Sustainability indices to evaluate groundwater adaptive management: a case study in California (USA) for the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act

Thomas, Brian F.

Sustainability indices to evaluate groundwater adaptive management: a case study in California (USA) for the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act | Indices de durabilité en vue d’évaluer une gestion adaptative des eaux souterraines: une étude de cas en Californie (USA) au titre de la Loi de Gestion Durable des Eaux Souterraines Índices de sostenibilidad para evaluar la gestión adaptativa del agua subterránea: un estudio de caso en California (EEUU) para la Ley de Gestión Sostenible del Agua Subterránea 评估地下水合适管理的可持续性指数:为地下水可持续管理行动而在(美国)加利福尼亚州进行的一个实例研究 Índices de sustentabilidade para avaliar o manejo adaptativo das águas subterrâneas: um estudo de caso na Califórnia (EUA) para a Lei de Gestão Sustentável das Águas Subterrâneas

2019

Thomas, Brian F.

The Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) enacted in California (USA) outlines legal standards to regulate groundwater management. A key requirement of SGMA is local-scale adaptive management, which requires evaluation of measurable objectives defined by local water users. The objective of this study is to illustrate a groundwater sustainability framework using performance indicators and groundwater-level elevation records that may be used to quantify objective management strategy outcomes. Application of the framework to groundwater basins in the Central Valley identified spatial variability in groundwater-basin sustainability indices, attributed to complex interactions between climate and groundwater use. Further, a temporal assessment of performance indicators documented the utility of the framework to evaluate the performance of adaptive management implementations. The proposed framework can be used to inform management decisions and identify future intervention management strategies.

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