California is Approaching Ten Years of Sustainable Groundwater Management

Published: August 13, 2024

This year marks the tenth anniversary of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act(SGMA). In 2014, the signing of SGMA created the first major change to California water law in a century. The legislation established a statewide framework to protect groundwater resources over time and gave local agencies control to manage their groundwater basins for long-term sustainability. Groundwater is water that exists in the pores or cracks in soils and rocks underground. It is the largest source of fresh water on Earth and it's important that this key resource is protected for future generations.

September 16, 2024, is the official ten-year anniversary of the signing of SGMA. So far, local and state agencies have met every SGMA milestone, and have made tremendous progress towards a sustainable groundwater future for California. Over the next few months, DWR is looking back on the accomplishments of the first decade of SGMA and looking ahead to the future as groundwater management in California moves into the next phase of SGMA implementation.

DWR is planning a SGMA 10-year Anniversary event this fall that will feature key SGMA experts talking about SGMA past, present and future. To receive information about this upcoming event, and to get the latest groundwater news, visit the DWR email subscription page and select the 'Sustainable Groundwater Management' topic.