quantity and quality data collected from available production and monitoring wells located throughout much of the Valley. – The recharge and discharge characteristics of the aquifer are not fully

understood. – Adequacy of the known groundwater reserves to meet future

demands shall be determined.

Indian Wells ValleyCooperative Groundwater Management Group

• 1995 – formed to manage the basin cooperatively• “Memorandum of Understanding”

• Naval Air Weapons Station• Kern County Water Agency• City of Ridgecrest• Inyokern Community Services District• Bureau of Land Management

• Indian Wells Valley Water District• Searles Valley Minerals• Quist Farms• Eastern Kern County Resources

Conservation District

Indian Wells ValleyCooperative Groundwater Management Group

Purpose• Set forth guidelines and management principles for the

production, distribution, and use of groundwater within the purview of the participants.

• Further develop (cooperatively or individually) the technical data and analytical capabilities to better understand the nature and characteristics of the watershed and aquifer system.

• Apply these guidelines toward sound management practices to extend the useful life of the groundwater resource to meet current and foreseeable future demands.

• Coordinate interested local agencies and water producers into a cooperative planning effort to share information and management practices to maintain the life of the resource.

Indian Wells ValleyCooperative Groundwater Management Group1. Limit additional large scale pumping in areas that appear to be adversely

impacted.2. Distribute new groundwater extraction within the Valley in a manner that will

minimize adverse effects to existing groundwater conditions (levels and quality), and maximize the long-term supply within the Valley.

3. Aggressively pursue the development and implementation of water conservation policy and education programs.

4. Encourage the use of treated water, reclaimed water, recycled, gray and lower quality water where appropriate and economically feasible.

5. Explore the potential for other types of water management programs that are beneficial to the Valley.

6. Continue cooperative efforts to develop information and data which contributes to further defining and better understanding the groundwater resource in the Indian Wells Valley.

7. Develop an inter-agency management framework to implement and enforce the objectives of this Plan.

Indian Wells ValleyBackground Studies

AB303 Study 2003 - Groundwater Management in the Indian Wells Valley Basin

AB303 Study 2008 - Groundwater Monitoring Program in the Indian Wells Valley Basin

Indian Wells ValleyTectonic Setting

Indian Wells ValleyGeology

Indian Wells ValleyBasin Hydrogeology

Indian Wells ValleyBasin Hydrogeology

Indian Wells ValleyConceptual Model

Indian Wells ValleyGroundwater Monitoring Program

Indian Wells ValleyGroundwater Flow

Indian Wells ValleyGroundwater Pumping

Indian Wells ValleyGroundwater Budget

Indian Wells ValleyGroundwater Flow Model

Indian Wells ValleyGroundwater Challenges

• Groundwater Quantity– Basin groundwater levels declining 1 to 1 ½ ft/yr– Some rural well issues with these shallower wells

• Groundwater Quality– Salinity– Arsenic

Current/Future Efforts

• Participating in the Inyo Mono IRWMP• Brackish Water Supply • Increasing Conservation• Shifting Pumping to Reduce Localized

Drawdown• CASGEM Monitoring Program• Aquifer Testing in Southwest Basin• Updating the Groundwater Management Plan

Current/Future EffortsParticipating in the Inyo Mono IRWMP

• Over 40 federal, state, regional and county agencies, organizations and private stakeholders from Easter Sierra Nevada

• Facilitation and participation from DWR at Inyo Mono IRWMP meetings

• Completed the IRWMP in January 2011• Projects submitted and undergoing review– IWVWD Brackish Water Project

Current/Future EffortsBrackish Water Supply

Current/Future EffortsIncreasing Conservation

Current/Future EffortsShifting Pumping to Reduce Localized Drawdown

Current/Future EffortsCASGEM Monitoring Program

Current/Future EffortsAquifer Testing in Southwest Basin

Current/Future EffortsUpdating the Groundwater Management Plan