2021 California-EU-Australia Workshop

November, 2021 – A California-European Union-Australia Workshop on SGMA Implementation, Economic Issues, Water-Energy-Food Nexus: Comparison and Lessons Learned from European Union and Australia

Although the adoption of SGMA is considered as a positive development in the management of groundwater, its implementation is not always as effective as it should be, and
gaps may exist between the law as it has been conceived and written and the reality of its implementation. Major issues of concern are inadequate legislation with possible governance gaps; budgetary constraints as some local government organizations may have difficulty in accommodating SGMA technical requirements; economic aspects as significant investments in adequate infrastructure development for groundwater management are needed, as well as technical advice and help with building organizational expertise; public participation with a more transparent approach and equitable water management; groundwater resilience,
especially related to climate change; and conflict resolution between stakeholders.

A workshop will be held on-line on November 8 and 9, 2021, with the objective of checking the status of SGMA implementation and helping find practical answers to the major
issues of concern. It will gather experts from the European Union and Australia during a day and a half to explore alternative solutions experienced in these countries and compare to the California situation. The European Union has adopted the 2000 Water Framework Directive and the 2006 Groundwater Directive whose implementations are facing similar problems as the implementation of California 2014 SGMA, while Australia, facing severe drought issues, has developed innovative methods to better managing its water resources and dealing with overdraft and overuse of groundwater, such as conjunctive use of ground and surface water, managed aquifer recharge, groundwater trading and banking, as well as economic instruments for the pricing of groundwater and its value.

Scientific Committee

• Chair
  • Jean Fried
    Professor and Project Scientist, Department of Urban Planning and Public Policy, University of California, Irvine
• Members
  • Erik Ekdahl
    Deputy Director, Division of Water Rights, State Water Resources Control Board
  • David Feldman
    Professor and Director Water UCI, Department of Planning and Public Policy, University of California, Irvine
  • Jacques Ganoulis
    Emeritus Professor, Former Special State Secretary for Water of Greece, UNESCO Chair INWEB, Civil Engineering Department, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
  • Adam Hutchinson
    Recharge Planning Manager, Orange County Water District
  • Eric Reichard
    Acting Regional Director, US Geological Survey, Southwest Region, Internal Regions 8 (Lower Colorado Basin) and 10 (California great Basin)
  • Craig T. Simmons
    FTSE Matthew Flinders Distinguished Professor of Hydrogeology, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia; Fellow, Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering
  • Steven Springhorn
    Groundwater Technical Assistance Manager at the California Department of Water Resources, Sustainable Groundwater Management Office