Drinking water supply well monitoring is a new regulatory requirement for Sacramento Valley growers/landowners starting January 1, 2022. Rice growers in the Sacramento Valley are automatically members of the Sacramento Valley Rice Growers Coalition, with the requirement specific to wells that supply drinking water on parcels where rice is produced. Drinking water supply wells on non-rice parcels receive coverage under the Sacramento River Watershed Coalition. Rice grown in the San Joaquin Valley starts earlier and growers/landowners are directed to the local water quality coalition.*
The regulation requires growers/landowners to monitor drinking water supply wells and report directly to the Central Valley Water Board. The CRC’s requirement is to make you aware of this directive and provide information. You will recall that we spoke to this regulation at the grower meetings held earlier this year. The information on grower/landowner drinking water well monitoring and reporting is currently available through the online continuing education course, which doubles as your one place to download materials for program compliance.
Downloadable documents from the Central Valley Water Board include the following:
- Drinking Water Well Outreach Letter
- Drinking Water Well Member Information Form (revised for rice growers)
- Use when submitting samples to the laboratory
- Notification template for nitrate exceedances in excess of 10 mg/L
- Available in English, Spanish, Punjabi and Hmong
- Additional Informational materials
- Drinking Water Well Frequently Asked Questions
- Drinking Water Well Quick Guide
Future materials include a list of laboratories north of Sacramento
- In development with staff at the Central Valley Water Board
- Link to ELAP certified labs is included in the course and materials
The link to the course and the available materials is: https://agceuonline.com/courses
Partnering with the Farm Progress AgCEUOnline.com program, the course is available online 24/7 and includes accreditation through the Department of Pesticide Regulation (1-hour Other) and the Certified Crop Adviser (0.5 NM, IPM and CM). It takes approximately one hour to complete and includes a 25-question quiz where the user must score 70 percent to earn credit.
You can take the first part of the course specifically for the drinking water supply well monitoring information and download the documents if there is no interest in continuing education credits.
Your drinking water supply well questions should be answered in the course and downloadable documents. We will provide additional information and clarifications as necessary.
For questions and additional information, please contact Roberta Firoved, Industry Affairs Manager at rfiroved@calrice.org or (916) 206-5039.
*2019 East San Joaquin Water Quality Coalition
2020 Tulare Lake Basin Coalitions
2021 West San Joaquin; San Joaquin & Delta; Grasslands Drainage Area
2022 Sacramento Valley; California Rice Commission; Western Tulare Lake Basin
https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/centralvalley/water_issues/irrigated_lands/regulatory_information/for_growers/coalition_groups/
