SJV Water is a non -profit goal, an independent online news publication, covering water in the San Joaquin Valley. Lois Henry is the CEO/editor of SJV Water. It can be found at lois.henry@sjvwater.org. The website is www.sjvwater.org.
While some groundwater managers in the obsessive subbazine of Lake Tulare are looking for ways to gather within the pumping limits to comply with the state -owned mandates, the giant agricultural firm JG Boswell remained silent and insoluble.
The company that controls the El Rico groundwater resistance agency (GSA) still plans to allow so much pumping of groundwater within its borders that the old lake of Tulare can sink – including the small town of Corcoran – with another 10 feet.
This is only a leg, less than planning in 2021, when the sub -loser, which covers the bigger part of the Kings County, presented its first management plan required under the Sustainable Group Governance Act (SGMA).
While El Rico wants another 10 feet of descent, others GSA in subbazine agreed to allow less than six additional fts, according to multiple presentations of Amer Hussain, Subbasin Plan manager and Geosynte engine engineer.
The problem has become urgent, as three of the five GSAs in the region are considering conducting a study of “native subbazine mining”.
Local yield refers to how much water is naturally accumulated through rainfall and outflow, which is not otherwise reported, without including imported surface water or river flows that are owned. Putting the local yield of the region is crucial to know how much pumping can be resolved without causing negative consequences, such as descent.
But the group must first agree on a maximum lower -down limit and then split it with each other, Hussein said.
This can be difficult with one member, El Rico, who is holding a significantly larger drain than the rest of the group.
Even if you know that the current elevation of the land of each GSA is difficult, as El Rico did not share that the information with the rest of the group and its borders are empty on satellite cards.
The Kings County Earth Cards show where the Earth is sinking, except for the El Rico groundwater resistance agency, which is almost extremely covered by the agricultural company JG Boswell. El Rico said he intends to allow so much pumping that the bed of Lake Tulare will sink, including the town of Corcoran, with another 10 feet.
Satellite data from the Ministry of Water Resources from 2015 to 2024 show elevations of the Earth for any other GSA in Kings County, with the exception of El Rico, which covers most of the old bottom of Lake Tulare.
“There’s just nothing to calibrate,” Hussein said.
A representative of El Rico could not be reached.
“Boswell does not want to share information. They do not like to deal with their business, but they have to meet the state,” said Doug Verteon, head of the Kings County and a member of the Mid-Kings River GSA River.
In 2024, the water board set a subbazine on Lake Tulare on a probationary period for lack of a coordinated plan, which, among other things, would stop the comprehensive, damage to the descent.
“I do not know how we have not coordinated; at our 11th year,” Verbon said in connection with the passage of SGMA in 2014 “I do not see this to gather.”
Not only Boswell and El Rico GSA, several GSAs are not comfortable with each other, he said.
“One (agency) will have no meetings, we do not participate in what El Rico does, Mid-Kings is trying to be transparent, South Fork Kings is on his second offer 218 elections. We are not there yet.”
Vezbuon referred to the southwestern Kings GSA, which canceled three of its scheduled meetings in 2025 and seven of its 11th meetings in 2024. The Southwestern kings are controlled by another major agricultural entity on Subbasin, Sandridge Partners.
It is not clear whether either El Rico or Southwest Kings will participate in the planned study of local yield.
Monserrat Solis covers Kings water problems for SJV through the California Local News Fellowship initiative.