Expert Reviews Support Groundwater Conservation and Safeguards
Expert reviews support the Mojave Groundwater Bank’s hydrology and groundwater safeguards.
Hydrologists and geologists have supported the conservation approach and groundwater safeguards for the Mojave Groundwater Bank, a water supply and groundwater storage project being developed by Cadiz, Inc. in partnership with public agencies and Native American tribes. Their reviews examined how groundwater moves through the basin, what feeds Bonanza Spring, and how the management plan would detect and address adverse effects. The findings support the project’s technical approach.
Summary
- Aquilogic’s 2013 hydrology review supported the Mojave Groundwater Bank’s conservation approach and found no significant projected impacts on springs, subsidence, or saline intrusion under the proposed pumping plan.
- Five experts who reviewed the 2018 Bonanza Spring assessment agreed with its conclusion that regulated project pumping would not affect the spring.
- The Mojave Groundwater Bank’s 2019 peer-review panel found its groundwater management plan adequate. Its recommendations build on that plan with additional monitoring and hydrologic analysis.
- Expert recommendations can inform the Mojave Groundwater Bank’s monitoring and adaptive management. The County-approved plan requires the Technical Review Panel to advise public agencies, which retain oversight authority.
Hydrology Review Supported Groundwater Conservation
Aquilogic’s 2013 hydrology review supported the proposed conservation of fresh groundwater before it reaches saline dry lakes and evaporates. Prepared for the Laborers’ International Union of North America as part of a litigation settlement, the review evaluated the project’s hydrologic model and the environmental analysis of groundwater use.
The report explains that the wellfield would recover stored fresh water already moving toward the dry lakes, alongside groundwater entering through natural recharge. Aquilogic found the recharge range used in the environmental analysis reasonable and conservative. Its review addressed three specific resources:
- Springs: The reviewers concluded that the proposed pumping would have no measurable effect on spring flows because the springs were not in direct hydraulic communication with the alluvial aquifer.
- Land subsidence: Aquilogic checked the model’s predicted ground movement and found levels within railroad tolerances, without a projected risk of harm to structures or the environment.
- Saline intrusion: The reviewers found that the modeled movement of saline water would not reach the proposed wellfield under the pumping plan studied.
These findings supported the hydrologic basis of the project’s conservation plan. The review considered recharge scenarios and stored groundwater together, connecting the proposed supply to the way water moves through the basin.
Spring Experts Supported the Finding of No Project Effect
Five experts who reviewed the 2018 Bonanza Spring assessment agreed with its conclusion that the project’s regulated groundwater conservation would not affect the spring. The spring-review summary records their findings and explains the geology behind them.
Cadiz commissioned geologist Miles Kenney to study Bonanza Spring. Kenney and hydrologist Terry Foreman concluded that precipitation in the surrounding mountains feeds the spring through fractured bedrock, separated from the regional alluvial aquifer by unsaturated soils and faults. That separation was the basis for their conclusion that project pumping would not affect spring flow.
Ten professionals visited the spring with the study authors in December 2017. Five subsequently reviewed the written report in January 2018: John Sharp, Dennis Williams, Tim Parker, Anthony Brown, and Mark Wildermuth. Their field observations and review supported the finding that Bonanza Spring receives locally derived groundwater and is separate from the regional alluvial aquifer.
Peer Review Found the Groundwater Management Plan Adequate
The 2019 peer review report found the Groundwater Management, Monitoring, and Mitigation Plan appropriate and sufficient to identify potentially significant adverse effects. It also found effective corrective measures for addressing those effects over the long term.
Two public water agencies with options to acquire project water commissioned the review. The panel comprised Anthony Brown, Tim Parker, Mark Wildermuth, and Dave Romero. Its work considered the environmental review, subsequent studies, groundwater-model simulations, and monitoring and mitigation for individual resources.
The panel described its recommendations as complementary additions to an adequate plan. They were intended to improve hydrologic understanding, monitoring, and confidence in effective responses.
Monitoring Recommendations Help Agencies Manage Groundwater
The 2019 panel’s recommendations built on a management plan it found adequate. Periodic model updates and recalibration would incorporate additional observations into groundwater management. The panel also recommended more frequent spring-flow and water-quality measurements, nearby groundwater monitoring, weather observations, and clearer vegetation monitoring.
These additions would help agencies compare observed conditions with model projections and evaluate the effectiveness of safeguards. For effects that respond slowly to pumping changes, the panel identified resource-specific measures to evaluate alongside adjustments at the wellfield.
The Technical Review Panel provides the ongoing advisory review specified by the County-approved management plan. It evaluates monitoring data and recommends management actions to the responsible agencies. It can consider recommendations made by independent peer review.
San Bernardino County retains final oversight decisions, and Santa Margarita Water District retains its enforcement responsibilities. The project’s safe-yield plan connects the planned supply with this monitoring and adaptive management.
Expert Findings Support Conservation With Groundwater Oversight
Reviews by hydrologists and geologists support the Mojave Groundwater Bank’s conservation approach, its assessment of Bonanza Spring, and the adequacy of its groundwater management plan. The reviews explain why stored-water recovery can support supply, why spring specialists expected no project effect, and how monitoring and corrective measures would protect resources.
Recommendations for model updates and additional monitoring give public agencies practical ways to refine groundwater management as observations accumulate. The Technical Review Panel’s advisory role and the agencies’ oversight connect that scientific work to project operations.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who Commissioned the Hydrology and Management-Plan Reviews?
Aquilogic prepared its 2013 hydrology review for the Laborers’ International Union of North America as part of a litigation settlement. Two public water agencies commissioned the 2019 management-plan review; both held options to acquire project water at that time.
How Did Experts Review the Bonanza Spring Assessment?
Ten professionals participated in the December 2017 field visit. Five reviewed the written report in January 2018 and agreed with its conclusion that regulated groundwater conservation at Cadiz would not affect Bonanza Spring.
Why Did the 2019 Panel Recommend Additions to the Groundwater Management Plan?
The panel’s recommendations built on a management plan it found adequate. They included model updates, additional spring monitoring, and evaluation of resource-specific responses to improve hydrologic understanding and groundwater management.
Is the 2019 Peer-Review Panel the Same as the Technical Review Panel?
A four-member team of technical experts formed the peer-review panel that assessed the groundwater management plan in 2019. A three-member Technical Review Panel specified by the County-approved plan was formed by the County and Santa Margarita Water District and has an ongoing advisory role, reviewing monitoring information and recommending actions to public agencies responsible for oversight.
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