2017 Salinas Valley Groundwater Level Contours & Seawater Intrusion Maps

Monterey County Water Resources Agency (MCWRA) | April 24th, 2018

2020 Annual Report on the Salton Sea Management Program

California Natural Resources Agency (CNRA) | February 21st, 2020

Improving air quality and creating habitat at the Salton Sea are key priorities for Governor Gavin Newsom and the California Natural Resources Agency. The Sea’s continu

Improving air quality and creating habitat at the Salton Sea are key priorities for Governor Gavin Newsom and the California Natural Resources Agency. The Sea’s continuing decline in elevation and resulting exposure of lakebed negatively impact surrounding communities and reduce remaining habitat for fish and wildlife. The California Natural Resources Agency, the California Department of Water Resources, and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (together, the State Team) are focused on implementing the Salton Sea Management Program’s (SSMP’s) 10-Year Plan to improve conditions by constructing 30,000 acres of habitat and dust suppression projects around the Sea.

2020 Review Water Quality Standards for Salinity Colorado River System

Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Forum (CRBSCF) | October 1st, 2020

This document is a review of the water quality standards for salinity in the Colorado River. Section 303 of the Clean Water Act amendments to the Federal Water Pollution

This document is a review of the water quality standards for salinity in the Colorado River. Section 303 of the Clean Water Act amendments to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act require that water quality standards are reviewed every three years. Accordingly, the seven-state Colorado River Basin Salinity Control Forum has reviewed the existing state-adopted and EPA-approved water quality standards for salinity consisting of numeric criteria and a Plan of Implementation. Upon adoption by the Forum, this Review will be submitted to the governors of each of the Basin States for inclusion in their state water quality standards.

2021 Emergency Drought Salinity Barrier Project Water Quality Certification

California State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) | May 28th, 2021

The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) is proposing to implement the 2021 Emergency Drought Salinity Barrier Project (Project). The Project consists of instal

The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) is proposing to implement the 2021 Emergency Drought Salinity Barrier Project (Project). The Project consists of installation of a temporary emergency drought salinity barrier across West False River in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Delta). The barrier will be constructed of embankment rock (riprap). The purpose of the Project is to control saltwater intrusion into the Central and south Delta and conserve water in upstream reservoirs for other uses. Pursuant to Clean Water Act section 401, the State Water Resources Control Board (State Water Board) has authority to consider whether a proposed activity involving a discharge to navigable waters complies with applicable water quality standards and other appropriate requirements of state law and to issue a water quality certification if those requirements will be met. The State Water Board concludes that, as conditioned herein, water quality certification may be issued.  During drought conditions, the release of water stored in upstream reservoirs may be insufficient to repel salinity moving upstream from San Francisco Bay. According to DWR’s analyses, without the protection of the drought salinity barrier, saltwater intrusions could render Delta water unusable for agricultural needs, reduce habitat value for aquatic species, and affect roughly 25 million Californians who rely on the export of this water for personal use. Installation of the temporary rock barrier at West False River would limit salinity intrusion into the Central and south Delta and would potentially conserve water for a variety of uses system-wide.  On May 10, 2021, California Governor Gavin Newsom issued a Proclamation of State of Emergency (May 2021 Proclamation) due to drought conditions and directed DWR, among other things, to implement plans that address potential Delta salinity issues, including installation and removal of emergency drought salinity barriers as needed. The May 2021 Proclamation mandates that such emergency barriers be designed to conserve water for use later in the year to meet state and federal Endangered Species Act requirements, preserve to the extent possible water quality in the Delta, and retain water supply for human health and safety uses. The State Water Board and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) are also directed to immediately consider any necessary regulatory approvals needed to install emergency drought salinity barriers. Additionally, the May 2021 Proclamation suspends Water Code section 13247, which requires state agencies to comply with water quality control plans approved by the State Water Board, and suspends the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) for purpose of implementing actions such as the Project.  Installation and removal of the Project will require a permit from the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) pursuant to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. DWR is seeking emergency authorization under USACE’s Regional General Permit (RGP) 8 – Emergency Repair and Protection Activities. 

2021-2022 Comprehensive Emergency Drought Barrier Effectiveness Report

California Department of Water Resources (DWR) | June 19th, 2024

This report summarizes the construction, monitoring, effectiveness, and impacts of the 2021–2022 West False River Emergency Drought Salinity Barrier (2021–2022 EDB).

This report summarizes the construction, monitoring, effectiveness, and impacts of the 2021–2022 West False River Emergency Drought Salinity Barrier (2021–2022 EDB). The purpose of this report is to meet the reporting requirements in the State Water Resources Control Board’s (State Water Board) May 2021 Water Quality Certification (Section 8.0, Condition 1: Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting) and the commitment detailed in the California Department of Water Resources’ (DWR) Monitoring Plan (updated in January 2022).

A global dataset of surface water and groundwater salinity measurements from 1980–2019

Nature Portfolio (Springer Nature) | July 13th, 2020

Salinization of freshwater resources is a growing water quality challenge, which may negatively impact both sectoral water-use and food security, as well as bio

Salinization of freshwater resources is a growing water quality challenge, which may negatively impact both sectoral water-use and food security, as well as biodiversity and ecosystem services. Although monitoring of salinity is relatively common compared to many other water quality parameters, no compilation and harmonisation of available datasets for both surface and groundwater components have been made yet at the global scale. Here, we present a new global salinity database, compiled from electrical conductivity (EC) monitoring data of both surface water (rivers, lakes/reservoirs) and groundwater locations over the period 1980–2019. The data were assembled from a range of sources, including local to global salinity databases, governmental organizations, river basin management commissions and water development boards. Our resulting database comprises more than 16.3 million measurements from 45,103 surface water locations and 208,550 groundwater locations around the world. This database could provide new opportunities for meta-analyses of salinity levels of water resources, as well as for addressing data and model-driven questions related to historic and future salinization patterns and impacts.

A multi-isotope (B, Sr, O, H, and C) and age dating (3H–3He and14C) study of groundwater from Salinas Valley, California: Hydrochemistry, dynamics, and contamination processes

American Geophysical Union (AGU) | January 31st, 2002

The chemical and isotope (11B/10B, 87Sr/86Sr, 18O/16O, 2H/H, 13C/12C, 14C, and 3He/3H) compositions of groundwater from the upper aquifer system of the Salinas Valley in

The chemical and isotope (11B/10B, 87Sr/86Sr, 18O/16O, 2H/H, 13C/12C, 14C, and 3He/3H) compositions of groundwater from the upper aquifer system of the Salinas Valley in coastal central California were investigated in order to delineate the origin and processes of groundwater contamination in this complex system. The Salinas Valley has a relatively deep, confined ‘‘400- foot’’ aquifer, overlain by a ‘‘180-foot’’ aquifer and a shallower perched aquifer, all made up of alluvial sand, gravel and clay deposits. Groundwater from the aquifers have different 14C ages: fossil (14C = 21.3 percent modern carbon (pmc) for the 400-foot aquifer and modern (14C = 72.2–98.2 pmc) for the 180-foot aquifer. Fresh groundwater in all aquifers is recharged naturally and artificially through the Salinas River. The two modes of recharge can be distinguished chemically.We identified several different saline components with distinguishable chemical and isotopic fingerprints. Saltwater intrusion in the northern basin has C1 concentrations up to 1700 mg/L, a Na/Cl ratio less than seawater, a marine Br/Cl ratio, a Ca/Cl ratio greater than seawater, d11B between +17 and +38% and 87Sr/86Sr between 0.7088 and 0.7096. Excess dissolved Ca, relative to the expected concentration for simple dilution of seawater, correlates with 87Sr/86Sr ratios, suggesting base exchange reaction with clay materials. (2) Agriculture return flow is high inNO3 and SO4, with a 87Sr/86Sr = 0.7082,d11B = 19% and d13C between 23 and 17%. The 3H–3He ages (5–17 years) and 14C data suggest vertical infiltration rates of irrigation water of 3–10 m/yr. (3) Nonmarine saline water in the southern part of the valley has high total dissolved solids up to 3800 mg/L, high SO4, Na/Cl ratio >1, d11B between +24 and +30%, and 87Sr/86Sr = 0.70852. This groundwater may have acquired its geochemical signature from leaching of sedimentary rocks associated with the Coast Range marine deposits of Mesozoic to early Cenozoic age. The combination of different geochemical and isotopic fingerprints enables us to delineate the impact of salt sources in different areas of the valley and to reconstruct the origin of the SO4-enriched NO3-depleted saline plume that is located west of the city of Salinas. We suggest that the latter is derived from a mixture of different natural saline waters rather than from anthropogenic contamination.

A Preliminary Study of the Effects of Water Circulation in the San Francisco Bay Estuary

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) | July 15th, 1970

A Rapid Assessment Method to Identify Potential Groundwater Flooding Hotspots as Sea Levels Rise in Coastal Cities

Water, Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI) | October 25th, 2019

Sea level rise (SLR) will cause shallow unconfined coastal aquifers to rise. Rising groundwater can emerge as surface flooding and impact buried infrastructure, soil beh

Sea level rise (SLR) will cause shallow unconfined coastal aquifers to rise. Rising groundwater can emerge as surface flooding and impact buried infrastructure, soil behavior, human health, and nearshore ecosystems. Higher groundwater can also reduce infiltration rates for stormwater, adding to surface flooding problems. Levees and seawalls may not prevent these impacts. Pumping may accelerate land subsidence rates, thereby exacerbating flooding problems associated with SLR. Public agencies at all jurisdiction levels will need information regarding where groundwater impacts are likely to occur for development and infrastructure planning, as extreme precipitation events combine with SLR to drive more frequent flooding. We used empirical depth-to-water data and a digital elevation model of the San Francisco Bay Area to construct an interpolated surface of estimated minimum depth-to-water for 489 square kilometers along the San Francisco Bay shoreline. This rapid assessment approach identified key locations where more rigorous data collection and dynamic modeling is needed to identify risks and prevent impacts to health, buildings, and infrastructure, and develop adaptation strategies for SLR.

A Salton Sea Chronology (Prehistory-2015)

U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) | January 14th, 2016