Turlock Groundwater Basin Association August 20, 2012 Via at Mr. Gary Caseri Stanislaus County Agricultural Commissioner

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19 Turlock Groundwater Basin Association August 20, 2012 Via at Mr. Gary Caseri Stanislaus County Agricultural Commissioner 3800 Cornucopia Way, Suite B Modesto, CA Attn: AAB Comments RE: Groundwater Export Ordinance Dear Mr. Caseri: The undersigned water purveyors appreciate the opportunity to provide comments on Stanislaus County s proposed Groundwater Export Ordinance (the Ordinance ). We have individually and collectively provided comments on earlier drafts of the Ordinance, and those previous comments, where applicable, are hereby incorporated.

20 Mr. Gary Caseri August 20, 2012 Page 2 We write this letter because we have significant concerns regarding the proposed groundwater ordinance. Not only do the entities below provide both surface and groundwater to most of the land within Stanislaus County, our agencies have been conjunctively managing these important water resources for well over 100 years. Our considerable expertise and knowledge gained from the combined management of the surface and groundwater resources during this time should not be overlooked. For example, several of the entities listed below have formed the Turlock Groundwater Basin Association. The Association has prepared and adopted a Groundwater Management Plan which it has continually updated. The Basin Management Objectives of the plan are consistent with the stated objectives of the Ordinance and include maintaining an adequate water level in the groundwater basin, protecting groundwater quality, monitoring groundwater extraction to reduce the potential for land subsidence, and promoting conjunctive use of groundwater and surface waters. Other entities listed below within the County are also actively managing groundwater basins pursuant to adopted groundwater management plans such as (1) the Northern Delta- Mendota Canal Groundwater Management Plan which is focused on groundwater in the westerly part of Stanislaus County, (2) the Integrated Groundwater Management Plan for the Modesto Subbasin which covers the groundwater basin between the Stanislaus and Tuolumne Rivers and east of the San Joaquin River, and (3) the San Joaquin River Exchange Contractors Water Authority Update AB 3030 Groundwater Management Plan which includes a portion of Stanislaus County south of Crows Landing and west of the San Joaquin River. As an initial matter we believe that the County should better define the goals and objectives of the Ordinance. The Ordinance appears to be a solution in search of a problem. While it is labeled as a Groundwater Export Ordinance, the proposed ordinance, if adopted, would regulate groundwater use and extraction, the use and application of surface water, groundwater banking, and the use of recycled waste water, in addition to groundwater export. The County should take a step back and identify what problems exist with respect to groundwater, what tools are available currently to address any identified problems, and then propose an ordinance to address those problems that lack current solutions. It appears that the Ordinance was pasted together from previous drafts and from ordinances borrowed from other counties, and, as a result, we find that the Ordinance is both poorly drafted and difficult to follow. The Ordinance attempts to address too many issues at once. Is it a groundwater export ordinance? Is it a surface water export ordinance? Is it a groundwater banking ordinance? Finally, we do not believe that more fees and additional government bureaucracy are the answer. The ground and surface water resources are already adequately protected by a myriad of local plans, county regulation, and state laws and regulations. Additional oversight is not needed and only further burdens the residents in the County. The undersigned are committed to cooperating with the County to protect the groundwater resource for the beneficial use of all of its residents. At the same time, we are committed to protecting our resources, including the conjunctive use of surface and groundwater within our

21 Mr. Gary Caseri August 20, 2012 Page 3 respective boundaries and providing our growers and municipal, commercial, and industrial customers with a reliable, safe, efficient, and cost-effective water supply. Our staffs are available for assistance in revising the Ordinance. Sincerely, Steve Knell, P.E. General Manager Oakdale Irrigation District Robert M. Nees Assistant General Manager, Water Resources Turlock Irrigation District Allen Short Chief Executive Officer San Joaquin Tributaries Authority Christopher L. White, LS PE General Manager Central California Irrigation District Bill Harrison General Manager Del Puerto Water District John Sweigard General Manager Merced Irrigation District Jeff Shields General Manager South San Joaquin Irrigation District Walter P. Ward Assistant General Manager, Water Operations Modesto Irrigation District Robert M. Nees Chairperson Turlock Groundwater Basin Association Peter M. Rietkerk, P.E. General Manager Patterson Irrigation District Bobby Pierce General Manager West Stanislaus Irrigation District James G. Crecelius Chairman, Board of Directors Eastside Water District cc: William O Brien, District 1 Supervisor Vito Chiesa, District 2 Supervisor Terry Withrow, District 3 Supervisor Dick Monteith, District 4 Supervisor Jim DeMartini, District 5 Supervisor Monica Nino, Chief Executive Officer

31 ~;~ MODESTO CALIFORNIA Utility Planning & Projects Department Utility Planning & Projects Department August22, Tenth Street Suites 4500 & 4600 P.G. Box 642 Modesto. CA (209) Administration (209) (209) Fax I Dear Mr. Caseri, Mr. Gary Caseri Stanislaus County Agricultural Commissioner's Office 3800 Cornucopia Way, Suite B Modesto, CA RE: City of Modesto's Response to the "Draft Groundwater Export Ordinance (Regulation)", dated June 27,2012 Capital Improvement Services: Capital Planning (209) (209) Fax Construction Administration (209) (209) Fax Engineering Design (209) (209) Fax The City of Modesto has reviewed the "Draft Groundwater Export Ordinance (Regulation)", dated June 27, 2012, proposed by the Stanislaus County Agricultural Commissioner's Office. The City of Modesto supports efforts to ensure that our groundwater resources are sustainable by curtailing activities that could lead to overdraft of our groundwater basins. However, the draft ordinance as proposed would have an impact on the City of Modesto's water resource management programs and could potentially constrain the City's ability to provide water to its existing and future customers. These constraints would limit existing businesses and residents and would hinder future economic development of the region. Therefore, the City of Modesto has the following comments regarding the proposed draft ordinance: General Comments: 1. The County does not have the expertise nor the resources to adequately manage many of the provisions contained within the ordinance. 2. The Declaration of intent for the ordinance states... "the Board intends to ensure that extraction of groundwater does not exceed safe yield as set forth in this ordinance." The "safe yield" has not been scientifically determined for the ground water basins within the County. Nor are there any efforts underway to establish this metric. This illustrates that this ordinance is problematic given that the basic premise for establishing the intent of the ordinance has not yet been quantified. Hearing and Speech Impaired Only TDD Citizens First!

32 ~;~ MODESTO CALIFORNIA Utility Planning & Projtcts Deparrment Mr. Gary Caseri Stanislaus County Agricultural Commissioner's Office August 22, 2012 RE: City of Modesto's Response to the "Draft Groundwater Export Ordinance (Regulation)" Page Two 3. To date, the County has not adopted either the Stanislaus and Tuolumne Rivers Groundwater Basin Association's Integrated Regional Groundwater Management Plan (2005) or the Turlock Groundwater Basin Association's Groundwater Management Plan (2008) even though the County is a member of both associations. This presents a problem when there are so many inferences throughout the draft ordinance that relate to the use of groundwater basin best management practices; however, the County does not currently have an adopted document that sets a standard to measure performance against. 4. The storage of surface water within the aquifer is a complex issue that is not adequately addressed in the ordinance and should be exempted from the ordinance at this time. Aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) projects are already regulated by the Regional Water Quality Control Board. Adding another layer of permitting by an agency that is not equipped to handle the complexities involved will put future ASR projects in jeopardy, possibly eliminating this critical tool from future water resource management strategies. 5. The City of Modesto firmly believes that this issue should be discussed in a collaborative process that involves all the impacted agencies that are purveyors of water within the region. However, if the County proceeds with the ordinance, the City of Modesto has the following specific comments regarding the proposed ordinance: Specific Comments: 6. Section X.xx.01 0 Findinqs and Declaration of Intent. a. In the fourth "Whereas" statement, please exclude the following redlined text: Whereas, the export of the County's groundwater outside of County boundaries ::md groundwater banking is hereafter regulated as set forth in this ordinance. Citizens First!

33 ~rl~ MODESTO CALIFORNIA U!1lity Planning & Projtffi Deparrmenr Mr. Gary Caseri Stanislaus County Agricultural Commissioner's Office August22,2012 RE: City of Modesto's Response to the "Draft Groundwater Export Ordinance (Regulation)" Page Three b. Declaration of intent: please include the following text: I. First paragraph, last sentence: It is not the intent of this ordinance to regulate the normal, intra-county management and use of water by individuals, water districts, irrigation districts, drainage districts, or cities/ municipalities; specifically Groundwater banking within the County or the movement of recycled wastewater outside of the County. 3. Section X.xx.020 Definitions. a. Please include the following inclusion/exclusion under this section, which will cause renumbering of the definitions: 2. "City" or "Cities" means an incorporated city wholly or in part located within the boundaries of the County. which is a purveyor of waters for agricultural. domestic. or municipal use. Listed cities refer to those that currently serve the citizens of Stanislaus County: Ceres. HUGhson. Modesto. Newman. Patterson. Turlock. and Waterford. 7. "Ground'lKJt{)r banking" is storing surfaoe wator in the ground by ahowing it to percolate directly into the wator aquifer or by substituting ground'lkjtor pumping for.c:1lrf.1r.a 1Ij..';)t-nr 4. Section X.xx.030 County authorization required for extraction of qroundwater a. In the first paragraph, please remove the following redlined text: It shall be unlawful to export or transfer surface water that is replaced by an increase in groundwater pumping within the County, engage in, or allow direct groundwater export out of the Citizens First!

34 a;/j MODESTO CALIFORNIA Utility Planning & Projects lkparrment Mr. Gary Caseri Stanislaus County Agricultural Commissioner's Office August 22, 2012 RE: City of Modesto's Response to the "Draft Groundwater Export Ordinance (Regulation)" Page Four County or engage in groundv/ater banking without first obtaining conditional authorization as set forth in this chapter. b. In the second paragraph, please remove the following red lined text: 3. Groundwater banking in the County, as sot forth in ~nr.tinn )( }()(nan nf thi_~nrrlin~mnn nr c. In the third paragraph, please clarify the following: An Export Permit will have a validity of up to five years. It may be renewed [for how lonq?l as long as the conditions that led to the initial authorization remain in effect. 5. Section X.xx.050 Exempted extraction and exportation of qroundwater Please include the following text: A. Extraction of groundwater by a listed and locally recognized city. or water, irrigation, or drainage District serving residents of the County. D. Out-of-county recharge of a groundwater basin that extends into the County can in some instances be of overall benefit to the County, and when implemented by a city. or water, irrigation, or drainage district, is exempt from permitting so long as such activity does not include extraction of groundwater from the County. 6. Section X.xx.060 Groundwater bankinq proiects - Please remove this entire section. Citizens First!

35 ~;IJ MODESTO CALIFORNIA Utility Planning & Projtcts Otpartmtnl Mr. Gary Caseri Stanislaus County Agricultural Commissioner's Office August 22,2012 RE: City of Modesto's Response to the "Draft Groundwater Export Ordinance (Regulation)" Page Five 7. Section X.xx.080 Application for an Export Permit - Please consider including the following recommendation: D... the Agricultural Commissioner; County Planning Department; water irrigation, and drainage Districts; cities/municipalities; and property owners within a one mile radius of the project area shall be notified in writing and invited to attend the hearing. {The other aqencies within the County should be notified of the hearing regardless of the distance away from the site.' 8. Section X.xx130 Inspection - Please remove the following red lined text: A. The Director of the DER, or his or her representative may at any and all reasonable times enter any and all places, property, enclosures, and structures used for a water transfer/export operations. or aroundvlator banking for the purposes of inspection. Groundwater is a significant resource that must be managed to ensure its sustainability, but it must be done in a manner that does not hinder the future of the region. The City of Modesto currently manages its water resources through the conjunctive use of both groundwater and surface water, which has benefited the region by stabilizing the groundwater supply in Modesto's service area. The City of Modesto has adopted strategic initiatives that include the management of groundwater through increased monitoring and modeling, as well as the future implementation of aquifer recharge projects. Modesto is also involved in a collaborative effort to utilize recycled water in the region which may be unintentionally hampered by this ordinance. We want to be sure that the proposed "Draft Groundwater Export Ordinance" does not negatively impact the City of Modesto's groundwater management, conjunctive use, aquifer banking, or recycled water programs. Citizens First!

36 ~i~ MODESTO CALIFORNIA Utility Planning & Projects Departmenr Mr. Gary Caseri Stanislaus County Agricultural Commissioner's Office August 22, 2012 RE: City of Modesto's Response to the "Draft Groundwater Export Ordinance (Regulation)" Page Six Therefore, we respectfully request that Stanislaus County address our comments and concerns prior to adopting the proposed ordinance. If you have any questions, or need further information, please call me at (209) Sincerely, Richard Ulm City of Modesto Director of Utility Planning and Projects cc: Greg Nyhoff, City Manager Dennis Turner, Director of Public Works David Savidge, Acting Deputy Director of Public Works Citizens First!