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Groundwater Sustainability

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The City of Vacaville formed a Groundwater Sustainability Agency (Vacaville GSA) in April 2017 to manage groundwater resources beneath and within the City limits. The City Council serves as the board for the Vacaville GSA.

The Vacaville GSA has collaborated with other local GSAs to develop a Groundwater Sustainability Plan (GSP). This plan identifies how the agencies will manage local groundwater resources sustainably. The City Council approved and adopted the final Groundwater Sustainability Plan on December 14, 2021, and the GSP was submitted to the State Department of Water Resources (DWR) on January 27, 2022.

For an brief overview of the GSP, please view the English Executive Summary Abstract or Spanish Executive Summary Abstract.

Visit Solano GSP to learn more about the current status of the plan, its implementation and the collaborative effort. Sign up at Solano GSP for regular e-mail updates on the GSP process.

The Solano Sub-basin

The City of Vacaville lies on top of the Solano Sub-Basin of the Sacramento Valley Groundwater Basin. In 2014, DWR identified the Solano Sub-Basin as a medium-priority basin, and maintained the priority level in the 2019 prioritization update.

The Vacaville GSA has partnered with other GSAs within the Solano Sub-Basin as part of a coordinating group known as the Solano Collaborative. This group is working together to create a single GSP for the sub-basin.

Other GSAs within the Solano Sub-Basin include:

View the Solano Subbasin Interactive map.

Educational information about groundwater and how it is used within the Solano Sub-Basin is available at the Groundwater Guide website.

Reference sites:

SolanoGSP.com - Spanish: https://www.solanogsp.com/outreach/espanol/
SolanoGSP.com - GSP Page: https://www.solanogsp.com/viewgsp/
Groundwater Guide - English: https://groundwaterguide.com/
Groundwater Guide - Spanish: https://groundwaterguide.com/inicio/

Agency Formation

On April 11, 2017, City Council directed staff to form an exclusive GSA for the City of Vacaville.

A notice of the intent to form a GSA was published in accordance with California Government Code Section 6066, and a public hearing was held on April 25, 2017. Following the public hearing, City Council adopted Resolution No. 2017-046 to become a GSA.

The City filed an official notice with DWR on April 28, 2017.

Sustainable Groundwater Management in California

In September 2014, Governor Brown signed the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). This act establishes a groundwater management structure within California and empowers local agencies to manage basins sustainably.

SGMA also:

Establishes a definition of “sustainable groundwater management.”
Requires that agencies in priority groundwater basins adopt Groundwater Sustainability Plans.
Establishes a timetable for adoption of Groundwater Sustainability Plans.
Establishes basic requirements for Groundwater Sustainability Plans.

For additional information on groundwater management in California, please see the following state websites:

Groundwater in the Solano Sub-basin Video

Utilities Administration