The state Water Resources Control Board is hosting two online-only workshops on how to use its groundwater extraction annual reporting system, or GEARS, ahead of the May 1 deadline for Tule and Tulare Lake subbasin pumpers to report extractions and pay fees.
The first workshop is for groundwater sustainability agency managers on March 24 from 2 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Registration is required and can be found here.
The second workshop is for growers on March 26 from 2 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Registration is required and can be found here.
Both workshops will demonstrate how to register for GEARS and offer time for questions from participants near the end of each event.
GEARS is already live and ready for pumpers to begin reporting groundwater extractions. A user guide is available online, which breaks down how to use the website.
These reporting requirements are the result of both subbasins being placed on probation in 2024 for lacking adequate groundwater plans.
Subsidence, or land sinking, is a major issue for both areas.
In the Tulare Lake subbasin, such a large swath of land has sunk due to excessive pumping, it can be seen from space and has been nicknamed “the Corcoran bowl.”
In the Tule subbasin, over pumping sank the ground beneath a 33-mile section of the Friant-Kern Canal, costing $300 million, so far, with another $200 million in federal funding recently secured for further repairs.
Under probation, farmers are required to meter and register wells at $300 each and pay $20 per acre foot of groundwater pumped.
Failure to submit extractions by the May 1 deadline, will result in a 25% surcharge of the total monthly amount due on top of the fees.
If additional help is needed to navigate the GEARS program, pumpers can contact the Water Board at 961-322-6508, email at SGMA@waterboards.ca.gov or visit its website at gears.waterboards.ca.gov.