Challenge: To help the Kern Subbasin avoid probation and transition out of state intervention by providing technical coordination and stakeholder engagement support for the groundwater sustainability planning efforts of the Subbasin’s 20 groundwater sustainability agencies under California’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA).
Solution: The Kern Subbasin’s 2022 Groundwater Sustainability Plans were determined to be inadequate, meaning the Subbasin would be transitioning to state intervention under State Water Resources Control Board oversight with the risk of probation. With prior subsidence and well mitigation experience in the San Joaquin Valley, INTERA was able to quickly step into the role of providing technical coordination, stakeholder engagement, and groundwater sustainability plan support for the entire Subbasin.
As the Subbasin team worked to address state concerns and avoid probation, INTERA helped coordinate technical analyses across the Subbasin’s many agencies and consultant teams. We balanced widely different hydrogeologic conditions, water supplies, land uses, and local priorities while helping stakeholders align around a single, basin-wide groundwater sustainability strategy. INTERA’s technical coordination role focused on ensuring consistency, scientific defensibility, and clear integration between the many technical components of the plan. INTERA also led the sustainable management criteria (SMC) evaluation for subsidence along the Friant Kern Canal (FKC), working closely with GSAs and the Friant Water Authority to develop coordinated SMCs and a collaborative mitigation program to address ongoing and future subsidence that may impair the FKCs conveyance capacity. A testament to this effort was FWA’s letter of support for the Kern Subbasin Plan.
At the same time, INTERA played a leading role in developing and implementing an effective community outreach and engagement strategy. The team organized workshops, attended community events throughout the basin, met directly with growers and advocacy organizations, and translated technical and complex SGMA requirements into practical, understandable information tailored to different audiences. By helping stakeholders understand both the technical details and real-world implications of groundwater management decisions, INTERA built trust and encouraged broader participation in the planning process.
Results: In September 2025, the State Water Resources Control Board unanimously approved the Kern Subbasin’s return from state intervention to oversight by the California Department of Water Resources. State officials specifically cited improved coordination across the Subbasin’s 20 groundwater sustainability agencies, stronger technical analyses, and significant progress in community outreach and engagement efforts.
View the State announcement: Kern County Subbasin avoids probation under SGMA and returns to DWR oversight | California State Water Resources Control Board
