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Home My WebLink About06.19.21 FW_ Emergency Groundwater Program_Redacted From:Gosselin, Paul To:Alpert, Bruce;Bennett, Robin;Clerk of the Board;Connelly, Bill;Cook, Holly;Cook, Robin;Hironimus, Patrizia; Kimmelshue, Tod;Lucero, Debra;Paulsen, Shaina;Pickett, Andy;Reaster, Kayla;Ring, Brian;Ritter, Tami; Sweeney, Kathleen;Teeter, Doug;Pickett, Andy Cc:Buck, Christina;Jessee, Meegan Subject:FW: Emergency Groundwater Program Date:Saturday, June 19, 2021 9:49:32 AM Attachments:image001.png 2021_06_18 GCID Emergency Groundwater Production Program Map.pdf DWRUSBR JUNE 4 2021 F1.docx GCID Billou Response.pdf Board Members I am forwarding information provided by the Glenn Colusa Irrigation District regarding their Emergency Groundwater Program. Thank you. Paul Paul Gosselin, Director Department of Water and Resource Conservation 308 Nelson Ave Oroville, CA 95965 530-552-3590 office mobile From: Thad Bettner <tbettner@gcid.net> Sent: Friday, June 18, 2021 4:09 PM To: Lisa Hunter <lhunter@countyofglenn.net>; Mary Fahey <mfahey@countyofcolusa.com>; 'Ryan Teubert' <rteubert@tcpw.ca.gov>; Gosselin, Paul <PGosselin@buttecounty.net>; Buck, Christina <CBuck@buttecounty.net> Cc: Jered Shipley <jshipley@gcid.net>; Louis Jarvis <ljarvis@gcid.net>; Zac Dickens <zdickens@gcid.net> Subject: Emergency Groundwater Program ATTENTION: This message originated from outside Butte County. Please exercise judgment before opening .. attachments, clicking on links, or replying. All, Pleasefindattachedthefirstofourweeklyupdatesofouremergencygroundwater program.Todate,wehavepumped1,811AFandarecontinuingtoaddnewwells whichwillbeonnextweeksupdate. Also,IhaveincludedaresponsetoalocallandownerMichaelBilliouwhohasmade inaccuratestatementstotheStateandReclamation,I’mincludingthisforreferencein caseyouhaveheardthesameconcernthroughothervenues. Thanks, Thad _________________________________ ThaddeusLBettnerPE,GeneralManager Glenn-ColusaIrrigationDistrict POBox150 Willows,CA95988 530.934.8881(office) 530.588.3450(cell) 109.17 AF Legend Program Production Well (quantity: 26) 168.323 AF Program Monitoring Well (quantity: 28) 107.78 AF GCID Service Area 96 AF 19.12 AF 34.748 AF 115.34 AF 191.791 AF 78.697 AF 42.584 AF 21.921 AF 48.991 AF 13.893 AF 19.971 AF 29.309 AF 44.23 AF 15.465 AF 170.341 AF 1.117 AF 99.956 AF 95.18 AF 85.283 AF 87.036 AF 12.927 AF 51.475 AF 02.5510 50.702 AF Miles ± Service Layer Credits: Source: Esri, DigitalGlobe, GeoEye, Earthstar Geographics, CNES/Airbus DS, USDA, USGS, AeroGRID, IGN, and the GIS User Community GCID 2021 Emergency Groundwater Production Program (Program) as of 06/15/2021 Preliminary Area Map - Program Production Wells & Monitoring Wells June 4, 2021 State Water Resources Control BoardDepartment of Water Resources c/o Erin Foresman and Chris Carrc/o James Mizell P.O. Box 2000 P.O. Box 942836 Sacramento, CA 95812-2000Sacramento, CA 94236-0001 Erin.Foresman@waterboards.ca.govJames.Mizell@water.ca.gov Chris.Carr@waterboards.ca.gov RegionalSolicitor’s OfficeU.S. Bureau of Reclamation c/o Amy AufdembergeKristin White 2800 Cottage Way, Rm. E-17123310 El Camino Ave., Rm. 300 Sacramento, CA 95825 Sacramento, CA 95821 Amy.Aufdemberge@sol.doi.govknwhite@usbr.gov Re: Department of Water Resourcesand the United States Bureau of Reclamation Temporary Urgency Change Petition (TUCP) To all recipients noted above, My name is Michael Billiou. I am a fourth generation California farmer. My ranch headquarters is located ½ mile south of Hamilton City, at 4290 State Route 45, Glenn County. I believe that the State Water Resources Control Board would benefit from the information I have regarding existing groundwater conditionswhere I live and farmas it considers the petition filed by the Department of Water Resources (“DWR”) and the United States Bureau of Reclamation (“Reclamation”)fora Temporary Urgency Change. I heard about the TUCP one day ago from AquAlliance of which I am a member.There is great potential for injuryto numerousgroundwater dependent homes and farms who don’t even know this is taking place. To date I am aware of Glenn Colusa Irrigation District plans to export 20,000 af to Tehama Colusa Canal Authority half of which is available by crop idling/substitution and half by 1 groundwater substitutionand then additionally pump 25,000 af of groundwater under a so- 2 called Emergency Groundwater Production Program.I don’t understand how GCIDhas 70,000 af of surface water to sell outside the region yet claims to need 25,000 af of groundwater as an emergency use, which will strain an already overtaxed basin. 1 GCID, 2021. GLENN-COLUSA IRRIGATION DISTRICT RESOLUTION NO. 2021-08. p. 2. 2 GCID, 2021. GLENN-COLUSA IRRIGATION DISTRICT RESOLUTION NO. 2021-09 for the Emergency Groundwater Production Program. p.1. Even more problematic, is the fact that we do not seem to have anyone to fairly represent us and our interests. The State, and Glenn County have allowed GCID to become the lead for our local groundwater management area, even though this is a major conflict of interest. Their stated goals include the pumping and exporting of groundwater. This is a worst case example of the fox guarding the hen house, and should not be allowed. Past experience reporting conflicts with GCID well operations has beenconfrontational and seems to justhavebeenignored. Due to this past experience, I believe that DWR and Reclamation must ensure the posting of the 2021 GCID mitigation plan required in the Draft Technical Information for Preparing Water Transfer Proposals(December 2019)on GCID’s web site with public notification of the posting. There must also be one or more individuals at each agency, SWRCB, DWR, and Reclamation, for the public to contact if conflict resolution on a local level is avoided or unreasonable. You must understand, however, that there is no mitigation that can compensate for the devaluation of my 160 year old ranch. The land that GCID production wells 2 and 3 are sited on has no history of being irrigated, or having any other use, other than as a right-of-way for the canal banks. The extraction of this water, and its removal from the area of recharge, will amount to Grand Theft, in the enormity of its damages to the local economy and environment . Damages that we believe GCID has no legal right to impose on us. It is especially frustrating to continually hear about their “senior water rights”, when they disregard the locals’ many decades of historic use of these groundwater aquifers. We all overlie, live, farm, and have a history of true beneficial use of this water. Until recently it has stayed in the area, and helped with recharge. My neighbors and I urge you to provide some meaningful oversight to this process. Right now we have none. We need an unbiased arbiter in the regulation of the sale, pumping, and export of the water that we rely on. Historyof Problems The ranches I operate for my family and friends rely on 19 groundwater wells. Since around 2012 several of these wells have been showing abnormal and erratic behavior. In 2014 three important wells became unusable for several weeks. Our ag pump 19 went completely dry on July 19, 2014. Following GCID pumping from 2011 to 2015 we had to replace our main well #2 at a cost of nearly $200,000. This year our area has received about 7 inches of rainfall, where we average an amount in the mid 20s. The ±100’ and 300’ upper aquifer levels that many of the homes, farms, and ranches have used for multiple decades, has started to show its stress several months earlier than the last time we had a serious drawdown. In the past week, our area has had 3 domestic wells, and an equal number of ag wells, become un-useable due to a drop in the water table. Yesterday, I had to have the first of 3 domestic pumps lowered. The other two will have to be drilled deeper, and I fear what will happen while we are all waiting. Our ag pumps 19 and 20 have gone dry as of this morning. I have not yet checked in with all my neighbors, but I am sure there are more. Each day, the situation seems to become worse, and it appears we are headed into very dire straits. GCID’s engineers reported that each of the GCID production wells affect other private pumpers up to a four mile radius. The graphic I produced is more generous and shows what a three mile radius encompasses: 48,900 acres less a little GCID land. As stated above, these areas are already experiencing problems in 2021. The effects of this large scale water export out of the local recharge area, will likely be very damaging to my family and neighbors that live and work here. We urge you to stand up for us in this matter Michael Billiou