HomeMy WebLinkAbout01.19.26 Board Correspondence - FW_ DWR URCTA Groundwater Technical Assistance Program.ATTENTION: This message originated from outside Butte County. Please exercise judgment before opening attachments, clicking on links, or replying..
From:Clerk of the Board
To:Clerk of the Board; Connelly, Bill; Cook, Holly; Cook, Robin; Durfee, Peter; Jessee, Meegan; Kimmelshue, Tod; Kitts, Melissa; Krater, Sharleen; Lee, Lewis; Little, Melissa; Pickett, Andy; Ritter, Tami; Stephens, Brad J.; Sweeney, Kathleen; Teeter, Doug; Zepeda, Elizabeth
Cc:Loeser, Kamie; Nuzum, Danielle
Subject:Board Correspondence - FW: DWR URCTA Groundwater Technical Assistance Program
Date:Tuesday, January 20, 2026 8:44:04 AM
Attachments:image.pngimage.pngimage.png
image.pngimage.pngURCTA Services_acc.pdf
URCTA_Fact Sheet_v8_acc.pdfURCTA_Steps_Gen_Eng_acc.pdf
Please see Board Correspondence -
From: Caren Aguirre <caguirre@dudek.com>
Sent: Monday, January 19, 2026 4:28 PM
To: Clerk of the Board <clerkoftheboard@buttecounty.net>
Cc: Jane Gray <jgray@dudek.com>; urcta@water.ca.gov
Subject: DWR URCTA Groundwater Technical Assistance Program
Dear Clerk of the Board of Supervisors,
Dudek is contacting you as a contracted Technical Assistance Service Provider under the California Department of Water Resources’ (DWR) URCTA Program – Underrepresented Communities, California Tribes, and Small Farmer Groundwater Technical Assistance Program. Your county has one or more groundwater basins regulated under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). The SGMAMapping Tool can be used to view basin boundaries and confirm basin information and identify the Groundwater Sustainability Agencies (GSA) within your county.
We are reaching out to provide you with information about the FREE groundwater Technical Assistance Services that are available to communities and small farmers within your jurisdiction who are within SGMA regulated basins and in need of hydrogeologic and/or engineering service to support on issues related to groundwater supplies, aquifer testing, water quality testing and
treatment, downhole video logging, pump testing, and soil moisture testing. Our team of technical experts can also provide 100% design and engineering plans and specifications for projects such as water system consolidations, well design, water tank location and design, among other project types. Attached to this email and in the link above, you will find more information about the
URCTA Program.
Should you need it, information materials are available in languages including (but not limited to) Spanish, Tagalog, lu Mien, Hmong, Punjabi, Mandarin, Cantonese, Mixteco Alto and Mixteco Bajo. We also have staff who can provide interpretation and translations services for onsite visits and needs assessments.
If you are interested and would like to learn more, we would like to schedule a call to connect you with DWR and answer any questions you may have. Please contact the Dudek Project Manager for this program, Jane Gray, at jgray@dudek.com or 805.308.8531, or email URCTA@water.ca.gov. Thank you very much!
Best regards,
Caren Aguirre O: 831 432 0122 C: 831 588 0873 Watershed Planner I dudek.com
What is the URCTA Program?
The mission of the Underrepresented Communities, California Tribes, and Small Farmers Groundwater
Technical Assistance (URCTA) Program is to support Underrepresented Communities (URCs), California
Native American (Federally and Non-Federally Recognized) Tribes and Small Farmers within groundwater
regulated basins with the assessment of water-related needs, risks, and vulnerabilities and to provide
focused groundwater-related technical assistance to resolve them.
SERVICES PROVIDED
Ground Level Monitoring Analyzing long-term water supply
and demand
Analyzing and facilitating
water transfers
Supporting in funding and
grant application processes
Determine fire flow requirements
Design of water systems
including production, treatment,
distribution and storage
Preparation of project plans
and specifications
Aquifer Testing
Analyzing well interference
Identifying water supplies
Analyzing existing
groundwater well conditions
Rehabilitating and/or
Replacement of water
storage tanks
FACT SHEET
Background
Within the State of California, Tribes and
underrepresented communities (URCs) face
many challenges accessing clean, affordable
water supplies such as groundwater,
especially during droughts. In 2021, the
Department of Water Resources (DWR)
launched the Underrepresented
Communities, California Tribes, and Small
Farmers Groundwater Technical Assistance
(URCTA) Program. The program aims to help
identify communities throughout California
with water supply issues and provide
technical assistance services to small farmers,
small communities and underserved areas
across the state.
DWR has contracted Dudek and partnered
with The Water Foundation and nonprofits
Community Water Center, Self-Help
Enterprises, The Nature Conservancy,
Audubon; the Community Alliance with
Family Farmers, University of California
Agriculture and Natural Resources, UC Davis
Law School, and other partners.
Overview
The program’s mission is to support
Underrepresented Communities, California
Native American Tribes (Federally and Non-
Federally Recognized) and Small Farmers
within Sustainable Groundwater
Management Act (SGMA) regulated basins,
including those that are medium, high and
critically overdrafted priority. The URCTA
Program identifies eligible communities
throughout California with water supply
challenges such as dry groundwater wells,
water shortages, or poor water quality with
the assessment of water-related needs, risks,
and vulnerabilities and to provide focused
groundwater-related technical assistance to
resolve them.
URC Prioritization Tool
Using the online URC Prioritization Tool, DWR
can assist with determining URCs from
mapped areas that incorporate data including
Median Household Income, threats to
groundwater, access to drinking water, and
water quality issues.
Underrepresented Communities Technical
Assistance Program (URC TA Program)
SGMA Basin Prioritization Dashboard
Areas identified to be in a groundwater
regulated basin will be identified using the
SGMA Basin Prioritization Dashboard that
includes data on California's 515
Groundwater Basins defined in Bulletin 118.
SGMA Basin Prioritization Dashboard (ca.gov)
Technical Assistance Services
The URCTA Program can provide onsite
engineering, geologic, hydrologic, and other
technical services. These services can include
Preliminary Engineering Design and
Hydrogeologic Studies regarding
groundwater wells, water and wastewater
systems upgrades and consolidations, and
water storage for fire suppressions. Specific
examples of the types of services include:
Analysis of existing well conditions,
well interference, groundwater
conditions, long-term water supply
and demand, and groundwater
impacts (for depletion, land
subsidence, groundwater dependent
ecosystem depletion, etc.).
Analysis to identify water supplies,
facilitate water transfers, and relevant
applications needed.
Assistance in monitoring groundwater
levels, including instrumentation
installation, soil moisture monitoring,
groundwater quality testing, and
training.
Design of water systems including
production, distribution, treatment,
and storage, including determination
of fire flow requirements.
Facilitation on groundwater
sustainability information and
communication and expert witness
testimony.
Preparation of project plans and
specifications for water wells, pumps
and water storage tank solutions (well
location, design, and construction
oversight).
Other technical assistance determined
case-by-case.
URCTA Program Eligibility
DWR can assist in determining eligibility for the
URCTA Program within a groundwater basin
that is regulated by the Sustainable
Groundwater Management Act.
Where to Obtain Information
URCTA Program Page
https://water.ca.gov/urctaprogram
For further information about the URCTA
Program, interested parties can contact
URCTA@water.ca.gov.
If you have any questions or concerns
regarding Tribal Affairs, please contact
tribalpolicyadvisor@water.ca.gov.
Initial Engagement with the California Tribe,
Community, and/or Small Farmer.
Initial Engagement with the California Tribe,
Community, and/or Small Farmer.11
22
Groundw
a
t
e
r
l
e
v
e
l
m
o
n
i
t
o
r
i
n
g
Aquifer t
e
s
t
i
n
g
t
o
d
e
t
e
r
m
i
n
e
l
o
n
g
-
t
e
r
m
y
i
e
l
d
a
n
d
s
u
p
p
l
y
Identify
i
n
g
G
r
o
u
n
d
w
a
t
e
r
D
e
p
e
n
d
e
n
t
E
c
o
s
y
s
t
e
m
s
(
G
D
E
s
)
Analyze
w
e
l
l
i
n
t
e
r
f
e
r
e
n
c
e
Identify
i
n
g
a
d
d
i
t
i
o
n
a
l
w
a
t
e
r
s
u
p
p
l
y
Analyze e
x
i
s
t
i
n
g
w
e
l
l
c
o
n
d
i
t
i
o
n
u
s
i
n
g
d
o
w
n
h
o
l
e
v
i
d
e
o
l
o
g
Rehabilit
a
t
i
o
n
o
f
w
a
t
e
r
s
t
o
r
a
g
e
t
a
n
k
Long-ter
m
w
a
t
e
r
s
u
p
p
l
y
a
n
d
d
e
m
a
n
d
a
n
a
l
y
s
i
s
Analyze
a
n
d
h
e
l
p
t
o
f
a
c
i
l
i
t
a
t
e
w
a
t
e
r
t
r
a
n
s
f
e
r
s
REPORT
S
U
M
M
A
R
Y
PROPO
S
E
D
A
S
S
I
S
T
A
N
C
E
NEEDS
Technical Assistance Services for
the California Tribe, Community,
and/or Small Farmer start when
an agreement between all parties
is reached.
Technical Assistance Services for
the California Tribe, Community,
and/or Small Farmer start when
an agreement between all parties
is reached.
44
WATER TREATMENT
The California Tribe, Community,
and/or Small Farmer has regular
check-in meetings with Dudek, the
Technical Assistance provider, on
behalf of DWR throughout the
process.
5 The California Tribe, Community,
and/or Small Farmer has regular
check-in meetings with Dudek, the
Technical Assistance provider, on
behalf of DWR throughout the
process.
5
Before any project is closed out,
a final site visit and meeting will
occur and include the California
Tribe, Community, and/or Small
Farmer, Dudek and DWR.
Before any project is closed out,
a final site visit and meeting will
occur and include the California
Tribe, Community, and/or Small
Farmer, Dudek and DWR.
77
Any deliverables, e.g., preliminary engineering
reports, design documents, well reports, etc. will
be reviewed for comment by the California Tribe,
Community, and/or Small Farmer. Comments
will be provided to Dudek for
revisions before finalization. This
process may be repeated until all
deliverables are finalized.
Any deliverables, e.g., preliminary engineering
reports, design documents, well reports, etc. will
be reviewed for comment by the California Tribe,
Community, and/or Small Farmer. Comments
will be provided to Dudek for
revisions before finalization. This
process may be repeated until all
deliverables are finalized.
66
Initial Summary Report of Site
Visit/Needs Assessment and
Outline of Proposed Technical
Assistance with the California Tribe,
Community, and/or Small Farmer.
Initial Summary Report of Site
Visit/Needs Assessment and
Outline of Proposed Technical
Assistance with the California Tribe,
Community, and/or Small Farmer.
33
Scan to Learn More
www.water.ca.gov/urctaprogram
Email: URCTA@water.ca.gov
URCTA Program Step-by-Step
The URCTA Program collaborates with California Native American (Federally and Non-Federally Recognized) Tribes and Underrepresented
Communities to assess Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) implementation needs, risks, and vulnerabilities. Explore our
step-by-step guide to learn more. Services are provided free of charge.
Initial Site Visit, Meeting
and Needs Assessment
with the California Tribe,
Community, and/or
Small Farmer.
Initial Site Visit, Meeting
and Needs Assessment
with the California Tribe,
Community, and/or
Small Farmer.